Water Safety and Quality Professional Development Group
Mission Statement: To provide a forum to discuss items as to the role the safety and quality of water plays globally in the farm-to-table chain and to develop program topics and symposia for presentation at the IAFP Annual Meetings.
Meeting Information
Virtual: TBD throughout the year as needed
In Person: IAFP 2025
07/27/2025 — 10:30 AM - 12:00 PM
Room 4
July 27, 2025, Huntington Convention Center, Cleveland, Ohio
A full listing of PDG and Committee Meetings can be found here:
https://www.foodprotection.org/annualmeeting/programs-and-activities/committee-meetings/
How to Join
Involvement in committees and professional development groups (PDGs) offers Members the opportunity to share a wealth of knowledge and expertise. Members of committees and PDGs are the architects of the Association structure. They plan, develop and institute many of the Association's projects, including workshops, publications and educational sessions. Technical challenges facing the food safety industry are discussed, examined and debated. Members may volunteer to serve on any number of committees or PDGs that plan and implement activities to meet the Association's mission.
Membership on a PDG is voluntary (not by appointment) and may vary from year to year.
IAFP Members can manage their PDG involvement by logging in to the IAFP Web site. At the Member Dashboard, click “Edit Profile.” Your profile has two tabs: Contact Info and Professional Info. Select the Professional Info tab and update the PDGs you would like to participate in. We highly recommend that you contact the PDG chairperson for each group to let them know you have joined their PDG.
Non-members can contact Dina Siedenburg, dsiedenburg@foodprotection.org, for more information.
Minutes
Board Responses
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1. Please consider the cost of attending annual meetings in selecting cities, e.g. hotel, food, transportation. This may especially impact attendees coming from Africa or the Middle East (cost of flight), but many US employers also cap hotel cost/night.
Board Response: Board Response: IAFP takes costs into consideration when making site selection.
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2. Could you clarify the IAFP global vision for how different meetings fit together and/or fill specific niches? e.g. regional discussions, different audiences, all the same?
Board Response: Board Response: The Board is open to discussion. The International Association for Food Protection (IAFP) represents a broad range of members with a singular focus — protecting the global food supply.
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3. Proposed to have webinars free to all (members and not) to watch for 48-72 hrs. after the event (in addition to in real-time) to accommodate different time zones and busy schedules.
Board Response: Board Response: Webinar recordings are currently an IAFP member benefit. With the new membership structure, membership should be accessible to all.
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4. Considering "task force focus groups" of specific duration e.g. 3-4 years to scout out or develop a topic in a planned intentional manner. We may not need new PDGs all the time, or not immediately; this approach would give proper recognition and attention to a topic without the added logistics of a permanent PDG.
Board Response: Board Response: The Board supports this and is open to this concept.
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Can we have a way for the recordings and presentations from the Annual Meeting to go into a single folder after the conference?
Board Response: The platform IAFP uses does not allow recordings and presentations to be organized this way.
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Offer options to rejected symposium/roundtable at earlier decision-making timepoints so that rejected symposium/roundtable can be turned into webinars throughout the year to avoid the majority of webinars being submitted in Spring.
Board Response: IAFP will work with the Webinar and Program Committees to provide timely communication.
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Pro-rated registration for individuals travelling from developing economy countries.
Board Response: The Board is exploring ways to support reduced registration costs for attendees from countries with developing economies.
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Avoid having cross-cutting meetings during the other PDG meetings (e.g., editorial board meetings)
Board Response: IAFP tries to avoid conflicts as much as possible during Annual Meeting.
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Can we update the schedule, so we spread PDGs/Committees across the conference (e.g., split them and the sessions across Sunday-Wednesday)
Board Response: In-person PDG meetings will remain on Sunday. PDGs are free to meet virtually throughout the year.
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Could PDG meetings be an hour (e.g., some updates and procedural activities are done via email or pre-meeting Zooms), change some PDGs to every other year.
Board Response: IAFP will be offering different lengths of meeting times for PDGs in 2024.
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It was suggested that, In the spirit of working toward a truly diverse, equitable, and inclusive meeting, the IAFP Board agrees to proceed with the creation of a program to support dependent travel/care for presenters for which their caregiving is a barrier to their participation.
