Association History 1911-2000

The ‘50s

The 1950 Annual Meeting featured a new dimension, the motion picture, which provided technical information as well as entertainment. Featured this year were breakfasts attended by various committees, boards and groups; these gatherings facilitated the exchange of information while they enhanced friendships. The experiment of running the Meeting for four days, including Sunday, seemed to work very well. Presentations on the topic of Development of the Milk and Food Sanitation Program of the United States Public Health Service were published in three issues of the 1951 Journal. These articles reported that before 1908, five hundred milkborne outbreaks had been reported in the literature in the United States. Beginning in 1923, the Public Health Service compiled annual summaries of milkborne outbreaks. These compilations indicated that reported milkborne outbreaks of disease in the United States had declined from between 40 and 60 per year in the 1920s to about 20 in the postwar years; practically all of those were due to raw milk supplies and occurred in small cities and towns. It had been shown that the danger of contracting disease is about 50 times greater from raw milk than from pasteurized milk.

By the time of the 39th Annual Meeting in 1952, Membership exceeded 3,500, with every state and 56 countries represented. There were nineteen Affiliates, representing 23 states, and Journal circulation averaged more than 4,500 copies per issue. An Association office had been established, with a full-time Executive Secretary and clerical help. H. L. "Red" Thomasson was appointed Executive Secretary and Managing Editor while he completed his year as President of the Association. Monthly publication of the Journal was finally an achievable objective.

At long last, the Association acted to recognize those Members who had been outstanding contributors over the years through an awards program. Awards were presented to recognize a Sanitarian for their service to the profession and a Citation Award was given to honor a Member’s service to the Association. The 39th Annual Meeting set a record for registration, 486, including 53 women.

Revisions to the Constitution and Bylaws were passed at the 1953 Annual Meeting. It was decided that the Officers of the Association would be President, President-Elect, First Vice-President, Second Vice-President, and Secretary-Treasurer, who shall hold these offices for one year or until their successors are elected or appointed.

At the termination of each Annual Meeting, the President-Elect, First Vice-President, and Second Vice-President would automatically succeed to the offices of President, President-Elect, and First Vice-President, respectively; the Second Vice-President and Secretary-Treasurer would be elected by majority ballot at the Meeting. The term of office was changed, from a calendar year to the period from the last day of the Annual Meeting to the last day of the following year’s Annual Meeting.

It was reported that an analysis of the cost of the first six monthly issues of the 1954 Journal of Milk and Food Technology, as compared with the cost of the previous, bi-monthly publication, showed that the more frequent publication was possible without any additional cost in subscription rates to the Members.

Papers on a wide range of topics, from silicones to rabies and from High Temperature Short Time (HTST) pasteurization to antibiotics, were presented at the 1955 Annual Meeting. More than 300 participants agreed that it was one of the most interesting Meetings ever held, from both a scientific and a professional prospective. Cutting-edge topics included "Antibiotics in Milk," "Industry’s Program on Crabmeat Plant Sanitation" (by a speaker from the National Fisheries Institute), and "New High Temperature Processes," and many panel discussions were also offered.

By 1956, the organization had 4,200 Members and 28 Affiliates. The question was raised as to whether a base of milk and food sanitation activities alone was large enough to survive. A number of factors had prompted this inquiry: "We see around us other groups organizing with interests which, in several respects, are similar to ours. In the Midwest we learn of an organization formed to solicit the membership of dairy plant field men and build them into a national organization. A large group of men in this work are devoted Members of this Association. In the Southwest, an organization is being formed and promoted which is directed towards the ‘registered’ professional sanitarian and aims to create a society by that name. In a substantial number of states… the National Association of Sanitarians is active in soliciting Membership from men engaged in the field of sanitation." With 4,200 Members, was the Association close to the end of the line? There were more than 9,000 men and women in public health sanitation work in the United States and perhaps half again as many in other phases of regulatory work, and yet the combined membership of the two leading sanitarian organizations was only about 6,000. In reality, the question was whether we, the leading Association, should remain so specialized or whether the scope and objectives needed to be enlarged to encompass areas beyond milk and food sanitation.

The following year in 1957, it became apparent from the discussions at the Affiliate Council meeting that the question of a name change for the Association, to "International Association of Sanitarians" would have to be faced eventually. This was made clear by the strong feelings of some Members that the expansion of the Association’s activities into areas of sanitation other than milk and food was essential to the best interests and further growth and development of the Association. Consequently, a change to a name implying broader interest and encompassing all areas of sanitation was felt by many to be necessary. Opinion was not unanimous in this regard; others expressed viewpoints quite the contrary.

