International Association for Food Protection Holds 2023–2024 President-Elect Election

Thursday, January 26, 2023

Des Moines, Iowa – Due to the resignation of Jose Emilio Esteban from the International Association for Food Protection (IAFP) Executive Board, IAFP will hold an election for the position of President-Elect. Two candidates were selected by the Nominating Committee to fill the vacated position and remaining term. Dr. Roger Cook was appointed as President-Elect, pro tem, by the Executive Board as a temporary appointment until the election is held. The elected candidate will join the IAFP Executive Board on April 3, 2023, and will become IAFP President at the conclusion of IAFP 2023 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada in July. Electronic ballots will be provided to all Association Members on February 1, 2023, and the election will remain open through March 7, 2023. Election results will be announced in April on the IAFP website, in the April IAFP Report, and in the May/June issue of Food Protection Trends.

Dr. Tim Jackson is a Senior Science Advisor for Food Safety with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition, joining in 2022. In this role, Dr. Jackson supports programs in outbreak investigations, root cause analysis, and prevention strategies.

From 2017–2021, Dr. Jackson served as Vice President of Food Safety, Regulatory, and Social Compliance for Driscoll’s team in North America and South America, responsible for food safety, regulatory (including organic) compliance, and compliance in worker welfare. He previously served as the Director of Food Safety for Nestlé US and Nestlé Canada from 2009–2017, with responsibility for thermal processing and food safety programs in hygiene, microbiology, allergens, and chemical contaminants. He joined Nestlé in 1995 as a research and industrial microbiologist. Dr. Jackson served in several positions with the organization, including as Director of Food Safety for Nestlé US and Nestlé Canada; head of the Microbiology Laboratories at the Nestlé Quality Assurance Laboratory for the U.S. and Canada; and was part of the Nestlé Research Center in Switzerland. He also served as Chief Industrial Microbiologist for Nestlé’s global operations in Switzerland.

Dr. Jackson has been actively involved in IAFP since joining in 1990 as a graduate student. He has participated in and led several Professional Development Groups (PDGs), and has organized, convened, and presented at IAFP’s Annual Meeting, IAFP’s European Symposium on Food Safety, and other international and Affiliate meetings. He served as IAFP President from 2019–2020.

Dr. Jackson received his B.S. in Biology from Abilene Christian University and his M.S. and Ph.D. in Food Microbiology from Texas A&M University. 

Dr. Isabel Walls is a Senior Advisor for the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS), where she oversees FSIS’ research program and manages FSIS’ Food Safety Fellows program to educate the next generation of food safety scientists. She also serves as a subject matter expert in food safety and food defense, being recognized both nationally and internationally as an expert in microbial food safety to inform policy making.

Dr. Walls previously served as the National Program Leader for Food Safety at USDA’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA), providing scientific leadership to its food safety programs. Dr. Walls also worked for USDA’s Foreign Agricultural Service, where she addressed Sanitary and Phytosanitary issues that may impact U.S. exports or imports of animal products; the International Life Sciences Institute, where she developed expert panel reports and organized symposia for presentation at IAFP meetings; and the National Food Processors Association, where she undertook laboratory research in predictive microbiology to inform risk assessments.

An active IAFP Member since 1992, Dr. Walls served as IAFP President (2011–2012) and is a member of IAFP’s Affiliate, the Capital Area Food Protection Association. She currently serves on IAFP’s Nomination Committee, the Foundation Committee, and the Past President’s Committee. She previously chaired the Journal of Food Protection (JFP) Management Committee and was a member of the JFP Editorial Board. She is a founding member of the International Food Protection Issues PDG; was instrumental in establishing IAFP’s Affiliate, the African Continental Association for Food Protection, in 2012; and has organized and convened symposia at 16 IAFP Annual Meetings.

Dr. Walls received her B.S. in Medical Laboratory Science and Ph.D. in Food Microbiology from the University of Ulster in Northern Ireland and completed post-doctoral research at USDA’s Agricultural Research Center.