At the Global Food Safety Conference 2018

+17TH EDITION GFSC 1,200 DELEGATES 2018 CONTENT in numbers 86% +80% 53 of delegates rank this event plan to join us better than other countries The Global Food Safety Conference �� 4 Mike Taylor, Former FDA Deputy Commissioner �� 16 5 again in 2019 comparable events Programme at a Glance �� 5 Xiaoqun He, Deputy Director General of Registration DAYS Department, CNCA �� 16 of sessions, Michel Leporati, Executive Secretary, ACHIPIA meetings and DAY 1: TUESDAY 6TH MARCH 2018 events (Agencia Chilena para la Calidad e Inocuidad Alimentaria) �� 17 PRE-CONFERENCE SESSION: Dr. Stephen Ostroff, Deputy Commissioner, Office of Foods GFSI & YOU & Veterinary Medicine, U.S. Food & Drug Administration, FDA �� 17 Katsuki Kishi, General Manager, Quality Management Depart- Jason Feeney, CEO, FSA �� 17 ment, ÆON Retail Co., Ltd. ��6 Bill Jolly, Chief Assurance Strategy Officer, New Zealand 8 8 3 4 3rd Andy Ransom, CEO, Rentokil Initial ��6 Ministry for Primary Industries �� 17 65 36 Special Tech Discovery GFSI award iteration Peter Freedman, Managing Director, The Consumer Speakers Exhibitors sessions Talks Tours winners of G2B* Goods Forum ��6 PLENARY 4: Meetings Mike Robach, Vice President, Corporate Food Safety, Emerging Technologies in the Food Industry Quality & Regulatory, Cargill, Inc. ��7 New Horizons, Challenges and Opportunities Marie-Claude Quentin, GFSI Senior Technical Manager, Martin Weidmann, Gellert Family Professor in Food Safety, The Consumer Goods Forum ��7 Cornell University �� 18 TOP COUNTRIES Anne Gerardi, GFSI Senior Manager, The Consumer Matilda Ho, Founder & Managing Director, Bits x Bites �� 18 Goods Forum ��8 Yuki Hanyu, Representative of Shojinmeat Project & CEO of Integriculture �� 19 PLENARY 1: Food Safety Culture and Leadership DAY 3: THURSDAY 8TH MARCH 2018 Shinzo Abe, Prime Minister, Japan �� 10 Ryousuke Kouzuki, Parliamentary Vice-Minister for PLENARY 5: Japan 2020, Nutrition and the Future of Food Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF) �� 10 Daichi Suzuki, Commissioner of the Japan Sports Agency JAPAN USA CHINA UK FRANCE AUSTRALIA SOUTH KOREA GERMANY Motoya Okada, President and Group CEO, AEON �� 10 and Olympic Gold Medalist �� 20 Ken Theriault, CEO, Costco Wholesale Japan �� 11 Mitsuru Izumo, President of Euglena Co., Ltd. �� 20 Takaaki Nishii, President and CEO, Ajinomoto Co., Ltd. �� 12 Adjiedj Bakas Trendwatcher, Trend Office Bakas �� 21 THE TALK ABOUT GFSC 2018 PLENARY 2: Are You Actively Listening to Your Customers? GALLERY You Should Be. Discovery Tours �� 22 Sarah L. Casanova, CEO, McDonald’s Holdings, Japan �� 13 GFSI Board Meetings �� 23 4.2K 1.3K 5.2M 7.2K Heidi Hovland, CEO, DeVries Global �� 13 G2G and G2B Meetings �� 23 online mentions 20 tweets during potential FOLLOWERS Takashi Ishida, CEO, METRO Cash & Carry Japan �� 14 Press Conference �� 24 4-day live and news pieces journalists onsite impressions (+25% > 2017) Carletta Ooton, Vice President of Health and Safety, Digital Conversation �� 24 in trade and tweeting Sustainability, Security & Compliance, Amazon �� 14 Special Sessions �� 25 business media #gfsi18 @myGFSI @myGFSI Exhibition �� 25 DAY 2: WEDNESDAY 7TH MARCH 2018 Tech Talks �� 25 PLENARY 3: Breakout Sessions �� 26 3.2BN GFSI Global Markets Programme, a Proven Pathway 39K to Capacity Building & Food Safety Culture potential 28K �� views on 2 Samantha Mah, Marketing Manager, Wide Tropism �� 16 Sponsors, Exhibitors and Partners 28 audience MEMBERS GFSI Web new episodes (+12% > 2017) worldwide Series

*G2B: Government-to-business GLOBAL FOOD SAFETY CONFERENCE 2018 - #gfsi18 GLOBAL FOOD SAFETY CONFERENCE 2018 - #gfsi18

INTRODUCTION PROGRAMME AT A GLANCE THE GLOBAL FOOD SAFETY CONFERENCE

Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday 5 March 6 March 7 March 8 March

Welcome Coffee Welcome Coffee Welcome Coffee

Special Sessions 1 to 4 Special Sessions 5 to 8 (8.15-9.15) (8.15-9.15)

Rentokil Diversey / Bureau SAI Ecolab Greenfence Initial CxS DNV GL SGS Veritas Global Chatelet Etoile Palais Palais Royal Chatelet Vendome Vendome Etoile Royal C C

Breakouts 1 to 3 Breakouts 7 to 9 (9.30-10.45) (9.30-10.45) GFSI & You (10.00-12.00) Breakout 1 Breakout 2 Breakout 3 Breakout 7 Breakout 8 Breakout 9 Hosted by Aquaculture The Changing Role Food Safety Primary Food Fraud Food Service Rentokil Initial & Seafood of the Regulator Culture Production Compliance & Hospitality

Palais Royal C Palais Royal B Palais Royal A Palais Royal C Palais Royal B Palais Royal A

Networking Break Networking Break (10.45-11.30) (10.45-11.30) Hosted by Danone

Discovery Plenary 3 Closing Plenary Tours (11.30-13.00) (11.30-13.00) The 2018 edition of GFSI’s Global Food Japan is only the second Asian country Whether they hailed from Japan or Ja- Hosted Delegate Lunch Safety Conference was one for superla- to host a GFSI Conference, after Malay- maica, Canada or Cameroon, the del- by Ecolab Delegate Lunch (13.00-14.30) (12.00-13:30) tives. Some 1200 delegates congregated in sia in 2015, as the global event typically egates agreed on one key topic: the Hosted by Cargill Tokyo for the event, comprising the high- alternates between Europe and North creative power of collaboration. In every est attendance rate in GFSI and CGF his- America. This year’s conference attract- plenary session, speakers mentioned Opening Plenary Plenary 4 tory. The packed programme and parallel ed a record number of attendees from the importance of open communication. (13.30-15.00) (14.30-16.00) meetings benefited from unprecedented Japan and elsewhere in Asia, who left The prevailing notion was that collabora- Networking Break government support while the confer- poised to spark a food safety revolution in tion - across the public-private boundary, Networking (16.00-16.45) Hosted by Danone among international governments, and Break ence stage welcomed a host of inspiring the region. Breakouts 4 to 6 (15.00-15.45) and illustrious speakers from some of the between companies and their customers 16.45-18.00 world’s biggest food companies and or- Western stakeholders, meanwhile, were - is the solution for every food industry ganisations. not deterred by the relatively far-flung lo- issue from regulatory redundancy to cri- Breakout 4 Breakout 5 Breakout 6 Global Big Data Auditor cation. GFSI stakeholders are food-focused sis management. The conference itself Plenary 2 Markets Competency The delegates hailed from over fifty coun- people, after all, and Japan has one of the proved to be a fertile ground for these (15.45-17.15) tries and from every corner of the food in- richest and most innovative food cultures collaborative conversations. Palais Royal C Palais Royal B Palais Royal A dustry: multinationals and SMEs, retailers in the world. Speakers from across Ja- and manufacturers, research labs and reg- pan’s public and private sectors continual- This year’s event was a tremendous suc- Opening Cocktail Official Dinner Reception ulatory agencies. While the record-break- ly demonstrated this culture of innovation, cess and clearly marks GFSI’s position on (17.30-19.00) Hosted by Greenfence ing attendance is hardly a surprise - the from Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who the global map as leaders in advancing Exhibition Area 18.45 Departure from Grand Nikko Tokyo Hosted by event has grown steadily since its first it- traced Japan’s concern with food safety to food safety. Together as a community we Daiba to Happo-en eration in 2001 - it is an especially encour- ancient bamboo-leaf inventions, to Dr. Yuki have the opportunity to push forward the Yamato Holdings aging figure for the first GFSI Conference Hanyu, founder of a startup that dreams of GFSI vision of achieving safe food for con- in Japan. growing meat on Mars. sumers everywhere.