Questions also arose regarding the method of electing officers. Many Members had become dissatisfied with the custom of holding elections during the Annual Meeting. Consequently, a committee was appointed to study how the Affiliates were handling elections. It was found that only two Affiliates utilized mail ballots. As a result, although the committee recognized that use of mail ballots would be more democratic, the many logistic problems appeared to outweigh the advantages, and mail ballot elections were voted down.

A new award was established at the 1957 Annual Meeting to recognize long-time Members who had dedicated themselves to the ideals of the Association. The Honorary Life Membership Award included a lifetime Membership in IAMFS to honor such distinguished individuals.

One important outcome of the 1958 Annual Meeting was the decision that the Affiliate Council could elect a chairperson from its ranks, instead of the chairperson automatically being the immediate Past President of the Association, as had been the practice. A discussion ensued, once again, on whether the Association should be renamed to reflect the expectation that it would exert greater leadership in areas of sanitation other than milk and food. Reasons cited included the growing number of other organizations, local and national in scope, having objectives overlapping those of the Association. The matter was referred to a newly appointed committee that was to study the Association’s activities relative to any name change at that time. The Affiliate Council had also taken under consideration a nationwide system of registration of sanitarians, a subject that the Committee on Education and Professional Development was examining closely.

The amendments to the Constitution and Bylaws that were passed at the 1958 Annual Meeting were approved by the Membership through a mail vote. This action is worthy of note; apparently a mail vote was acceptable for just about everything except the election of officers. Journal circulation had climbed above 5,400 copies per issue. Considerable time was spent discussing an increase in dues; various costs were at issue, including additional help in the Association office, postage, and printing. It was noted that improved Journal coverage of Affiliate activities would keep the Membership informed and do much to maintain a closer working relationship between the Association and Affiliates.

In the 1959 Presidential address, it was pointed out that the Association was well known in the world of sanitarians and that it was continually being asked to participate in the meetings of many organizations related to sanitation. Of particular interest was the honor bestowed upon the Association by appointment of IAMFS to the Joint Expert Committee on Milk Hygiene of the World Health Organization and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAOUN). It was noted that IAMFS was working with FAOUN in the distribution of surplus journals to developing countries.

The ‘60s

At the 47th Annual Meeting in Chicago in 1960, Dr. Samuel Andelman, Chicago Health Commissioner, in his welcoming address stressed the expanding role of sanitarians in light of the ever-enlarging scope of their activities. To meet these greater responsibilities, attainment of greater competency and the maintenance of high standards of performance were essential. The Association’s President spoke at length on ways and means of strengthening the Association and referred to the important role of the Journal of Milk and Food Technology in this regard. He indicated that while the Association would continue to emphasize milk and food sanitation, it would, in addition, devote increasing attention to areas of general environmental sanitation. This change was seen as the key to the future of the organization, nationally and locally. An increasing proportion of new members of the Affiliates were interested in general sanitation activities. As a result, more papers and information on general sanitation and administrative practices were to be included, not only in the Annual Meeting program, but also in the Journal. Future issues of the Journal were also to include papers and other materials on techniques and practices of interest to a greater number of members at the local level.

The Executive Board had concluded that the Association should employ a full-time person to help with editorial duties. Although it had taken some time to determine whether a dues increase would be adequate to cover the salary for such a person, the Board eventually decided that the dues increase would provide adequate revenue.

Another matter extremely important to the Association was the proposed Model Registration Act that had been developed by the Sanitarians’ Joint Council that provided for the licensing and registration of all sanitarians. Its effect would be to establish a consistent professional standard throughout the entire sanitation field. In the fifty years of its existence, the Association shared in bringing about much of the progress toward firm establishment of sanitation as a science and a profession. Membership included specialists in virtually every area throughout the broad field of environmental sanitation. As the President of the Association pointed out, Members in 1960 were very different from the 35 founding Members of 1911, who were dairy and milk inspectors: "Today, we sanitarians must be equipped to deal with problems extending throughout the entire range of environmental health. We must solve problems of waste disposal, insect and rodent control, air pollution, housing, radiological poisoning and many others. Additionally, with more Americans eating out more often than ever before, the food service industry has become an area of responsibility such as would have been impossible for our founding Members to imagine. Recently the packaging of prepared foods of the ‘heat and eat’ variety has developed as a rapidly expanding industry that poses new sanitation problems for you to solve."

Also at the Annual Meeting in 1960 through the efforts of the Executive Board, the Farm Methods Committee of IAMFS, and members of various dairy groups, a National Mastitis Action Committee was organized. The primary objective of the Committee was to correlate all research and educational activities pertaining to the control of mastitis. As a result of these efforts, the National Mastitis Council, Inc. was organized on a permanent basis by the time of the 1961 Meeting.

