National Food Safety Attorney And Advocate To Present At Annual Arkansas Public Health Convention
On the heels of recent food safety speeches to numerous industry organizations, premier food companies and other groups (including the Wisconsin Restaurant Association and, most recently, the University of Minnesota), I am off to Arkansas to speak, once again, about food safety, outbreaks, recalls and litigation.
Why Arkansas? Well, for starters, it’s a lot warmer than Milwaukee. More important, however, the Arkansas Public Health Association (“APHA”) is hosting its 61st Annual Convention, “Raising The Bar – Taking Public Health to New Heights,” in beautiful Hot Springs.
The presentation, designed specifically for public health officials, will provide An Overview of Food-borne Illness Outbreak Surveillance, Investigation and Litigation.
In addition to advocating (strongly) key considerations for outbreak prevention, I will also address current trends in food-borne illness outbreak surveillance, discuss how health officials and industry food safety lawyers (like me) can and should work as partners in food-borne illness outbreak investigations, and summarize (in a way that’s not too dreary, I promise) the current status of food safety litigation.
Importantly, I will also provide insight as to the role of both good and bad outbreak investigations in advancing the public health (our most important goal), along with the ancillary role investigations play if and when food-borne illness lawsuits are filed.
In any event, I am thrilled to spend some quality time in Hot Springs. So is Carladder Parham, the President of APHA. According to Parham, “we’re anticipating a great turnout,” and are very excited about “seizing this year’s opportunity to ‘raise the bar’ in public health.” As she adeptly explains, “we can either give lip service to this challenge, or we can commit to make a difference.”
Personally, I couldn’t agree more. And, as a food safety lawyer – and a food safety advocate – I am also proud (once again) to share a seat at the table.