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KEY TAKEAWAYS (GFSI) and its parent organisation, The GFSI has also taken new steps forward The second half of Consumer Goods Forum (CGF). He began in thought leadership. The board consid- the session was with a slide that charted the portfolio of ers what leaders do on regional and local devoted to panel 1 As globalisation extends its influence across the planet, food safety strategic topics addressed by the CGF and levels and reshapes these actions for the discussions, moder- becomes increasingly complex. its members, from health and wellbeing global stage. This amount of cross-nation- ated by GFSI Senior to environmental sustainability. Freedman al, vertical collaboration requires trans- Technical Manager 2 GFSI benefits from diverse member- drew the audience’s attention to the CGF parency and inclusivity. “We want to share Marie-Claude Quen- ship and governance - representing projects that relate to the food industry, in- best practices to make all our supply net- tin, which featured- seven billion people involved in the cluding an initiative on sustainable supply works better,” said Robach. ing stakeholders from every sector of the global food chain. chains and an effort to reduce food waste. GFSI community. First, a broadly interna- The main goal of all GFSI activities is to tional panel of Certification Programme 3 The GFSI Conference 2018 has potential to create lasting change in Clicking to another visual, Freedman in- create benchmark certification as a pass- Owners (CPO) discussed their input to food safety culture across Asia and troduced the brand of the CGF that confer- port to food safety. “We must transcend the Version 7.2 of GFSI’s Benchmarking Re- the world. ence attendees know best: the Global Food barriers we’re up against and harmonise quirements. This recently released ver- Safety Initiative. His visual aid featured food safety management and standards,” sion streamlines elements of the previous a world map superimposed with GFSI’s Robach said. That harmony includes regu- edition to promote flexibility, efficiency various groups of stakeholders: retailers, latory changes, such as the US FDA’s Food and practicality. PRE-CONFERENCE SESSION: manufacturers, certification programme Safety Modernisation Act, a landmark owners (CPOs), academia, consumers, piece of legislation that impacts all food Tokuji Nishitani, CEO of JFSM, localised GFSI & You government regulators, and so on. that finds its way across US borders. the concept of benchmarking in the Jap- anese context, reiterating some of Kishi’s “Our duty is to make sure GFSI has the Companies that lack the infrastructure or earlier points about Japan’s potential to The first morning of the GFSI Conference successes and challenges of the confer- gion. “I love Asia,” he declared, “I love its proper governance to represent all stake- capacity to achieve full certification can influence the wider Asia region. JFSM 2018 opened with an introductory pre-con- ence. He recalled worrying about attract- colour, its entrepreneurial spirit, its cul- holders,” said Freedman. He revealed that access the first steps of the food safety ap- harmonises GFSI Benchmarking Require- ference session, led by Peter Freedman, ing delegates to Tokyo; the conferences are ture.” But with that increasingly globalised governance on the following slide, which paratus through the Global Markets Pro- ments with the principles of washoku, a Managing Director at The Consumer Goods historically dominated by Americans. “But culture comes complexity. Asia is the most featured a mosaic of smiling faces from gramme, a curriculum that becomes the classical Japanese cuisine concerned with Forum (CGF), Mike Robach, Chair of the it turned out to be a delightful result,” said highly populated continent, with 60% of the GFSI Board of Directors. Freedman basis for training in the supply chain. terroir, technique, and craft. GFSI Board of Directors and Vice President Kishi. the world’s people but only 30% of its land reported on the changes that took place of Food Safety, Quality and Regulatory Af- mass. Urbanisation and population densi- at the last election: new members Scott After introducing the main strategies of Marc Proctor, CEO of BRC Global Stand- fairs at Cargill, and Andy Ransom, CEO of Scanning the audience in the packed ball- ty place increasing strain on food supply. Stillwell, Natalia Dyenson, and Roy Kir- GFSI, Robach pivoted to the recent Gov- ards, sat on the panel as the first CPO to Rentokil Initial. room, Kishi noted that this year’s attend- Meanwhile, the collective GDP of the conti- by joined the Board, while the remaining ernment to Government (G2G) and Gov- be recognised against version 7.1 of the ance was split nearly in half between nent is set to grow by 6.3% between 2018 members were re-elected. Mike Robach ernment to Business (G2B) meetings, at GFSI Benchmarking Requirements. He Intimately titled GFSI & You, the first half of Western countries and other regions. “This and 2022, widening the already rapidly-ex- began another term as Chair, aided by Co- which representatives from over forty gov- embraced the self-assessment aspect of the two-hour session served as a refresh- diversity makes the conference more at- panding middle class. By 2030, 66% of Chairs Anita Scholte op Reimer and Gillian ernmental institutions met to discuss pub- the new benchmarking process, which er course on the mission and activities tractive,” said Kishi. It was especially ap- the global middle class will reside in Asia Kelleher. lic-private collaboration in the food safety allowed BRC to look at their own systems of the Global Food Safety Initiative. The propriate that this unprecedented diversity — over one billion tech-enabled, culinarily sphere. This was the third iteration of such with critical objectivity, as well as the more speakers covered the Initiative’s origins, occurred in Japan, which has long served curious people to feed. Mike Robach, Vice meetings, and Robach noted the attendees stringent approach to the assessment its recent achievements, and the bright as a meeting point between Western and President of Food were “getting comfortable” about sharing which the new process introduced. future open to companies that adopt the Eastern culture. Kishi envisioned the con- “There’s a big opportunity for companies Safety, Quality and best practices, data, and strategies for the GFSI approach. ference serving as a gateway towards to be part of the conversation now,” Ran- Regulatory Affairs benefit of consumers everywhere. As an Fons Schmid, Chairman of the Board at greater GFSI presence in the Asian region. som said — “now” meaning the conference at Cargill, stood to illustration of this new level of conversa- FSSC, explained GFSI’s forthcoming au- Katsuki Kishi, GFSI itself. “Today’s delegates are from every introduce the con- tion, GFSI entered Memorandums of Un- ditor examination programme: a remote- Board Member and “It is a pleasure to see so many of you part of the food chain. They’re sharing best ference from the derstanding (MoUs) to continue to put real ly-proctored, tamper-proof test that asks General Manager of here,” Kishi said in closing, as if welcoming practices and taking action to deliver safer vantage point of his projects on the ground across the world. a baseline set of questions in order to set the Quality Manage- old friends to his own home. food everywhere.” position as Chair of the Board. Before be- a global minimum for auditor knowledge. ment Department ginning his talk, he thanked Kishi and his Robach thanked the G2G and G2B meeting In case anyone in the audience ques- at AEON, opened Continuing Kishi’s Peter Freedman, team, the CGF and GFSI teams, and the attendees, and the audience more broad- tioned the veracity of the examination, the session with a point about the po- Managing Director delegates for coming together to create ly, for working towards transparency and Schmid assured: “It’s not fake news, it’s brief introduction tential of Asia, Andy of the CGF, zoomed the largest event ever held by GFSI. collaboration across sectors. He quoted great news.” that called the audience’s attention to the Ransom, CEO of in from Ransom’s a former Cargill CEO, who perhaps fore- unique location of this year’s conference, Rentokil led the au- continent-wide scale Robach framed his talk by outlining the saw today’s intrinsically interconnected Dan Lee, Standards Coordinator of the Glob- as well as its global implications. As the dience through a with a brief intro- three core strategic objectives of GFSI: system: “In a world where you can’t hide al Aquaculture Alliance, introduced three Chair of the GFSI Local Group Japan, he lightning round of duction to the Global benchmarking & harmonisation, capability anything, you’d better not have anything new scopes of the latest GFSI Benchmark- spent considerable time thinking about the facts about the re- Food Safety Initiative building, and public-private partnerships. to hide.” ing Requirements: food agents, the catering