Board Response: The IAFP Foundation is addressing this need.
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he membership of the WSQ PDG has significant overlap with that of the International Food Protection Issues PDG, the Fruit and Vegetable Safety & Quality PDG, and others. To the extent possible, it is recommended to minimize the overlap in the timing of the named PDGs to allow members to participate in these.
Board Response: This will be taken into consideration when scheduling PDG meetings at IAFP 2023.
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1. Recommend approval of Daniel Weller as Vice Chair of the Water Safety and Quality PDG.
Board Response: Agree.
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2. Since these Recommendations tend to be the last item, the Board is requested to allow for another week after the PDG meeting to finalize and submit them.
Board Response: The Board reviews the recommendations at a Board meeting on Thursday following the Annual Meeting and therefore they must be included in the minutes.
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3. The Board is requested to consider continuing to offer hybrid (i.e., in-person and virtual) options for future IAFP conferences, to make our meetings more inclusive and reduce the environmental footprint.
Board Response: IAFP will continue to evaluate meeting formats going forward. Presently, we plan to return to in-person speakers and attendees for 2022. Presentations are available (and have been since 2012) for viewing after completion of the Annual Meeting.
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Request that the Board investigate alternative publishing arrangements for the Waterborne Illness Investigation book currently published by Springer for the Association to enable wider access to the material, preferably a downloadable PDF. The suggestion was made that it could be a low-cost benefit for members that would pay significant dividends to the Association’s mission.
Board Response: There are contractual agreements in place that will affect our ability to provide the Waterborne Procedures manual. The positive factor is that our current distribution meth-od makes the manuals available for download to a world-wide audience.
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Recommended to continue IAFP’s Foundation support of webinars so as to not require sponsorship for webinars
Board Response: Agree.
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Approve Leon Gorris as Vice Chair.
Board Response: Agree.
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The Water PDG recommends more inclusion of sustainability
practices across the board. Specifically we recommend
that the Board encourage PDGs and Committees to include
sustainability and resources conservation in their discussions
and symposium topics.
Board Response: Agree.
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Elisabetta Lambertini as Vice Chair for the Water Quality and Safety PDG.
Board Response: Agree
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Schedule PDG meetings throughout the meeting rather than just on Sunday.
Board Response: PDG meetings will be held on Sunday. Additional meeting time can be requested and scheduled through the IAFP office.
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Consider alternative times for some PDG meetings to minimize conflicting times. Some suggestions: lunch meetings, early morning, evening (before exhibit hall reception).
Board Response: Sunday is traditionally the day for PDGs to meet. If a PDG wants to move to an alternative time, this can be requested.
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Publish or republish descriptions of areas covered by PDGs. Get updated areas of focus.
Board Response: PDG mission statements are available online. We can group them together for easier access.
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Approve Phyllis Posy as Vice Chair.
Board Response: Agree
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Rethink policy on IAFP taking no policy stances.
Board Response: IAFP does not make policy statements or take policy positions. We provide information to food safety professionals who can then influence policy.
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Circulate names and emails of chairs and vice chairs of all PDGs to chairs of PDGs to facilitate collaborations on symposia and roundtables by early September 2015.
Board Response: IAFP staff will do.
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Modify proposal format to facilitate multiple PDG organizers.
Board Response: Staff will provide list of proposals to those PDGs supporting for PDG Chair to review and approve.
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Approve Samia Estassi as Vice Chair.
Board Response: Agree.
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International positions on public policy, food safety, and regulations.
Board Response: IAFP does not take positions on regulations or policy. We are an information sharing organization, not a trade association (trade associations typically lobby for certain policy or regulatory change).
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Posting a link to the ISO standards on the IAFP website.
Board Response: This will be added as a link.
Webinars
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Crop Field Flooding and Food Safety: Industry and Extension Responses, Research, and Knowledge Gaps Jan 30, 2025
Organized by: IAFP's Water Safety and Quality PDG
Flooding occurs when water overflows a field beyond a grower’s control, potentially contaminating soil and water sources. If floodwaters contact the edible parts of fruits and vegetables, the produce is deemed adulterated by the U.S. FDA. Recent flooding in major produce regions across Mexico, Canada, and the U.S. underscores the growing frequency of these events. Addressing flooding requires collaboration among industry, academia, government, and extension services to enhance food safety, agricultural viability, and economic resilience. This webinar brings together experts from North America to discuss flooding's impact on food safety and agriculture, covering recovery, coping strategies, and research needs.
