Food Protection Trends

COMMENTARY from the Executive Director
January 2007

“As IAFP enters the year 2007, we have some fantastic opportunities facing us”
By David W. Tharp, IAFP Executive Director

January begins a fresh start into a new year for everyone. We think about new opportunities as we (in the northern hemisphere) look forward to springtime. IAFP is no different – we look forward to springtime with a new outlook as we begin this New Year. First, before entering too deep into this month’s thoughts, I hope that you and your family enjoyed the holiday time together and we wish you the very best for the New Year.

As IAFP enters the year 2007, we have some fantastic opportunities facing us. We have new opportunities for Membership growth through a revised dues structure. You may have noticed that we restructured our Membership dues to now allow for a lower base, entry-level Membership fee. For the base fee, Members receive access to the Member directory, an online newsletter titled “IAFP Report,” and Member discounts for purchase of publications and registration fees to IAFP events (Annual Meetings, workshops, symposia, etc.).

In addition to the base level Membership dues, you may now choose which journal or journals you wish to receive. You may wish to receive only Food Protection Trends or Journal of Food Protection or JFP Online or any single one or combination of the three. You may also decide that you only want to be an IAFP Member receiving the “IAFP Report” and that satisfies your needs! Whatever you decide, it is YOUR decision and you now have a choice to make. For current IAFP Members, you will make the change when your renewal comes due during 2007. If you have any questions about the new system, feel free to call our office. We can tell you when your renewal is due and explain all options available.

Some additional items to look forward to in 2007 are IAFP 2007 in Lake Buena Vista, Florida, IAFP involvement in a food safety conference in Beijing, China and a third European Symposium on Food Safety! Also, be assured if conditions exist that warrant a Rapid Response Symposium, IAFP will react quickly to plan a conference to address such issues.

As Frank Yiannas covered in his President’s column this month, we just completed our Second European Symposium on Food Safety at the beginning of December with great success. Now our sights and thoughts turn towards planning the Third European Symposium on Food Safety to be held in October or November of 2007. Due to the interest in our Second European Symposium and from reading survey comments received from attendees, it is imperative that IAFP continue holding an event in Europe for our European Members.

Please note that I did not call the European Symposium an “Annual Meeting” as that term is reserved for our annual event held in North America. We will refer to the European event as our “European Symposium on Food Safety” at least in the near term. As we grow internationally, we
will branch out and hold other “symposia on food safety” events in other regions of the world. In the immediate future, we are looking at Asia and the Pacific Rim along with South America for future symposia.

This is truly an exciting time to be an IAFP Member as we look to new ways to address issues of food safety on a truly global basis. The new Membership structure allows for Members around the globe to receive the “IAFP Report” instantly, on a monthly basis to receive pertinent food safety news rapidly. With our IAFP European Symposium on Food Safety and other symposia on food safety to be presented around the globe, IAFP is providing new opportunities for Members around the world to
join with colleagues in a learning environment.

I want to end this month with a reminder about IAFP 2007 in Lake Buena Vista, Florida. You can now make reservations for housing at Disney’s Contemporary Resort and our overflow property of Disney’s Polynesian Resort (see the IAFP Web site). A limited number of rooms are available for government attendees at the Port Orleans Resort at a reduced rate. Reservations must be made by telephone for these rooms (at Port Orleans). Rooms at the Contemporary and Polynesian Resorts may be reserved online through a link available on the IAFP Web site. We are looking to accommodate a record number of attendees this July for IAFP 2007, so make your hotel reservations early!

As you can see from our Annual Meeting and free-standing symposia, IAFP will have a very busy year in 2007 and we do look forward to springtime! We are glad that you are a Member who supports our mission and our efforts in “Advancing Food Safety Worldwide". ®