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Group was naturally most proud of hosting ty, and building trust is very important.” the GFSI Conference 2018, but his group had much more to brag of: they hosted 400 Amare Ayalew, Program Manager at the delegates at GFSI’s Japan Focus Day and Partnership for Aflatoxin Control in Africa launched a Japanese version of the GFSI (PACA), was the sole Africa-based speaker website which was painstakingly translat- of the session. He noted that Robach’s map ed by members of the group. of GFSI stakeholders did not include Afri- ca, but saw this as an “opportunity” rather Jie Xu of the China Local Group had a than a slight. “We have over 55 member busy year; her group recently opened states, and we are ready to learn,” he said the first official CGF office in China. The of his organisation. PACA hopes to partner office has allowed the group to acceler- with GFSI to establish a network of food ate their engagement with local stake- regulatory laboratories on the African con- holders. Their membership now includes tinent, similar to the CDC’s PulseNet. “We 57 companies, which convene to discuss need to ensure safe food as we expand topics such as auditor competence and trade,” he said. benchmark localisation. Later this year, the group will host a China Focus Day Marcia Nightingale, Head of the Industry in Shanghai. Assurance Team at the UK Food Stand- ards Agency (FSA), has a particularly close Fernando Avelleyra and Ana Vera of the relationship with GFSI; she co-chaired an South Latin America Group, also saw informal working group with the Europe and food service sector, and retailers and everyone on board, no matter where they considerable growth in the past year. Local Group that drafted a reference doc- wholesalers. All scopes tackle food fraud are located, where they work, or what size Previously focused almost entirely on Ar- panies including SISCO, Land O’Lakes, al Health and Food Safety at the In- ument that instructs governments on lev- and food defense, which the GFSI require- company they work for,” Tromp said. gentina, their group now includes repre- Hormel, and Costco, as well as a steer- ter-American Institute for Cooperation eraging private assurance to inform official ments address through measures such sentatives from Chile and other countries ing member from Cornell University. “The on Agriculture (IICA), sees GFSI as an control programmes for food and feed. She as threat assessment and consumer risk The second panel was comprised of nine in the region. These representatives focus best thing about it is coming together with opportunity to leverage the technical ca- also undertook comparative analysis with mitigation. Lee quoted a headline from the representatives from GFSI Local Groups, on global market expansion, supplier edu- smart people in a noncompetitive environ- pacities and resources of the private sec- government regulations and GFSI bench- copy of Japan News that had been sent to who Mike Robach lauded as the ones cation, and government collaboration. ment,” Summers said, prompting smiles tor. His organisation traditionally works in marks at last year’s conference in Houston. his hotel room that morning: “It’s time to who “do all the work” at GFSI. True to this all around the panel. the public sector, but public funds for food shift focus from technology to standards.” praise, the representatives related the in- Erich Jaeger of the South LatAm Local safety have depleted in his region; IICA is Mika Yokota, Director of the Food Industri- GFSI provides the tools to make that shift. tensive, focused work involved in bring- Group represented a brand-new GFSI To close the session, a panel of eight key therefore eager to collaborate with busi- al Corporate Affairs Office at Japan’s Food ing GFSI principles to their regions, from team. His group, structured by nine ma- partners from international governmental nesses that can help them further their Industry Affairs Bureau, reiterated the im- Heather Gale, Executive Director of Can- hosting Focus Days to harmonising stand- jor companies from different sectors, is and nongovernmental agencies described development goals. portance of public-private collaboration. adaGAP, noted the changes that had been ards with local governments. GFSI Sen- working on an MoU to promote food safe- their methods for incorporating the GFSI In recent years, her agency has increased made to the requirements to address the ior Manager Anne ty culture in Chile. They hope to strength- approach into their daily practices. The Melvin Spreij, Head of the Standards and communication with GFSI on topics such specific needs of the primary production Gerardi moderated en the presence of Chile in Latin America partners painted a hopeful picture of a Trade Development Facility (STDF) at the as improving SME operations, fostering sector, including farms. When require- the diverse discus- through food. world in which the public and private sec- World Trade Organisation, agreed with trade, and analysing the food chain. Yoko- ments were impractical for a primary sion. She asked tors work in tandem toward a shared goal Ahern that resources are limited in the ta played an especially important role at production setting, they were removed; the representatives Luis Hernandez of the Mexico Local Group of safe food for consumers everywhere. public sector. His organisation therefore this year’s conference; she served as the other clauses were streamlined to remove what accomplish- recently helped to create a Mexican food Anne Gerardi again moderated, here fo- partners with GFSI to develop training ma- chair of the G2G meetings. “I expect GFSI wordiness or excessive specificity. “We’re ments they were safety standard with the partnership of the cusing on the nuances of the panel mem- terial for the collaborative food safety pro- will join stakeholders of food businesses still finding new ways to apply GFSI to the most proud of and Mexican Ministry of Economy, the industri- bers’ relationship with GFSI. jects that they fund in developing regions. together,” Yokota said - an apt prediction world of agriculture,” she allowed. what they wished to al sector, and academia. The official doc- STDF also partners with the public sector for the outcome of the conference. achieve in the future. uments will be published in September. Vivek Pathak, Regional Director for East because “food safety is a joint responsibili- As the final speaker of the panel,Stephan In May, his group will host a Focus Day in Asia and the Pacific at the World Bank’s Tromp, Managing Director of IFS, took on Pierre de Ginestel of the Europe Local Mexico City. He invited anyone interested International Finance Corporation (IFC), the challenge of extrapolating the future Group expressed pride in his group’s wide amongst the audience to support the event brings GFSI guidelines to agricultural ACTION STEPS of the new GFSI Benchmarking Require- range of members, but hoped for more through sponsorship. SMEs in developing regions such as Ka- ments. Tromp predicted a stronger fo- representation from Eastern Europe. Along zakhstan, Georgia, and Ukraine. With GFSI 1 Benefit from the GFSI community; reach out to potential collaborators outside of cus on flexibility so the requirements can with recruiting new members, the group Christine Summers and Jorge Hernan- accreditation, these SMEs can access the your sector or field of expertise - you might learn something new. stretch to fit new food trends, emerging hopes to collaborate more with govern- dez of the US-Canada Local Group spent global market to a much greater extent technologies, and food businesses of all ment regulators across the region. the year putting down strong foundations than mere NGO funds could allow. 2 Check out a GFSI Focus Day hosted by a Local Group near you. sizes. “To achieve our goals, we must have Katsuki Kishi, Chair of the Japan Local with the help of representatives from com- Robert Ahern, Leader of Agricultur-

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media sensation. Though it was soon re- AEON took independent steps to acquire PLENARY 1: vealed that the Health Center of Saitama inspection equipment that would allow mistakenly linked the outbreak to AEON, them to regulate and manage their own Food Safety Culture and Leadership government agencies were then loathed to goods, despite Japanese consumers’ gen- admit to any fault. Only the then-governor eral trust of government regulation. of Saitama had the humility to formally re- investigate the case, leading to their apol- Okada is particularly aggrieved by discrim- In keeping with the theme of leadership, took Japan’s pre-modern innovations for KEY TAKEAWAYS ogy. “I remember this incident to this day,” inatory consumer attitudes regarding Chi- the opening plenary of the GFSI Conference preserving food as evidence of a deeply said Okada, suggesting that he remains nese products. He sees these attitudes as 2018 began with a surprise message from ingrained food safety culture among the wary of the government’s ability to effec- bordering on hate-speech and feeding upon one of the world’s most influential leaders: Japanese. “We must thank our ancestors 1 Social responsibility goals are as im- tively regulate industry. nationalist ideologies that do nothing to portant as financial goals. for teaching us to preserve food safely,” he benefit the consumer. “We believe it is perti- Ken Theriault, CEO of Costco Japan of- said, backdropped by a slide collaged with When mad cow disease became an issue nent to abolish such attitudes,” he declared. fered a “short and sweet” alternate per- 2 Consumers have the right to safety, soy sauce, miso paste, and natto. to be informed, to choose, and to be in the global food system later that year, spective on the issues involved with heard. Okada turned to GFSI rather than the To mitigate against these attitudes, Okada running a retail business in Japan. While the ingredients in these quintessen- government to assess the risk in Japan. suggested adhering to the Basic Consum- Though Costco is the second-largest re- tially Japanese products have changed lit- 3 No amount of technology can replace Among Japanese retailers, AEON alone er Rights that President John F. Kennedy tailer in the world, it remains a relatively tle since their invention, the process used a robust food safety culture. participates in sale restriction associated presented to the United States Congress niche brand in Japan, with a modest 26 to make them has modernised. Kouzuki with mad cow disease. AEON also leads in 1962: locations across the country; many of described his recent visit to a soy sauce the industry on transparency regarding Costco’s issues involve adapting a quin- factory, where workers used electron- certifications by threefold or more over GMOs. While withholding judgement on 1. The right to safety tessentially American product to a Japa- ic devices to ensure that every machine current levels by the year 2020, when the the safety of GMO products, AEON clear- 2. The right to be informed nese audience. Japan’s Prime Minister, Shinzo Abe. The was perfectly cleaned. These special tools Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics Games ly labels foods with GMO ingredients so 3. The right to choose Prime Minister positioned the conference may resemble magic wands, but they can’t will be held. MAFF is advancing certifica- that customers can decide for themselves 4. The right to be heard Costco’s food safety mission statement as a natural expression of Japan’s long- match the human capacity to adapt and in- tion as a Japanese strategy to improve its whether to include these foods in their was developed in the US, but it bears a standing safeguards with food safety, be- novate. Even the best-equipped companies status on the global market. diet. AEON customers never have to con- Despite this call for basic consumer rights resemblance to the Japanese concept of ginning in ancient times with innovations must ensure that they motivate employees sume questionable products against their in the United States back in the 1960s, the kaizen: the company “promotes continu- such as antibacterial bamboo leaves. He to improve constantly. Kouzuki also said, “MAFF supports these knowledge. Japanese government took over forty years ous improvement in product quality, and suggested that international food safe- actions and hopes to cooperate with to sign their own Bill of Consumer Rights product safety systems, for the benefit of ty certification will allow other countries Kouzuki related this motivation with everyone. We would like to contribute ac- Some food safety issues are so complex into law. Today, consumers have the legal our members and vendors.” Food safety to trust the food products that Japanese kaizen, or improvement, a defining feature tively to improve food safety around the that neither retailers .nor consumers can right to insist on informed choice in all of culture is ingrained in every level of the consumers already recognise as safe. This of the adaptive work process popularised world. I believe this conference is a signif- decide how to deal with them. One exam- their shopping decisions. Okada encour- company, “from the CEO down.” confident prediction regarding Japan’s by the Toyota Way. Organisations that par- icant step forward.” ple is the Fukushima radiation disaster of aged the private sector to respect that right, food safety culture would be reiterated ticipate in kaizen constantly look for small, 2011, to which the government applied and urged the public sector to “constantly As a retailer with thousands of suppliers, throughout the plenary. new ways to streamline work, eventually only provisional food safety regulations. improve laws for the sake of the consumer.” Costco must maintain constant vigilance leading to a dramatic increase in produc- tivity. “Japanese people are quite good at this,” said Kouzuki, and they therefore value certifications that involve kaizen.

