NZFSA Prospering With Safe Food conference

NZFSA Prospering With Safe Food conference

Prospering With Safe Food is the theme of this year's New Zealand Food Safety Authority (NZFSA) conference, which will be held over two days in November.

The conference will provide attendees with valuable and worthwhile insights into the wide variety of developments and issues affecting the food industry here and overseas.

NZFSA Executive Director Andrew McKenzie says: "Considering that 80% of food produced in New Zealand is exported overseas, international developments need to be understood. One of the topics on the agenda is science and new technology, an area which encompasses developments in food production and which underpins NZFSA's food safety programme."

International food safety experts have brought insight and up-to-date views to earlier conferences and this year's speakers will come from Ireland, Australia and Britain.

Among them will be Professor Bill Reilly, chairman of Britain's Advisory Committee on the Microbiological Safety of Food, and Stephen Airey, head of HACCP Policy at the United Kingdom Food Standards Agency(UKFSA).

Professor Reilly, a board member of the UKFSA, is also honorary professor at the University of Glasgow Veterinary School. He will be discussing the changing epidemiology of foodborne infection. Mr Airey leads the UKFSA's Safer Food = Better Business project which develops and implements food safety for small businesses.

Also presenting a keynote address is John O'Brien, Chief Executive Officer of the Food Safety Authority of Ireland. FSAI is a leader in Europe in food safety initiatives and approaches to risk management, and insights since its inception in 1998 will prove valuable for the New Zealand situation.

Trans-Tasman issues are another topic of much interest and relate to many in the industry dealing with trade. Food Standards Australia New Zealand chair, the Hon Rob Knowles, will be on hand to discuss this further, and New South Wales Food Authority Chief Executive George Davey will talk about his organisation's experience of working in partnership with local government.

Policy and standards-setting experts within NZFSA will update delegates on the progress of three major reviews covering Domestic, Wild, and Imported Foods. There will also be opportunities to attend workshops and 'pot luck' updates based on NZFSA's core business of science-based research, decision making, policy setting, market access and domestic and exported food standards.

The conference, which costs $600 for the two days, has been priced to make it as affordable as possible for everybody with an interest in attending.

It will be held at The Heritage Hotel in Auckland on November 1 and 2 – places are strictly limited and delegates are encouraged to register early. Registration forms can be downloaded from NZFSA's website (www.nzfsa.govt.nz) where presentations from last year's conference are also available in the events section.

ENDS

© Scoop Media