Despite having little time for advance planning and preparation, because of the shift of the Golden Anniversary meeting of IAMFS from Jekyll Island, Georgia, to Des Moines, Iowa, the Iowa Association of Milk Sanitarians sponsored a well organized Annual Meeting in 1961. The Association President spoke to the fact that for several years the feeling had been growing that the Association must develop a more suitable method of electing officers, because only a fraction of the Members are present at the Annual Meeting to vote. During the Business Meeting, the Membership passed a resolution directing the Executive Board to study the problem and attempt to provide a more equitable procedure for electing officers.

Also in 1961, it was announced that problems related to the hiring of an editorial assistant had been resolved at last and "we are proceeding to hire an Assistant Executive Secretary within the next ninety days." The new staff position would also serve as editorial assistant.

The President emphasized that the Association needed to change the Constitution and Bylaws to eliminate the offices of 2nd Vice President and the senior Past President, so as to provide the Board more flexibility and a continuous flow of new blood in the management of the Association. "The role of the sanitarian is changing rapidly. The Executive Secretary reported last year the number of sanitarians engaged in various phases of public health work… we are not just milk and food sanitarians but a large number of our members are engaged in general sanitation." In short, the name of the Association should be changed to include the general sanitarian as well as those engaged in milk and food sanitation. Definite trends were taking place in sanitarian organizations in the United States. Sanitarians were being asked to join different organizations, and they often questioned how (or whether) they were really contributing to their profession. They had to decide which organizations to join, how much they were willing to pay in dues, and which organization would serve them best. These decisions were becoming more important, largely because registration was becoming required under more and more state laws. The President stated he was sure that his view on the need for a name change was an unpopular position in some sections of the Association, but "I am more concerned with the future interests of sanitarians than running a popularity contest."

"These are challenging days for the health profession — the responsibilities are great, but the rewards are even greater" was the statement of Dr. Leroy E. Burney, Vice-President of Health Sciences of Temple University, in his keynote address at the Annual Meeting in 1962. At the business meeting, significant action was taken: By majority vote, the secretary was authorized to submit to the Membership at large a mail ballot whereby they could approve or disapprove a proposed Constitutional amendment advocating that the name of the Association be changed to the International Association of Milk, Food and Environmental Sanitarians. The Association President urged the Membership to return the ballots promptly. Concerning the election of officers, it was quite apparent from informal discussions that there was growing dissatisfaction with the election procedure. The most common complaint heard was that a system that allowed less than 10% of the Membership (300 of 4,200) to elect our leadership can hardly be considered fair and equitable. More and more sentiment had developed in favor of a mail ballot for election of officers, with publication in the Journal beforehand of the background and qualifications of nominees.

The ninth seminar of the National Association of Frozen Food Packers was held in conjunction with the 1962 Annual Meeting for the purpose of acquainting industrial, educational and governmental personnel with some of the latest information about frozen foods.

In May 1963, the Secretary-Treasurer announced that the proposed constitutional amendment to change the name of the Association to include the term "environmental" had been passed by the required two-thirds majority vote of the Membership. The name change was implemented in the publication of the June 1963 Journal of Milk and Food Technology, although the legal filing of the name change did not take place until 1966.

In organizing the program for the 50th Annual Meeting, held in Toronto in 1963, the committee provided excellent balance between topics in the areas of milk and food sanitation and topics in the broader aspects of environmental sanitation. The Board of Directors tackled numerous Association problems at this Meeting. Significant among their accomplishments was the decision to support the proposal of the Joint Sanitarians Council for implementation of a plan for certification of sanitarians.

Also at the 1963 Meeting, the Membership voted to amend the Constitution and Bylaws to provide for election of officers by mail ballot rather than at the Annual Meeting. Names of nominees for office would be published in the Journal along with biographical sketches prior to balloting.

In his Address at the 51st Annual Meeting, the President emphasized the progress made by the Sanitarian Joint Council toward implementing the plan for certification of sanitarians, a plan that had been endorsed by the Association a year before. To help keep IAMFES Members more fully informed, additional personnel were to be added to the editorial staff of the Journal, primarily to increase the Journal’s coverage of Association activities and to increase the number of papers in the area of environmental sanitation. He emphasized that the Journal had attained highly respected status as a professional periodical, with its greatest strength in the area of dairy and food sanitation and technology. He further emphasized that this high status must be maintained, referring to the Journal as "the principal tangible evidence of the professional nature of the work of sanitarians."