MAFF promotes Good Agricultural Practices (GAP) at agricultural high schools across Ja- pan, where students can learn about certification and confidently explain their actions to adult auditors. “These experiences can be life-altering sources of confidence for As the session’s first private-sector speak- the students,” said Kouzuki. He described er, Motoya Okada, President and Group The session’s scheduled speakers were al- a heartwarming interaction with a student CEO of AEON, brought a nuanced perspec- most as illustrious as the unexpected guest. at one agricultural school, who spoke “with tive to the relationship between industry The audience first heard from another lofty starry eyes” about working at Japan’s top and government in Japan. To illustrate the member of Japan’s public sector: Ryousu- agricultural corporation in the future. complex nature of this relationship, Okada ke Kouzuki, Parliamentary Vice-Minister related his company’s most significant re- for Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Kouzuki has high ambitions for the future. cent food safety incident: in the year 2000, (MAFF). Like Prime Minister Abe, Kouzuki He hopes to increase in the number of GAP an E. coli outbreak that became a mass

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at every stage of its supply chain. They KEY TAKEAWAYS perform vendor audits to meet regulatory PLENARY 2: requirements as well as in-house rules, Influencers are replacing traditional which are often stricter than the govern- 1 media outlets as the “gatekeepers” ment guidelines. While the auditor-vendor Are You Actively Listening of culture and information. relationship can sometimes feel antag- to Your Customers? onistic, Theriault stressed that Costco 2 Crisis management requires exter- “works with our suppliers, not against nal outreach as well as internal re- them - really hard.” You Should Be structuring.

In the future, Costco Japan hopes to adapt 3 Natural language processing allows more fully to the Japanese local market, 3. Quality control ment despite their diverse backgrounds large companies to scale up the person-to-person communication in- leaving nothing “static.” They strive for 4. Information and fields. All agreed that GFSI pro- While the food industry is constantly buzz- process, she asked the customers what volved in running a safe, successful simplicity and quality in everything they do. 5. Corporate responsibility grammes effectively promote food safe- ing with technological innovations — Inter- they wanted and acted accordingly. food business. ty culture at all levels of an organisation. net of Things, blockchain, Big Data — it’s After a series of food safety incidents Theriault closed by sharing one of his per- Ajinomoto has also developed four “story Okada was particularly complementary: easy to forget how technology can be used pushed McDonald’s Japan’s stock into a sonal favourite methods for monitoring examples” that apply ASV to specific strat- “What I admire about GFSI is that, as a to foster meaningful connections between freefall in 2014, Casanova led a total over- food safety culture: “walking the buildings” egies for addressing global food issues. civilian organisation, you act before poli- real people. The second plenary of the haul of the company’s supply chain and from the front door to the back door, four ticians begin to act. And you perform this GFSI Conference 2018 addressed those auditing practices. All employees received best year in McDonald’s Japan’s history of days a week. “It’s very important that we 1. Increase mental well-being with a deli- on a global scale. We shall continue to hold technological connections through a vari- a fresh round of food safety training, and public trading, an enormous achievement walk the talk every single day we do busi- cious and healthy diet. GFSI in high regard.” ety of industry perspectives, from a B2B many were invited to a Food Safety Sum- for a once-beleaguered brand. Casanova ness,” he said. 2. Strengthen family and social proximity wholesaler to one of the world’s biggest mit featuring 250 experts in the field. isn’t one to become complacent in the face with social eating habits. The speakers were in similar agreement ecommerce sites. Though concerned with of success. “Food safety is a process that’s 3. Improve sustainability by connecting lo- with regard to the role of technology in different technologies and diverse sec- However, rebuilding a reputation in- never done,” she cautioned. “We’ll continue cal communities with the environmental food safety, including emerging innovators of the industry, all agreed that sincere volves more than internal restructuring. to do everything we can to do even better.” protection community. tions such as Big Data and blockchain. “20 communication and collaboration form the Casanova emphasised platforms that 4. Focus on the opinions of the varying cus- years ago, whenever incidents such as is- backbone of food business. allowed the public to comment on Mc- tomers in different local communities. sues with pesticides occurred, there was Donald’s recovery process. Recognising no immediate method of analysis and the that mothers make most food decisions Such lofty social goals may seem dis- public went into panic,” Nishii said. “To- in Japanese households, Casanova es- placed from a company that makes sea- day we are capable of analysing the same tablished a programme called Mom’s Eye soning powders and prepared foods, but events with greater speed and accuracy.” to involve these key players in the con- Nishii argued that social responsibility Okada was also optimistic, but added, versation. The programme required her goals are as important as financial goals “there are many new cases in which we to visit mothers in all forty-seven prefec- Takaaki Nishii, President and CEO of for a successful company. By creating pos- have very little experience.” tures, hear their questions and concerns, Ajinomoto, rounded out the session with a itive social impact, companies can ensure and take them to McDonald’s suppliers manufacturer’s perspective on food safe- that “all people associated with the com- On the topic of future trends, all three around the country. ty. Ajinomoto celebrated its centennial in pany feel comfortable and at ease.” speakers pointed to natural and organic The session’s second speaker, Heidi Hov- 2017, but it strives to remain at the cutting foods as an emerging priority. Nishii related Of course, Casanova also values the opin- land, CEO of DeVries Global, reiterated edge of food science and social outreach. Moderator Sharanjit Leyl then led a bi- these trends to his company’s social devel- Sarah L. Casanova, CEO of McDonald’s ions of customers who aren’t mothers. Casanova’s emphasis on customer out- lingual panel discussion among the four opment mission: “We must consider what is Japan illustrated the constructive energy In response to the Japanese enthusiasm reach and the power of new media. Hov- Ajinomoto has a presence in over 130 speakers, who fell into surprising agree- necessary to support society beyond 2050.” of collaboration by sharing the incredible for mobile applications, her team creat- land introduced the concept of influence, countries, many of which are home to large comeback story that her company has ed Kodo, an app that allows customers to a perennial marketing concern that has food-insecure populations. Recognising achieved since she took the reins. send feedback directly to restaurant man- undergone a democratic revolution thanks their potential to create positive change in ACTION STEPS agers. By December 2017, Kodo — which to social media. these populations, the company developed Casanova’s deadpan wit — an extension translates to “heartbeat” — had received a list of Ajinomoto Shared Values (ASV), 1 Food safety culture starts at the top, so lead by example. of her ability to adapt on the fly — became 8.5 million pieces of feedback. Managers In social media parlance, influencers are which they apply in every region and at apparent as soon as she took the stage. used this feedback to improve cleanliness, users who make an impact by directing every corner of the company, from food 2 Adopt the principle of kaizen to catalyse motivation and drive continuous im- “Welcome to McDonald’s,” she joked, not- quality, and service with laser focus. their followers towards brands they sup- safety to human resource management. provement. ing the similarity of her headset to those port. Hovland divided this group into “mac- worn by drive-thru crew members. “May Casanova closed with the industry version ro-influencers” — users with followings If the public sector is slow to react to an issue, collaborate with private - sector The Ajinomoto Shared Values are: 3 I take your order?” In fact, Casanova’s of a “happily ever after” ending: a chart into the millions — and “micro-influenc- partners - and vice versa. 1. Compliance comeback strategy didn’t stray far from showing three years of healthy growth ers,” who may have hundreds or thou- 2. Human rights that drive-thru script; at every stage of the since the slump of 2014. 2017 was the sands of followers.