Learning Objectives: Participants will gain insights into flooding’s impact on food production, preparing them for future challenges. The webinar aims to promote discussions, share research, and support global food safety efforts.
Key Takeaways: Research findings and gaps on flood impacts to produce safety, Best practices and resources for flood response, Challenges industry faces post-flood, Strategies for flood preparedness.
Presenters- Channah Rock, Presenter University of Arizona
- Elena Toro Rogers, Presenter North Carolina State University
- Chris Callahan, Presenter University of Vermont
- Jeff Hall, Presenter Canadian Produce Marketing Association
- William Brodegard, Presenter Driscolls
- Sonia Salas, Moderator Western Growers
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Impact of Water Use and Reuse in Food Production and Processing on Food Safety at the Consumer Phase: Focus on the Dairy Products Sector May 23, 2024
Organized by: Water Safety and Quality PDG, International Food Protection Issues PDG and Dairy Quality and Safety PDG
Part Three: Water is essential for the production, handling and processing of dairy products. Consumer safety can be affected by physical, chemical and microbiological hazards introduced into food products through water (re)use. Hazards and hazardous events need to be continuously monitored and may require targeted interventions to reduce consumer risks to acceptable levels.
The background to this webinar is the work of Codex Alimentarius on risk management guidance for water (re)use in the production, handling and processing of food commodities. Codex has asked the FAO/WHO Joint Expert Meeting in Microbiological Risk Assessment (JEMRA) for advice on this.
JEMRA established a science- and risk-based framework on fit-for-purpose water (re)use as input to the Codex work. JEMRA experts have discussed the principles of this framework and the underlying scientific and technical principles. Case studies will be provide demonstrating how practical interventions can mitigate product safety risks to consumers in the case of milk and milk products.
Learning Objectives:
The participants will learn about the following aspects of water (re)use in the dairy products sector:
•The efforts of JEMRA and Codex Alimentarius to develop a risk- and science-based framework for managing the safe use and reuse of water in the production, handling and processing of dairy products by following a "fit-for-purpose" approach.
•The microbiological hazards potentially associated with water (re)use in this sector and interventions to mitigate food safety risks at the consumer stage.
•Practical examples and case studies regarding current water (re)use in the dairy products sector.Presenters- Kang Zhou, Presenter FAO, Rome, Italy
- Claus Heggum, Presenter International Dairy Federation, Denmark
- Leon Gorris, Panelist & Moderator Food Safety Futures, The Netherlands
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Impact of Water Use and Reuse in Food Production and Processing on Food Safety at the Consumer Phase: Focus on the Fish and Fishery Products Sector Feb 27, 2024
Organized by: IAFP's Water Safety and Quality PDG; International Food Protection Issues PDG ; Seafood Safety and Quality PDG
Clean water is essential to maintain the safety and quality of fish and fishery products. Product safety can be affected by physical, chemical and microbiological hazards introduced through water (re)use during production, handling and processing. Hazards and hazardous events need to be continuously monitored and may require targeted interventions to reduce consumer risks to acceptable levels.
The background to this webinar is the work of Codex Alimentarius on risk management guidance for water (re)use in the production, handling and processing of food commodities. Codex asked the FAO/WHO Joint Expert Meeting in Microbiological Risk Assessment (JEMRA) advice on this. JEMRA established a science- and risk-based framework on fit-for-purpose water (re)use as input to the Codex work.
JEMRA experts will discuss the principles of this framework and case studies demonstrating how practical pre- and post-harvest interventions can mitigate product safety risks to consumers in the case of fish and fishery products.
Learning Objectives:
The participants will learn about the following aspects of water (re)use in the fish and fishery products sector:
The efforts of JEMRA and Codex to develop a risk- and science-based framework to manage the safe use and reuse of water in the production, handling and processing of fish and fishery products by following a "fit-for-purpose" approach.