The President in 1965 discussed the expansion of the Journal of Milk and Food Technology, as initiated by the Executive Board a year before. The expansion, which had been predicated upon the hiring of a part-time editor for the specific purpose of "expanding the scope of the Journal to include more material of a general and practical nature," was intended to meet the demands of Members interested in articles covering general sanitation and public health. It was pointed out that recent issues of the Journal reflected the efforts of the staff in this direction. While the high prestige of the publication in the fields of research and technical development was being preserved, professional information was also being made available to Members who needed practical "how-to" material. The President emphasized the need for an increase in Membership dues to carry on current work and to initiate and expand useful programs in the future. It was planned that a proposal for a dues increase would be presented at meetings of Affiliates during the coming year. It is worth noting that the 1965 Association Officers were the first to be elected by mail ballot.

When the 53rd Annual Meeting was held in 1966, prospects for a well-attended meeting were anything but good, with an airline strike still in effect as arrangements were being finalized. As it turned out, there was little need for concern; registration soared to 459, which was the second highest in the history of the Association (1952’s Meeting had more). The President minced no words in informing the Membership of the need to provide adequate funds for proper financing of the Association’s activities. Apparently, his message was heard "loud and clear" for the Membership voted a dues increase to $8 and $10 for Affiliate and direct Membership, respectively.

One of the speakers at that Annual Meeting provided insight into the solution of problems involving sterilization of interplanetary space vehicles and other hardware. A new committee, Food Protection, was appointed, having among its objectives the coordination of efforts of several other committees with activities in the general area of food protection.

The principal item on the Executive Board agenda at the Annual Meeting, of 1967 was a thorough discussion of progress to date and future planning relative to the merger of the activities of IAMFES and the National Association of Sanitarians (NAS), the two largest Sanitarians Associations. It had become evident that the aims and objectives of the two organizations overlapped considerably. The feeling had grown among both memberships that combining the activities of the two Associations might better serve the interests of sanitarians. At the opening session, the President devoted a major portion of his address to outlining and discussing events relative to a possible IAMFES-NAS merger, including a rather detailed discussion of a proposed draft of a Constitution and Bylaws for a new organization.

At the 55th Annual Meeting, held in 1968, an item of major importance for consideration was the reaction of NAS to the seventh draft of the Constitution and Bylaws prepared by the ad hoc committees of the IAMFES and NAS as a basis for amalgamating the two organizations. Apparently not pleased with the proposed organization, NAS was nevertheless amiable to continuing to work together. In his address, the President of IAMFES reported on developments during the previous year regarding the hoped-for emergence of a new and unified organization. His less-than-optimistic report on the state of negotiations at that time delayed efforts to develop guidelines for consolidating the two counterpart organizations at the state and regional levels.

At the 1968 Annual Meeting, the Journal Management Committee recommended institution of a page charge for publication of research papers in the Journal; the Executive Board adopted this recommendation. Elmer Marth, Editor of the Journal of Milk and Food Technology advised that the Journal Management Committee would like to devote a page or two each month to activities of Affiliates but that doing so would require more organized and regular reporting of such activities.

In the Presidential Address at the 1969 Annual Meeting, the main topic was the status of negotiations concerning the joining together of the National Association of Sanitarians (NAS) and the International Association of Milk, Food and Environmental Sanitarians to yield one new organization. Efforts had come to a standstill at the 1968 Meeting, as a result of the action of an Executive Committee of NAS, which changed the proposed Constitution and Bylaws back to the original document under which that organization was operating. After the Executive Secretary met with the IAMFES Board and requested that they keep an "open-door" policy toward blending the two into one, an ad hoc committee was appointed to work with a similar committee of NAS if and when they proposed a Constitution and Bylaws.

IAMFES experienced its largest income to date during the 1968-1969 year. Implementation of a page charge had facilitated prompt publication of research papers and had made it possible to add extra pages to the Journal. The Journal Management Committee recommended the approval of student subscriptions, which the Executive Board voted to make available to full-time students at a rate of $4 per year.

The ‘70s

The 1971 IAMFES Annual Meeting in San Diego, California, held along with the summer meeting of the National Mastitis Council attracted more than 300 Members and guests. Of the papers presented, six pertained to the National Center for Toxicological Research, eight were presented in the Milk Sanitation section, four in the Food Industry Sanitation section, and eight in the Food and Environmental Sanitation section. Membership dues were raised to $14 effective in 1972.

During 1973, Members of both IAMFES and the National Environmental Health Association (NEHA) were polled to determine their opinion on consolidating the two organizations. Both memberships voted to continue discussion, with a small percentage of Members participating in the vote.