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Brands are quick to court influencers at C&C and those shoppers’ own customers. the macro level, but Hovland reminded the “If we can support our customers, they will audience not to underestimate the power thrive in the growing engaged community”, of micro-influencers. Their followings are Ishida said. To that end, METRO C&C has often fiercely devoted and can wield con- established a programme that helps busi- siderable influence in themselves. Per- nesses access the tools that they need to haps most importantly, micro-influencers join this interconnected, digitised commu- have authenticity — that indefinite but nity. Busy business owners can use the ineluctable quality that brands need now Metro C&C toolkit to build professional more than ever. websites, field online feedback, and maintain a social media presence. Metro C&C Hovland emphasised the positive, crea- even offers call centre support to ensure tive force of influencers and their ability to that their partners understand all the ins bolster brands against rumour and innu- and outs of digitisation. endo. China is leading the charge on this front; companies such as Tmall and JD.com To ensure their partners’ success on the achieve high conversion rates by marrying globalised market, Metro C&C emphasises influencer content with ecommerce. Some global food safety certification. They lead American companies, including Target and by example; Metro was one of the first BAND-AID, involve influencers in product chains in Japan to adopt GFSI-recognised development to breathe authenticity and certification programmes. Their influence relevance into their brand images. Instead even encourages owners of izakaya (a type of feeling threatened by influencers, these of informal Japanese pub) to modernise brands are leveraging influencers’ plat- their practices for the sake of safety. forms to reassert their own influence. “The right engagement, with the right people, can Metro C&C’s central goal is to make it easy get you there and more”, Hovland concluded. to run a food business, so their customers can focus on their guests’ gastronomic experiences. As Ishida phrased it, “If we can help our customers win, then METRO businesses. Amazon.com sells shelf-stable towards food safety issues. Their software “Don’t hide,” said Hovland, recalling the ex- will be winning.” products, while the Amazon Fresh platform is advanced enough to understand the vast ample of Blue Bell CEO Paul Kruse. “The offers fresh produce and other perisha- majority of comments. This allows trained, more you can step out of the corporate bles. Finally, Amazon Prime Now delivers human experts to devote their attention to shadow and present a human face, the chilled and frozen foods to customers in only the most complex decisions. quicker your recovery will be.” dense urban areas. The company has been “Food safety is like breathing: you don’t re- branching into the brick-and-mortar su- Through this system, Amazon can recog- alise you’re doing it until you’re not,” opined permarket business with the acquisition of nise a food safety issue in seconds and Ichida. “So you need to realise it’s very im- Whole Foods and Amazon Go, a shop that take action in minutes. After all, in the portant in everyday life.” The audience was features prepared foods, groceries, and no world of food safety, “good intentions don’t suddenly aware of their breathing, as well Takashi Ishida, CEO of METRO Cash & Car- checkout counter; the built-in technology work. Speed matters.” as their own deep-set, everyday efforts tory Japan, opened on a similarly reassuring charges customers’ Amazon accounts as wards food safety. note. “Don’t be scared of the people yell- they leave. Safety is of paramount concern The subsequent panel discussion yielded ing irasshaimase,” he said, in case anyone Carletta Ooton, Vice President of Health on all of these platforms. valuable action steps from all four speak- in the audience was unaccustomed to the and Safety, Sustainability, Security & ers, especially on the topic of crisis miti- ACTION STEPS enthusiastic traditional greeting of Japa- Compliance, at Amazon, demonstrated As the previous speakers agreed, the gation. “Keep your customer at the centre,” nese shopkeepers. “They just want to talk what customer engagement looks like best way to maintain safety and quali- said Casanova, perhaps the most experi- 1 Create a “tribe” of influence in the good times so that you have support in case to you.” on a Big Data scale. As one of the world’s ty in food business is to open the lines of enced panel member on the subject. “Lis- of crisis. largest ecommerce platforms, Amazon communication to customers. However, ten to what they’re saying.” As a CEO at one of the world’s largest B2B requires powerful analytical tools to main- Amazon receives 2.3 million interactions 2 Leverage the democratising power of social media to connect with consumers wholesalers, Ishida is used to representing tain the meaningful communication in- every day in 40 languages; there are hard- Ooton had similar advice. “It’s not about on their level. the interests of shopkeepers. He brought a volved in any food business. ly enough content experts in the world to the GMs or the financial impact. It’s about fresh perspective to the theme of custom- parse that much text. Amazon therefore people. If you keep the customer at the 3 Don’t hide from your consumers – present a human face to your business and er engagement, one geared both toward Though Amazon began as an online book- relies on natural language processing to heart of your decisions, you’ll make the open up the lines of communication. the business owners who shop at Metro store, it now includes a wide range of food determine which interactions could point right decisions.”

