Food Safety rapidly evolving in a digital world

Emerging digital innovation creates tremendous food safety opportunities according to speakers at the 9^th annual Maple Leaf Foods Food Safety Symposium

MISSISSAUGA, ON, Oct. 3, 2017 /CNW/ - Digital innovation and disruption spans most aspects of society, and food safety is benefiting from emerging new capabilities and developments, participants learned at the 9^th annual Maple Leaf Foods Food Safety Symposium.

According to symposium speakers and panelists, the power and pace of digital innovation is introducing profound changes and opportunities that have the potential to significantly benefit how food safety is conceptualized and managed.

At the event, more than 250 registered attendees from 130 companies and organizations were represented discussing latest developments, issues and trends in food safety.  This year's event was themed "Food Safety in a Digital World".  The event challenged participants to think about how technology can help reimagine food safety progress and performance, challenging thinking about traditional and status quo systems in which food is produced to explore futuristic but tangible examples of how the digital landscape is changing and impacting food production.

Speakers covered a broad range of technology-related food safety topics including traceability using blockchain technology, DNA-based analytics, using analytics to drive cultural change, and regulatory developments such as risk based modeling to drive outcome based inspection.

Symposium speakers included:

• Frank Yiannas, Vice-President, Food Safety and Health, Walmart
• Paul Glover, President, Canadian Food Inspection Agency
• Hugo Andres Gutierrez, Vice-President, Quality, Food Safety & Regulatory Affairs, The Hershey Company
• Tom McGinnis, Partner, Deloitte & Touche
• Martin Wiedmann, Professor of Food Safety, Cornell University
• Tom Zander, Senior Vice-President & General Manager, Food & Beverage, Ecolab
• Randy Huffman, Chief Food Safety & Sustainability Officer, Maple Leaf Foods
• Andreas Liris, Chief Information Officer, Maple Leaf Foods

"The annual Maple Leaf Foods Food Safety Symposium is a key part of our deeply entrenched commitment to be a food safety leader in the world," said Dr. Randy Huffman, Chief Food Safety and Sustainability Officer. "As today's Symposium demonstrated, food safety is constantly evolving and organizations must embrace continued investments and innovative approaches."

About the Maple Leaf Foods Food Security Symposium:

Maple Leaf Foods has a commitment to transparency and collaboration regarding Food Safety through sharing best practices and encouraging continuous improvement toward a collective industry goal of producing safe food. In support of this objective, the company has hosted thousands of industry stakeholders over the last 9 years who gather for a day of dialog, debate and learning about important and timely Food Safety topics. We strive to provide a forum of open dialog and progressive learning that provides attendees with practical take-home ideas that can make their operations better.

About Maple Leaf Foods:

Maple Leaf Foods Inc. is a leading consumer protein company, making high quality, innovative products under national brands including Maple Leaf®, Maple Leaf Prime®, Maple Leaf® Natural Selections®, Schneiders®, Schneiders® Country Naturals®, Mina® and Lightlife™. The Company employs approximately 11,500 people and does business in North America and Asia. The Company is headquartered in Mississauga, Ontario and its shares trade on the Toronto Stock Exchange (MFI).

SOURCE Maple Leaf Foods Inc.