The microbiological hazards potentially associated with water (re)use in production, handling and processing, and interventions that may help mitigate food safety risks at the consumer stage.
Case-studies from the JEMRA report that illustrate practical examples of current water (re)use in the fish and fishery products sector in different parts of the world.Presenters- Kang Zhou, Presenter FAO, Rome, Italy
- Yulie Meneses, Presenter Cornell University
- Carlos Campos, Presenter Jacobs
- Leon Gorris, Moderator
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Impact of Water Use and Reuse in Food Production and Processing on Food Safety at the Consumer Phase: Focus on the Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Products Sector Dec 14, 2023
Organized by: Water Safety and Quality PDG, International Food Protection Issues PDG, Fruits and Vegetables Safety Quality PDG
Webinar Abstract:
The use of clean water in growing, handling and processing of fruits and vegetables is essential to achieve consumer safe food products.
Various types of hazards are potentially introduced through water use and reuse. These need to be identified and, where necessary, risks at the consumer phase have to be reduced to acceptable levels through adequate treatment/technical intervention.
Codex Alimentarius is developing risk management guidance related to use and reuse of water in production and processing for different food product sectors. The Joint Expert Meeting in Microbiological Risk Assessment (JEMRA), working under auspices of FAO and WHO, provides input into this.
The JEMRA report for fresh fruits and vegetables has been published. It proposes a new framework for science- and risk-based decision-making on fit-for-purpose water use and reuse. The use of the framework is illustrated with practical pre- and postharvest interventions to mitigate food safety risks at the consumer phase.Learning Objectives:
The participants will learn about the following aspects of water reuse in the fruits and vegetables sector:
The efforts of JEMRA and Codex to develop a risk- and science-based framework to manage the safe use and reuse of water in the production and processing of fresh fruits and vegetables following a "fit-for-purpose" approach.
The microbiological hazards potentially associated with water (re-)use in production and processing, and interventions that may help mitigate food safety risks at the consumer stage.
Case-studies from the JEMRA report that illustrate practical examples of current water (re-)use in the fresh fruits and vegetables sector in different parts of the world
The outcomes of field testing the proposed framework by stakeholders (competent authorities and farmers/food industry).Presenters- Zhou Kang, Presenter FAO, Italy
- Anna Allende, Presenter CEBAS-CSIC, Spain
- Rob de Jonge, Presenter National Institute of Public Health, The Netherlands
- Elisabetta Lambertini, Presenter GAIN, USA
- Leon Gorris, Moderator Food Safety Futures, The Netherlands
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The Role of Water Quality in Food Safety: Does Water Matter? - Part 3: Does Water Quality Matter to My Food Company? Jun 4, 2018
An initiative of the Water Quality and Safety PDG of the International Association for Food Protection - where people who know and care about what water safety means to food safety gather and share their expertise.
Part 1 gave the basics of EPA rules, drinking water monitoring, and disinfection.
Part 2 described what hazards could be in compliant municipal drinking water.
Now In Part 3, learn what to do about it!
First, University of Arizona’s Dr. Chuck Gerba explains the basics of Quantitative Microbial Risk Assessment (QMRA) and how to determine your risk profile. EPA’s Ken Rotert highlights which EPA Rules and standards might impact food processing, and how to get information on your water supplier; Dr. Vince Hill of the CDC explains why we don’t hear much about water causing food contamination. Finally, hear valuable advice from Will Daniels, President, Produce Division, IEH Laboratories, with practical approaches to control your risk.
This webinar is sponsored by the IAFP's Water Safety and Quality PDG, the Microbial Modeling & Risk Analysis PDG & Atlantium Technologies
Presenters- Chuck Gerba, Presenter Professor, Microbiology & Environmental Sciences, Epidemiology and Biostatistics Dept., University of Arizona
- Kenneth Rotert, Presenter Physical Scientist, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
- Vincent Hill, Presenter Chief, Waterborne Disease Prevention Branch, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
- Will Daniels, Presenter President, Produce Division, IEH Laboratories and Consulting Group
- Phyllis Butler Posy, Moderator Vice President, Strategic & Regulatory Affairs, Atlantium Technologies
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The Role Of Water Quality In Food Safety: Does Water - Part 2: What Could be in Municipal Water? Apr 30, 2018
Sponsored by Atlantium Technologies and IAFP's Water Safety and Quality PDG
This webinar builds upon the regulatory and technological information covered in Part 1, and lays the foundation for how food processors can assess and mitigate risk, covered in Part 3.