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Mike Taylor described the meeting with Jason Feeney PLENARY 3: characteristic caution. “There’s great po- agreed that the tential for mutual support, but that’s eas- “us versus them” GFSI Global Markets Programme, ier to say than do,” he said. “There was mentality remains also concern for private audits displacing ingrained in regula- public regulators, which no one wants.” tory culture at some a Proven Pathway to Capacity Building & Food Safety Culture The panel full of public regulators em- public institutions. phatically agreed. “We should change adversarial culture Xiaoqun He’s institution, which lies under “In an ideal world, into inclusive, collaborative culture. This is By providing a stepwise route towards umentation, batch number tracing, and KEY TAKEAWAYS the umbrella of the General Administra- we shouldn’t have the best way to protect customers and de- accredited certification, GFSI’s Global other measures. They moved into a mod- tion of Quality Supervision, Inspection and too much third-par- liver safe, authentic food,” he said. Markets Programme allows small, devel- ern factory and hired new staff. Their ef- Quarantine, supervises and coordinates ty certification,” said The Global Markets Programme al- oping businesses to join the food safety forts paid off in 2014, when they went into 1 certification and accreditation activities Bill Jolly. He ar- “We need more lows SMEs with limited food safety conversation. Plenary 3 championed these business with AEON and were also named across China, including GFSI-recognised gued that Big Data people believing capacity to begin the journey toward growing businesses, as well as facilitating an ASEAN Best Growth Company of 2016. GFSI-recognised certification. certifications. Over 22,000 organisations and other emerg- this new approach discussion among the government regula- “A small company doesn’t need to compro- have received CNCA-approved certificates, ing methods will is possible,” added tors that small companies are most likely mise on food safety,” Mah beamed. 2 Third-party auditors and public reg- but many more remain unaccredited. CNCA eventually be able Michel Leporati. “We to encounter on the local scale. ulators can improve their systems encourages companies to earn interna- to offer the assurances that third parties need to create spac- Mike Taylor, For- through transparency and collabo- tional certificates and to produce products currently provide. es for collaboration, Before the public-sector regulators took mer US FDA Dep- ration. for export and domestic consumption on like this conference.” the stage, the audience heard two pri- uty Commissioner, the same standard. “Certification conveys Dr. Stephen Ostroff The developing world, including the vate-sector testimonials from Glob- built on Chirva and 3 trust and meets the needs of all parties con- had a more posi- In the final minutes of the plenary, the fo- informal sector, abounds with op- al Markets Programme successes. The Mah’s positive en- cerned,” she said. tive perspective on cus returned to the Global Markets Pro- portunities for GFSI stakeholders. first, Tatania Chirva, shared her story in ergy when he sub- third-party certifica- gramme and the small businesses that a new episode from the GFSI web series, sequently took the Since its establishment in 2001, the CNCA tion. “Third-party au- benefit from it. Mike Robach, Mitch Chait, filmed on-site at her ready-meal factory stage. “This is a time has placed an emphasis on collaboration dits often hold their and Mike Taylor announced the winners in Ukraine. Over footage of her hairnet- for optimism,” he granted. The Global Markets Programme with international regulators. The G2G and suppliers to a much of the second annual Global Markets ted employees flipping crepes, Chirva ex- said, “a remarkable can help to fill in the gaps left by underde- G2B meetings at GFSI Conference 2016 higher standard than Awards. This year’s awards went to Aso- plained how the programme allowed her time for food safety around the world.” He veloped public goods, even for businesses were a particularly fruitful moment in CN- regulators,” he said. ciaciones Agroindustriales Serranas of to improve safety, gain consumer trust, noted a pattern of collaboration between currently associated with the “informal” CA’s collaborative history. The following “This is terrific. It’s not us versus them, it’s Mexico, The Nuts & Legumes Company and increase sales by over 50%. the public and private sectors, an alloca- sector. year, CNCA sent a team of representatives collaboration in the best sense of the word.” of Pakistan, Plantation Industries Limited tion of responsibilities, and a dedication to to the FDA to study US regulation and of Nigeria, and Fuji Foods of Japan. GFSI Samantha Mah, providing safe food for consumers at all Balance is key, Taylor urged; “Private re- share best practices. Collaboration emerged as a key theme as recognised these companies for improving Marketing Manag- levels of society. sponsibility can’t take the place of public the panel continued. The speakers promot- their safety standards through the Global er of the Malay- oversight, and no amount of regulation can The cross-national conversation that be- ed a collaborative rather than competitive Markets Programme while providing au- sia-based health Later in his speech, Taylor tempered his make food safe without the private sector gan at GFSI 2016 continued in the sub- approach for harmonising government thentic, high quality food to their consum- foods brand Wide optimism with caution. In a vast, globalised taking responsibility.” sequent panel discussion, which included and third-party audits, improving the rela- ers. Mike Robach noted that the selection Tropism, offered a food system, he said, “it’s not just what regulators from nearly every continent tionship between industry and regulators, committee received at least two dozen oth- similar success sto- happens in the four walls of your com- Xiaoqun He, Depu- on the planet: Michel Leporati of Chile’s and building food safety culture at every er applicants of similarly stellar calibre, a ry on the stage. Wide pany but along the complex and lengthy ty Director Gener- ACHIPIA, Dr. Stephen Ostroff of the US level of society. great sign for the future of the programme. Tropism began as chains involving thousands of suppliers.” al of Registration FDA, Jason Feeney of UK’s Food Stand- a staple-foods dis- This complexity poses challenges in both Department of the ards Agency, and Bill Jolly of the New tributor based in a shophouse, where Mah developed and developing settings. Certification and Zealand Ministry for Primary Industries. ACTION STEPS and two other employees packaged goods Accreditation Ad- themselves. Despite their humble sur- Through his work with the World Bank in ministration of Chi- The panel served as a recap of the G2G 1 Whether you belong to the public or private sector, consider collaborating with roundings, they had big ambitions: a place sub-Saharan Africa, Taylor observed the na (CNCA), spoke and G2B meetings that took place earlier and learning from your equivalents across national borders. on the shelves of AEON department stores. heightened food safety challenges in- next to share a pub- in the week. These were condensed for the They applied to be a supplier, received an volved in running a small business in the lic-sector perspec- benefit of the larger audience. Moderator 2 Pay attention to innovation and growth in the developing world. audit, and were summarily rejected. developing world. This region lacks the tive from the opposite side of the world. Sharanjit Leyl asked the speakers to share public goods - such as surveillance sys- Like Taylor, she emphasised collaboration the atmosphere of those meetings, which 3 Keep an eye out for the next iteration of the Global Markets Programme Awards! After multiple rejections, Wide Tropism tems, land-grant research universities, between the public and private sectors, brought together representatives from They may be the opportunity for you to enter, or encourage someone in your worked with the Global Markets Pro- and regulatory bodies - that business- as well as among international public - over thirty institutions, and the main points supply chain to do so. gramme to improve safety through doc- es in more developed countries take for sector representatives. that came out of them.

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food industry through legislation and a cruelty-free meat that could be produced produce their own brands, and come to PLENARY 4: $110 million investment in food science. in the middle of Tokyo. Or on Mars. “And if Shojinmeat to release their products on a This investment is a key ingredient in what on Mars, why not in zero gravity,” said Ha- larger scale. “We need to begin on a citizen Ho calls the “magic formula” of talent, nyu, clicking to a slide of a sci-fi space sta- scale,” he said, to avoid the trust failure of Emerging Technologies in the Food Industry tech, and capital behind China’s burgeon- tion. “Looks cooler.” GM food. ing startup culture. 4000 startups launch New Horizons, Challenges and Opportunities every day in China, all vying for attention The main issue with clean meat is its cost; Sharanjit Leyl moderated a careful ex- from 2500 incubators. in terms of pennies per pound, it’s many change between Weidmann and the young years away from competing with ground innovators. Weidmann took issue with Young venture capital firms often look for beef. Shojinmeat’s business plan therefore Hanyu’s claim that lab-grown meat has KEY TAKEAWAYS qualities like branding and “storytelling” first aims for luxury cosmetic and sup- “virtually no bacteria”; there could be new, when choosing investments, but these plemental products, then high-value pro- inter-cellular pathogens associated with surface details aren’t enough for Ho. She teins such as foie gras. Hanyu showed the the product that no current test covers. “It 1 Whole genome sequencing offers focuses on thoughtful sourcing, sophis- audience an example of “clean” chicken is a giant headache,” he said, referring to solutions for the increasingly com- ticated manufacturing technologies, and foie gras from a recent demonstration: a Hanyu’s earlier quip. “We don’t have the plex supply chain, including the chal- answers yet.” He did, however, agree with lenges involved in emerging food enhanced consumer experience. grayish dollop resting on a basil leaf at the technologies. center of a stylishly-plated arrangement of Hanyu’s emphasis on transparency and Companies that fit those stringent require- garnish and sauce. citizen science. 2 Thanks to a winning recipe of talent, ments receive three C’s of support from investment, and government sup- Bits x Bites. First, the startups receive just The second issue is customer trust. When Leyl asked the speakers to weigh in on From the lunchtime Tech Talks to the ban agriculture, disruptive startups — and port, China is at the forefront of food enough capital to quickly produce a proof it comes to food, consumers are wary of specific innovations, including artificial in- technically-specific Special Sessions and questioned whether the food safety appa- technology innovation. of concept, plus the necessary connections technological novelty - Hanyu held up telligence and blockchain, and to choose Breakout Sessions, emerging technologies ratus was equipped to adapt to new fraud to acquire the next stage of funding. They widespread distrust of GMOs as an ex- one emerging technology that might offer 3 There’s no one technological “mag- were an overarching theme of this year’s and disease potentials in these products. also receive four months of coaching and a ample of marketing gone wrong. To avoid the most solutions for food safety. Without ic bullet” for all the issues of the becoming the next GMO, Shojinmeat aims exception, the speakers resisted assigning Global Food Safety Conference. The fourth food system; solutions come from a vibrant community. Like GFSI, Bits x Bites plenary addressed these new develop- Weidmann spent the remainder of his talk thoughtful synergy of technologies. brings together experts from every side for total transparency. They livestream all primary relevance to any one technology. ments through a focused, strategic lens. introducing the audience to one innovation of the food industry — academia, science, their demonstrations online, so anyone in “We can’t bet on one technology solving Discussion of technology can easily de- that might have the capacity to mitigate media, big business, and small startups — the world can observe their process. They all problems,” said Ho. “We need to aim to- grade into empty buzzwords for those not some of the food safety risks associat- all invested in driving positive change. also publish their recipes, retaining only wards a synergy of technologies to solve directly involved in its development. How- ed with emerging foods: whole genome their models for scaling as proprietary specific problems.” ever, in this session speakers described sequencing (WGS), a method of DNA fin- information. food innovations in nuanced detail, without gerprinting. While DNA fingerprinting has “It’s not one technology but the combi- avoiding the financial, technical, legal, and been a much-used tool in the food safety To ensure that the next generation is nation of all the technology we have that health-related challenges involved in bring- arsenal for twenty years, WGS renders fin- ready for clean meat, Shojinmeat brings will create a safer food supply,” agreed ing these innovations to the consumer. er detail than any previous method could lab-growing kits to Japanese schools. Cu- Weidmann. hope to approach. rious kids can grow their own blob of cells like a class pet. One of Shojinmeat’s high- “The food market is big enough for lots WGS creates DNA fingerprints so detailed school interns drew a comic book about of companies,” Hanyu said, when asked that researchers can determine the spe- the process, which they distribute at comic about his company’s relationship with cific strains of bacteria associated with a as Weidmann. She founded the Shang- conventions around the country. plant-based meat substitutes such as the given plant. These fingerprints allow re- hai-based firm Bits x Bites with the goal Impossible Burger. “It’s down to individual searchers to track a strain from an out- of shaping the future of good food through The final speaker of the session,Yuki Ha- Hanyu conjured a craft-beer future for his preferences.” The answer received a nod break to its source. WGS can also detect early-stage startups. Her investors look nyu, represented one of the disruptive brand: local “farmers” would develop their from several of the diverse food industry outbreaks more effectively than previous for startups that tackle challenges in the startups that would be worthy of Bits x own recipes from the Shojinmeat base, representatives in the audience. methods, which will lead to the illusion of food system, from the overuse of chem- Bites’ 3 C’s. “Disruptive” is Hanyu’s own outbreaks becoming more frequent. Weid- ical fertilisers to the lack of sustainable descriptor for his company. “What I’m do- mann urged the audience not to take this protein sources. ing is definitely a huge headache for food ACTION STEPS Martin Weidmann, Gellert Family Profes- medium-term misconception as a reason safety regulators, like the people here,” sor in Food Safety at Cornell University, to avoid WGS and related new genomics China is a particularly appropriate place he chuckled. began the session on a cautionary note tools. “Not using the tools involves a great- for a firm like Bits x Bites; the country’s 1 Stay on top of developments in the startup sector to anticipate change before it that would temper the exuberance of the er risk than you may realise,” he warned. breakneck economic rise has led to re- Hanyu is the founder of Shojinmeat Project sweeps the industry. following talks. He ran through a list of source depletion as well as unprecedented and Integriculture, a startup that makes 2 Acquire consumer trust through citizen science and radical transparency. food-tech media darlings — novel foods, As a venture capitalist, Matilda Ho is rates of obesity and diabetes. The Chinese “clean meat.” This euphemistic term refers lab-grown meats, yeast-produced dairy, ur- just as concerned with risk assessment government is pushing for change in the to animal cells grown in a laboratory —