At the 1973 Annual Meeting, a new combined award was issued. The Educator-Industry Award was presented to a Member in recognition of their service to the ideals of the Association and for service to education or industry.

It was announced that Earl Wright would fulfill the position of Executive Secretary and Managing Editor beginning January 1, 1974 replacing Red Thomasson. When Red took over IAMFES in 1952, the Association had been near bankruptcy. It was largely through his efforts that the Association continued operating.

Late in 1973, the office was moved to Ames, Iowa from Shelbyville, Indiana, where it had been located in a small, remodeled poultry house on Red’s farm. Earl wore two hats, one as President of IAMFES and the other as its Executive Secretary. During 1974, the Association saw 350 to 400 new direct or Affiliate members join the organization, due to efforts of the committee on Membership, as well as efforts of Affiliate organizations.

IAMFES continued to move forward in 1975 despite a general economic recession. One word that dominated that year was "service." Service to the affiliates and their membership, service to the public, service to the food industry, and service to the scientific community were all emphasized by the organization. Membership continued to grow, with an additional 182 Members joining, but committee activity was inconsistent, mostly because of restrictions in travel funds. Some changes were made in the committee structure to help alleviate those problems.

The Association continued to cooperate with NEHA and held a joint meeting of officers in Washington, D.C. in 1975. The purpose of the Meeting was to explore common ground for both organizations, determine potential problems, and to suggest steps necessary for unification. A timetable approved by the joint executive boards represented a sincere attempt to best serve both the public and members of the two organizations. In the 1975 Presidential address, it was stated that this was an agreed-upon goal of both organizations. The Association appointed two representatives to attend the next NEHA meeting, to be held in Snowmass, Colorado, to work on a plan to consolidate the two associations’ journals.

At the 1975 Annual Meeting, the chairperson of the Journal Management Committee recommended that an assistant editor be appointed to work on the Journal’s non-technical content. The Management committee also recommended that the name of Journal of Milk and Food Technology be changed to Journal of Food Protection.

The Committee on Communicable Diseases Affecting Man announced publication of the 3rd edition of Procedure for the Investigation of Foodborne Diseases. Approximately 90,000 copies of the first and second editions had been sold. The Affiliate Council meeting in 1975 was the best attended, liveliest, and most productive Affiliate Council meeting in the recent past. Affiliate Associations in the United States were becoming a vital part of the Association. The year ended "in the black," overcoming the deficit incurred in 1973 and 1974.

In 1976, an Assistant Executive Secretary who was also to serve as Assistant Editor of the Journal was hired. This resulted in better liaison and communication with affiliates, educational institutions, sanitarians, and others. Total Journal distribution grew to over 3,400 Members and subscribers, and the Journal increased pages of scientific and research papers. The possibility of publishing a journal of practical applications was being discussed.

In 1977, thanks to the dedicated service of Elmer Marth, the Scientific Editor, the Journal Management Committee, and many others, the Journal passed an important milestone in becoming the Journal of Food Protection. The Foundation Fund was introduced during the same year. The Executive Board decided that corporations or organizations supporting the Sustaining Membership program should receive adequate recognition. It was agreed their names would appear monthly in the Association Journal. This Foundation Fund succeeded the Sustaining Membership Fund.

Plans were made at the 1977 Meeting for IAMFES and NEHA to hold a joint Annual Meeting in 1980 to allow members of the two organizations to interact. A Bridge Committee was formed to plan for the 1980 meeting and work towards merging the two Associations. During his address, the President emphasized the need for Affiliate organizations to promote Membership in IAMFES, stating that new Members and new ideas for the organization were needed.

The 1978 Annual Meeting was dedicated to the memory of H. L. "Red" Thomasson, former Executive Secretary and President of the Association. Held in Kansas City, Missouri, it was attended by 400 people, making it one of the larger meetings in IAMFES history. The Association President pointed out that there were now 29 Affiliate organizations and Membership stood at 2,300. He pointed out the need for a substantial increase in Membership during the next year. Work was reported on an information pamphlet that would be available within the next year.

Also in 1978, the Journal was still lacking articles of general interest. The Executive Secretary reported that the Journal had expanded to its largest volume ever and was receiving papers from top European scientists. It was suggested that presentations and talks given at Affiliate meetings be made available for publication. Membership records and journal mail lists were computerized for the first time by the end of the year.

The 1979 Annual Meeting was held just across the street from Disney World in Orlando, Florida. The President challenged the organization to develop a plan that would lead to improvement, not just in dollars, but in image and stature for providing service and leadership in food protection throughout the world. A report presented proposed the publication of two journals: one oriented to sanitarians and fieldmen, and the other a scientific publication. Further cost studies were to be completed prior to beginning production.