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<< back to the 2000 archive listing << Dairy, Food and Environmental Sanitation Commentary From The Executive Director We continue to evolve as an Association to meet the needs of our Members As we move closer to the end of the year 2000, we have completed a written history of the first 89 years of the Association. This document was available to Annual Meeting attendees and is available to Members. If you are interested in receiving a copy, fill out the coupon on page 634 for your complimentary Member copy. If you have a need for additional copies, you may also order them on the same page. It has been said many times before, but in 1911, 35 "men" from Australia, Canada and the United States who were interested in improving the quality of milk, organized the International Association of Dairy and Milk Inspectors. This is the beginning of time for the present day, International Association for Food Protection. As we look back over the history of the Association, it is apparent that we
have made a significant impact on the safety of not only the milk supply, but
also the food supply during the many years of our Association existence. In
the early days, the emphasis In his second Presidential Address, C.J. Steffen stated, "Practically
all states and most cities have some form of dairy and By the 1930s, society became more mobile and health concerns were no longer considered only a local matter. Health of people in one location was of concern to cities hundreds of miles away. Uniformity in protecting the food supply was needed and federal governments were seen as the solution. During the '30s the depression affected people's ability to buy food. Milk was an economical source of nutrition. After the depression, equipment design proceeded rapidly. New forms of equipment were being installed, creating an additional public health concern. Pasteurization helped to relieve some of these concerns. Our Members were actively involved in moving towards a federal inspection program and in designing new equipment. Milk-borne epidemics became less frequent as pasteurization use increased. The Association, now named International Association of Milk Sanitarians (1936),
recognized a need to move away from the Annual Reports they published for the
first 25 years. It was decided to publish the Journal of Milk Technology beginning
in 1938. This journal was able to print more in-depth articles on the science
of milk and would be more educational for Association Members. Research results
would now be available to Members as the sharing of information moved to the
next level. Moving forward to present times, we just completed a name change for the Association as of January 1, 2000. Of course, we are now the International Association for Food Protection. Our 87th Annual Meeting recently concluded in Atlanta, Georgia again breaking attendance records as attendees were exposed to more than 300 scientific presentations to assist them in performing their duties. Just as the focus in 1911 was on the quality of milk and protecting the public's health, our 2000 Annual Meeting carried out the same focus with today's science. We continue to evolve as an Association to meet the needs of our Members. The written history will provide a reference document for many years to come. It will provide new Members with an understanding of the evolution of the Association. It will provide long-time Members with memory jogging information about the Association whereby they can remember the impact they had on the safety of our food supply. We hope that you will have a better understanding of the rich history of YOUR Association and the positive impact we have had on public health and safe food over the life of the Association. |