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country was full of food. Children suffered The final speaker of the conference, PLENARY 5: crippling vitamin deficiencies despite re- Adjiedj Bakas of Trend Office Bakas, had ceiving enough calories. Upon returning to even loftier predictions for the future of Japan, Izumo decided to devote his life to food, energy, and beyond. His multime- Japan 2020, Nutrition and the Future of Food solving malnutrition. dia presentation offered a kaleidoscopic vision of the future, featuring everything Euglena offered that solution. Packed with from livestock reared in artificial wombs 59 nutrients and the complete proteins to corporations with no internal hierarchy KEY TAKEAWAYS ignore, because the slightest difference in that occur in meat, euglena offers almost to a Zeppelin renaissance. No matter how their performance could mean the differ- everything a human needs to live. The only far-fetched his predictions, Bakas always ence between success and failure. Suzuki difficulty is growing enough to sell cost-ef- tied them back to action steps that relate 1 Food safety certification improves claimed that the tennis player Novak Djok- fectively. After years of trial and error, to issues already at the forefront. consumers’ lives by freeing them to ovic could only earn his title after address- Euglena Co. developed a way to cultivate focus on their own improvement. ing his gluten sensitivity. euglena on a large scale. After suggesting that the world may adopt an Israeli cryptocurrency based on a dia- 2 Unconventional food sources such as algae can play a role in reducing In addition to providing safe food for the Since their eureka euglena moment, the mond standard, Bakas urged the audience hunger and malnutrition around the athletes, the Olympic committee could en- company has joined the Tokyo Stock Ex- to invest in tech security to protect their in- world. courage athletes to use their platform to change — the first startup out of Tokyo Uni- formation and assets. He also encouraged educate the public about food-related is- versity to receive that honour — and grown the investors present to pay attention to 3 The growing startup culture in the “No,” he sighed, “that’s just an auditory hal- sues. Suzuki envisioned sending the Jap- to a market cap of $1 billion. They’ve also the burgeoning startup culture in develop- developing world is driving radical lucination.” anese athletes back to their home towns achieved certification with FSSC, FDA, and ing countries. innovation in the food industry and to share a meal with local school children. halal and kosher authorities. “Japanese beyond. The cheering may have been a hallucina- At the table, athletes could teach children customers are very particular about food,” Like Suzuki before him, Bakas was par- tion, but the construction is real: Tokyo and how to appreciate food, prevent waste, and he said, and certifications can help con- ticularly concerned with food waste. He the surrounding areas area are already recognise global issues such as food inse- sumers ensure safety and quality. suggested that Zeppelins could be used to CLOSING preparing frantically for events two years curity. This effort would be in keeping with ship food more efficiently, preventing food Traditionally, the final plenary of the Glob- in the future. Even the menus are in devel- the IOC’s sustainability and outreach strat- In the future, Izumo would like to see loss during transit. He also noted the start- THOUGHTS al Food Safety Conference aims its sights opment. Suzuki shared enticing images of egies for 2020. euglena expand from food to the energy up Copia, which connects people who have towards the future. The GFSI Conference a chirashi-don (rice topped with raw fish) market. The “futuristic superorganism” surplus food to people or institutions who Robach marked the end of the conference 2018 had a particular point in the distance that used only ingredients certified to a can be made into biofuel or bio jet fuel, have a lack. Finally he described a vision with heartfelt thanks to everyone involved, to focus on: 2020, when the Olympics will GFSI-recognised certification programme. sustainable alternatives to petroleum of new breeds of fruits and vegetables that from the Japanese government to the GFSI be held just steps away from the confer- After all, as the Japanese proverb goes, products. “Come back to see us in 2020 have no inedible parts. team and their CGF colleagues to the in- ence’s Tokyo venue. As revealed by the “you cannot fight on an empty stomach.” and observe how much we’ve grown,” he terpreters and moderator Leyl herself. previous plenaries’ speakers, Japan’s food invited the audience. Bakas ended on one of the central themes “You’ve kept this truly a professional oper- industry moves at lightning speed — by The adage takes on special meaning of the conference: collaboration. “You’re ation, “ he commended. the time the athletes descend upon Tokyo for Olympians, who eat not only to fill a great community; a university of food in two years time, they may very well be their stomachs but to power their bodies safety,” he said. “I urge you to connect, At last, Robach handed over the podi- able to feast on euglena prepared by robot through feats that test the limits of hu- here and digitally.” um to his colleagues Pierre de Ginestel celebrity chefs. man ability. As a young Olympian, Suzuki and Frédéric René from the GFSI Board. remembered carefully choosing his meals Mitsuru Izumo, President of Euglena Co., “He’s given us plenty of food for thought,” Though lacking some of the fanfare of last to avoid food poisoning or other issues. He had a very different prediction for Japan moderator Sharanjit Leyl quipped as she year’s ceremonious handover to the Ja- wants modern athletes to focus on their 2020. By that year, he surmised, the pub- returned to the stage to introduce Gillian pan Local Group — who came decked out performance instead of the safety of their lic would be eating euglena as a daily food. Kelleher, Anita Scholte op Reimer, and in floral kimono — de Ginestel and René food, so he’s encouraging the organisers to Euglena, a single-cellular organism with Mike Robach to close out the conference. were equally determined to represent purchase only ingredients with a GFSI-rec- both animal and plant characteristics, is their country. ognised certification for the village. the central focus of Izumo’s eponymous startup — and, evidently, of his life. ACTION STEPS “As you understand with the accents, we Food safety for athletes involves issues are French,” de Ginestel said. He welcomed that might not be involved in every certi- Born to a conventional, middle-class Japa- the audience to attend next year’s confer- 1 Partner with athletes or other influencers to impact the public perception of fication programme. For example, athletes nese family, Izumo began his path towards food issues. ence in Nice, on the French Riviera. “It will “Listen closely,” said Daichi Suzuki, Commis- must avoid poppy seeds and pork con- disruptive innovation when he visited be difficult to compete with this year, but sioner of the Japan Sports Agency and 1988 taminated with steroids to avoid setting Bangladesh on a college internship. Bang- 2 Maintain an open-minded flexibility that will allow your company to stretch to fit the French never give up.” gold medalist. “Can you hear the construc- off a drug test. They’re also conscious of ladesh was the first place he saw pover- new trends. tion getting ready? The people cheering?”. mild food sensitivities that others might ty and malnutrition first-hand - but the See you in Nice in 2019!

