Agenda

21 January 2019, Monday

FOOD RECALLS AND CRISIS MANAGEMENT WORKSHOP BY THE RECALL INSTITUTE

Steven Hather
Director
The Recall Institute

A series of product recall crises in the Australian food industry recently has significantly influenced consumers’ perception of food safety. The underlying concern is whether dwindling consumer confidence will spill over to other Australian food products. Earlier this year, a listeria outbreak linked to rockmelons claimed the lives of 6 people. This incident caused a 90% drop in rockmelon sales across Australia, leaving consumers deeply concerned about the safety of rockmelons. The next product recall crisis could trigger call for increased regulation that regulators would have to respond. Two key concerns stemming from food recalls are loss in sales and loss in brand reputation. This workshop will address any food recall challenges and equip delegates with powerful brand reputation protection strategies.

Outline of Workshop

• Why incidents and product recalls escalate into a brand crisis, and what you can do to prevent that
• How social media has changed the landscape for food companies when managing complaints, incidents and product recalls
• A product recall can have a positive impact on your brand, if managed well
• Why your current product recall and crisis management plan won’t prevent a crisis, and a 10-step, 2-page plan by The Recall Institute will
• The key leadership skills required for your management team to keep your company out of a crisis
• Why your existing mock recall is unlikely to have any impact on preparing you for a product recall

FOOD SAFETY INNOVATIONS SITE TOUR AT THE UNIVERSITY OF MELBOURNE

Food companies around the world are increasingly concerned about the implications of foodborne outbreaks and rising concern on food fraud and safety standards. This gives rise to a stronger demand for traceability from suppliers and new measures to improve overall food safety standards. This site tour will show you the latest innovations in food safety, processing and traceability. Discover Biometrics and Sensory Analytic at University of Melbourne, the first in Australia. Combining invasive & non-invasive method, measurement of the sub-conscience dimension for preference of Food & Beverages become possible with Biometrics and Sensory Analytic.

FOOD SAFETY INNOVATIONS SITE TOUR AT INSPECTION SYSTEMS

As the demand for food safety standards grows, X-ray detection is growing alongside it as the ideal gatekeeper. Spotting contaminants in food before it leaves the factory holds enormous potential to prevent foodborne outbreaks, mass recalls and other disasters. Join us for a tour of one of Australia’s leaders in food screening technology, Inspection Systems, where you will witness a demonstration of the latest X-ray detectors. You will also learn how near-infrared fat, moisture and protein measurement, as well as non-invasive temperature measurement, further help food producers ensure food safety and compliance with associated regulations.

22 January 2019, Tuesday

• Highlights on Forum Day 1 Key Sessions

• IoT devices and connected technologies like wireless temperature sensors, video cameras and automated data management systems together with predictive analytics present valuable data points to implement more proactive measures for food safety
• Smart sensor and traceability technologies enable up-to-date product information for consumers, including raw material provenance, sustainability data and allergen information
• Automation and analytics improve quality control and promote food safety by helping food manufacturers hone in on problem areas in the supply chain to prevent food contamination

• Driving for closed loop solutions by increasing the recycling of valuable plastic waste and avoid it being littered into the oceans
• Strengthening collaboration with key stakeholders to achieve common sustainability goals across the value chain
• Working towards a circular economy by understanding and addressing market, societal and environmental needs

• Membrane Processing

• Using Authentication to Engage with Customers at the Point of Sales and Beyond

• Plastics Packaging and Marine Litter Challenges and Solutions in Australasia

• Minimizing Listeria Risk Up to the Point of Consumption

• DNA barcoding is a molecular technology that allows identification of any biological species by amplifying, sequencing and querying genic information
• DNA barcoding when used for food labeling, supports food safety and uncovers food piracy in freshly commercialized and technologically processed products
• DNA barcoding is a relatively simple, cheap and trustworthy technology
• DNATrax, a tasteless and odorless spray infused with DNA, which acts as a marker and carries food origin information, is vital in tracking and stopping spread of foodborne illnesses – once the spray has been administered to food, it can be scanned electronically and traced back to its point of origin

• Seamless tracking of food products from origin to till is of vital importance to quality monitoring, tracing and response in the event of a crisis
• Serialization offers opportunities to the food retail and wholesale trade sector, and performs a wide range of tasks from controlling internal logistical processes, monitoring of distribution chains, through to offering product-specific value-added services
• Serialization simplifies many processes and makes it possible to trace the route a product has taken

• Consumer traceability, and engagement with consumers via QR codes for authentication and provenance
• Internal traceability, implementation of electronic traceability from farm to fork including single global repository, visualization technology, and automated data capture
• Change management experience and learnings

23 January 2019, Wednesday

• Highlights on Forum Day 2 Key Session

• A quick overview of Fonterra’s burning platform – what led Fonterra to focus strongly on food safety culture
• How Fonterra got started – the model Fonterra has adopted and the behavioral science approach underpinning their work
• What Fonterra has achieved so far and how they measure that
• What Fonterra is doing now to make the change integrated and sustainable

• Being the most modern, parallel, high-throughput DNA sequencing available, NGS-based food tests and software analytics have potential to significantly improve scalability and accessibility of food safety and quality measures
• Nature named NGS as its “method of the year” for 2007, with NGS taking pathogen characterization and food authentication to the next level a decade later
• Pathogen detection: GenomeTrakr, database used for genome sequencing, has been developed for identification of foodborne pathogens to determine points of origin and allows quick reactions by identifying location and size of a potential pathogen outbreak

• Technological advances have made x-ray inspection systems more affordable, reliable and easier to use, with improved image quality and detection capabilities
• X-ray systems can inspect right through metalized film or foil packaging materials to detect very small contaminants inside
• X-ray measures density and is usually more sensitive than a metal detector due to its advanced image generation and detection technology – when coupled with computer analysis, x-ray systems can find any dense, sharp-edged contaminant such as glass, stone, plastic and bone

• Smartness in packaging includes integrity retention, shelf-life extension, product attribute enhancement, active response to product changes
• Smart packaging allows communication of product information to user, indication of seal integrity and confirmation of product authenticity
• Intelligent packaging materials monitor condition of packaged food or surrounding environment, by providing information on food freshness with temperature time indicators, biosensors, ripeness indicators and radiofrequency identification systems

• Active packaging contributes toward preservation of food color and texture
• Active packaging materials absorb or release substances to improve packaged food quality or extend its shelf life by including carbon dioxide absorbers or emitters, odor absorbers, ethylene removers and aroma emitters
• Active packaging work closely with sensor technology and packaging materials embedded with smart technologies for control and monitoring of moisture, temperature and oxygen to lower oxidation, control respiration rate, arrest microbial growth and eliminate moisture migration