Hear from Dr. Shay Fout, recently retired EPA research microbiologist, about what indicators do and do not indicate, from Arizona State University’s leading researcher Prof. Paul Westerhoff about de-facto reuse, and how wet weather and variability can impact the quality of water used in food production, and from University of Calgary Prof.Norman Neumann for the latest on heat-resistant microbes and what they could mean to food processors.
This webinar will provide an overview of emerging waterborne hazards that could impact food safety. We will specifically look at data and trends on microbial water quality, from the point of view of food processors that use water in their production processes. Issues addressed include:
- What microbial hazards could be in incoming water (municipal water or private sources)?
- What do indicators really indicate? Do they predict presence/absence of microbes of significance to food safety?
- De facto reuse- when and where does it occur? How does wet weather impact municipal water and what can that mean for organisms of food safety significance?
- What guarantees do we get from municipal treatment and monitoring?
- Emerging issues: resistant and viable-but-not-culturable (VBNC) bacteria - what might they mean to food processors?
This webinar builds upon the regulatory and technological information covered in Part 1, and lays the foundation for how food processors can assess and mitigate risk, covered in Part 3.
Hear from Dr. Shay Fout, recently retired EPA research microbiologist, about what indicators do and do not indicate, from Arizona State University’s leading researcher Prof. Paul Westerhoff about de-facto reuse, and how wet weather and variability can impact the quality of water used in food production, and from University of Calgary Prof.Norman Neumann for the latest on heat-resistant microbes and what they could mean to food processors.
Presenters- Elisabetta Lambertini. Moderator RTI International
- Norman Neumann School of Public Health, University of Alberta
- G. Shay Fout U.S. EPA, National Exposure Research Laboratory
- Paul Westerhoff Arizona State University
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The Role Of Water Quality In Food Safety: Does Water Matter? Part 1: Drinking Water Treatment 2018 Update: Regulations and Technology Apr 9, 2018
Sponsored by Atlantium Technologies and IAFP's Water Safety and Quality PDG
Heard lots of conflicting information about how safe your water supply is for use in food processing? Now hear it from the people who know: Ken Rotert of the EPA; Vincent Hill of the CDC; Nicholas Ashbolt of the University of Alberta and hear the industry perspective from Rajendra Gursahaney, Pepsi’s water engineering maven.
Is all water is treated the same way? Is it always disinfected? What are the compliance standards and do all municipal water suppliers comply? Given the sampling frequency and locations, what do current sampling requirements actually provide? Where do chlorine CT's come from and what log reduction is provided in practice? What do leading companies do?
This is a great opportunity to hear the straight story about water regulations and what they could mean to your food processing practices.
Presenters- Nicholas Ashbolt School of Public Health, University of Alberta
- Rajendra Gursahaney Pepsi Beverages Company
- Vincent R. Hill Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
- Kenneth Rotert United States Environmental Protection Agency
- Phyllis Butler Posy, Moderator Atlantium Technologies
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The Global Burden of Foodborne Disease - Results and perspectives of WHO’s Foodborne Disease Burden Epidemiology Reference Group (FERG) Feb 9, 2016
The WHO Foodborne Disease Burden Epidemiology Reference Group is providing estimates of the global burden of foodborne diseases, according to age, sex and region, for a defined list of causative agents of microbial, parasitic, and chemical origin, thereby strengthening the capacity of countries to assess the burden of foodborne disease and increasing awareness and commitment for the implementation of food safety standards. These estimates provide valuable information for food safety professionals.
This webinar is sponsored by Wageningen University, Marcel Zwietering, Leon Gorris, Arie Havelaar and an anonymous MMRA PDG Member.
Presenters- Arie Hendrik Havelaar Emerging Pathogens Institute, University of Florida
- Marcel Zwietering, Moderator Wageningen University