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GFSI Board Discovery Tours Meetings The Discovery Tours were the perfect op- The gourmands of the group chose the “All portunity to experience the culture and About Taste” tour, which shed light on the Leaders from major retail, manufactur- traditions of Japan first-hand. Attendees ever-evolving Japanese palate. Attendees ing, primary production and food service selected their tour from three bespoke sampled choice tidbits at Kirin Yokohama operations who make up the GFSI Board discovery tracks, all designed to give brewery, the Ajinomoto Kawasaki, and a lo- of Directors met before the conference unique insight into the Japanese food and cal Costco. After satisfying their stomachs, to discuss new challenges in the evolv- beverage industry. they sought more spiritual nourishment at ing food industry landscape. The Board the 900-year-old Kawasaki Daishi temple. welcomed valuable new additions from The “300 Years of Food & Beverage” tour players in food service, ecommerce, tradi- charted a journey through time, from The “Farm to Fork” tour offered a sweep- tional retail, primary production and man- an ultra-modern Kewpie Egg Base to ing view of the Japanese food industry, ufacturing. Old and new members worked Sawanoi, the region’s oldest sake brew- from the transportation and logistics fa- together on a volunteer basis to provide ery. After sipping sake with views over a cility Chronogate to retailer chains METRO the strategic direction for GFSI in line with G2G and G2B traditional Japanese garden, the group Cash & Carry and AEON. The tour wrapped key industry needs. had the chance to visit the 1900-year-old up at FoodEx Japan, the largest exhibition Meetings Ōkunitama Shrine. of the Japanese food industry. GFSI hosted the third edition of the Gov- ernment to Government (G2G) and Gov- ernment to Business (G2B) meetings in Tokyo. At this year’s G2B meeting, the GFSI Board of Directors were joined by 40 organisations representing 25 countries and five IGOs. The meetings were an opportunity to discuss third-party certification and emerging food safety issues while exploring how regulators and the private sector can advance food safety in the context of value chain management. Paul Mayers of the Canadian government, Mika Yokoto of Japan and Mike Robach, Chair of the GFSI Board of Directors, ran the meeting, informing and aligning un- GFSI Global derstanding of third-party certification Markets Awards from a food safety and trade perspective.

Four companies were recognised for excellence in advancing food safety as part of the Global Market Awards 2018. Nuts and Legumes Co. (Pakistan), Plan- tation Industries Limited (Nigeria), Fuji Foods Co. Ltd (Japan) and ASOCIACIONES AGROINDUSTRIALES SERRANAS S.A DE C.V (Mexico) were celebrated for their application of the GFSI Global Markets Programme, on their journey towards GFSI-recognised certification.

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Special Press Conference Sessions The key focus of this year’s press conference, taking place just before the opening plenary session, was Public-Private Partner- The early birds among the attendees had ships. Well attended by national and international media business the chance to catch a series of morning and trade media, the press conference saw new partnerships an- Special Sessions, where some of the lead- nounced, enabling the public and private sectors to drive progress ing lights in the industry discussed the on operational approaches to food safety culture and expand ca- hottest topics in food safety, technology pacity based on the GFSI’s Global Markets Programme — a frame- and innovation. At the Wednesday ses- work for implementing robust food safety systems in developing sions, experts from Greenfence, Ecolab, markets. “This kind of public-private collaboration is unprecedent- Bureau Veritas, and Rentokil regaled the ed,” said Mike Robach, Chair of the GFSI Board. “The support we’re delegates with tales of their adventures seeing around the world now is signalling a big, positive change.” in the world of blockchain and Big Data. On Thursday, key players at DNV GL, SAI Exhibition Global, SGS, and Diversey & CxS turned out to turn over complex ideas such as At the vibrant exhibition hall, delegates consumer trust, food defense, digital learned about new and innovative food transformation, and the role of technology Digital Conversation safety solutions while mingling with the in food safety culture. GFSI community. In fact, the conference’s The digital food safety conversation con- to their tweets. Conveniently located near exhibition hall has become a community tinues to grow and this year’s conference GFSI’s own booth and the Presentation in its own right, with many familiar faces featured a live Twitter wall that fluttered Theater, many delegates stopped to catch joined by a few local first-timers. Over 30 with activity all conference long. Delegates up on the conversation, while commu- exhibitors set up shop in the hall, some shared their thoughts and session take- nity members unable to make the trip even performing traditional Japanese tea aways by attaching the hashtag #gfsi18 joined in from around the world as well. ceremonies or providing photo opportunities with mascots. While enjoying the at- tractions, delegates took the opportunity to make connections and do business with the diverse, friendly crowd.

Tech Talks

After their first appearance at GFSI 2017 in Houston, Tech Talks returned by popu- each of these presentations had a focus lar demand at the GFSI Conference 2018 on food safety technology, including Big in Tokyo. These short sessions provided Data, Internet of Things, food logistics, and a break from proceedings in the main au- mobile apps. Experts from across the food ditorium and offered a more relaxed and industry shared experiences and insights, informal setting for discussion of specific and showcased a new frontier of food topics in food safety. As the name implies, safety science and technology.

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Breakout Sessions which focused on the emerging role of this This year’s Breakout Sessions provided the technology and predictive analytics in the chance for delegates to delve further into food industry. Speakers examined the var- topics affecting the food industry. Attendees ious tools available and demonstrated how listened to real life case studies — success these capabilities are helping companies stories and lessons learned — and got a improve consumer engagement, supply practical, hands on approach from those at chain security and food quality. the forefront of food safety. The Auditor Competency session contem- At the Aquaculture & Seafood session, plated the changing role of the food safety industry-leading speakers focused on the auditor in the face of developing technolo- importance of quality and traceability. They gies and new risk areas. Speakers shared outlined best practices to ensure that the auditing experiences and explored the ap- world’s aquaculture supply-chains are safe, plicability of wearable technologies such as secure, and sustainable. Google Glass in the field.

The Changing Role of the Regulator ses- The Primary Production session focused sion discussed the need for iterative inter- on the first step in the food supply chain: national food safety standards as global the farm. Capacity-building in primary pro- supply chains become more complex and duction is one of GFSI’s core strategic ob- interdependent. The speakers encouraged jectives. The speakers gazed into the future the implementation of international stand- of food safety with an in-depth discussion of ards to increase trade and provide safer how producers are exchanging knowledge food for consumers everywhere. with global food companies in real-time.

The Food Safety Culture session welcomed With meat fraud and similar incidents mak- an especially large crowd, who turned out to ing colourful headlines in recent years, the hear leaders from Europe, Asia Pacific, and Food Fraud session was understandably the US share their own food safety culture popular. This timely session explored the models while highlighting common themes “why” of food fraud prevention strategies among the different strategies. Delegates with the goal of imparting three key learn- walked away with practical action steps for ing objectives: understanding the applica- building their own culture of food safety. tion of specific countermeasures in actual food fraud incidents, revealing how experts The Global Markets Programme and Ca- are shifting from traditional approaches to pacity Building session offered valuable innovative responses, and demonstrating information for delegates curious about how a multi-disciplinary approach might be how GFSI’s pathway to certification can applied to reduce food fraud risk. benefit their own organisations. Panelists from the public and private sectors, as The final breakout session of the conference well as various Inter-Governmental Or- provided delegates with a Food Service ganisations, examined how schemes such and hospitality perspective on food safety as the GFSI Global Markets Programme culture. The session included speakers at could be a solution to building effective the forefront of the food service revolution, food safety management systems in local including Yongjian Zhong from Meituan Di- manufacturers. anping, a delivery platform seamlessly in- tegrated into social media. Delegates also Ruediger Hagedorn of The Consumer Goods received insider tips on meeting the needs Forum moderated the Big Data session, of the modern, millennial customer.

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GFSI CONFERENCE SPONSORS EXHIBITORS

Partners

Diamond

Gold

Silver

Bronze

SUPPORTING ASSOCIATIONS MEDIA PARTNERS

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