2019 AIFST Convention Speakers

The theme for the 2019 AIFST Convention is Feeding the Future - challenges & opportunities. This years' Convention will showcase a range of exciting, diverse and experienced speakers to share their knowledge, insights and learnings on a range of key areas.

No matter what your professional interest, level of experience or background, the four concurrent streams over the two-day Convention is sure to have something for everyone.

The Australian Institute of Food Science & Technology would like to thank our 2019 AIFST Convention Keynote, Plenary and Session speakers:

Keynote & Plenary Speakers:

Jane Bennett - Managing Director and CEO, TasFoods Ltd

Jane will be speaking on Monday, 1 July 2019 in the JR Vickery Address on the commercialisation of innovation in a 21^st century market and where we drive value from our investment in R&D.

Jane Bennett is the Managing Director and CEO of ASX listed company TasFoods Ltd. Headquartered in Launceston TasFoods is building a unique portfolio of premium Tasmanian food brands that leverage the attributes of Brand Tasmania to deliver excellence in flavour and character across a range of food categories. Current brands owned by the TasFoods Group include Nichols Poultry – the second largest poultry meat business operating in Tasmania, Shima Wasabi – Australia’s only commercial wasabi farming operation, Pyengana Dairy – Australia’s heritage farmhouse cheese brand, and Meander Valley Dairy – an indulgent dairy brand.

Jane has over 20 years of experience in vertically integrated dairy businesses working in the UK and Tasmania. She has extensive experience in regional provenance branding serving for over 10 years on the Brand Tasmania Council and 6 years as Chair of the Tasmanian Food Industry Council. In 2008 Jane did a Nuffield Farming Scholarship studying the Role of Regionality in the Marketing and Branding of Food.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Maria Velissariou (PhD) - Chief Science and Technology Officer, Institute of Food Technologists

Maria will be speaking on Monday, 1 July 2019 in the Gold Partner Address on food chains of the future and new supply-demand dynamics and in Session 2.4 on what are you doing about traceability?

Dr Maria Velissariou is Chief Science and Technology Officer at the Institute of Food Technologists (IFT), based in Chicago, USA. She is responsible for setting the strategic agenda and overseeing Science, Technology and Policy Initiatives, including the Global Food Traceability Center (GFTC), advocating for the science of food and partnering with others to ensure IFT’s education and content are relevant to the institute’s members and customers.

Prior to joining IFT, Maria had a 25-year corporate career. Most recently she was Vice President for PepsiCo Nutrition R&D with responsibility for Global Grains, Dairy and Cohort Platforms. In that capacity, she led scaled global technologies to deliver advantaged nutrition, superior product experiences and affordable solutions to consumers around the world seeking trusted and balanced options.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Dr. Cathy Foley - Chief Scientist, CSIRO

Cathy will be speaking on Monday, 1 July 2019 in the Opening Plenary Session on shaping the science agenda.

Dr. Cathy Foley, CSIRO Chief Scientist, has made distinguished contributions to the understanding of superconducting materials and to the development of devices using superconductors to detect magnetic fields and locate valuable deposits of minerals. Dr. Foley has made significant contributions to the scientific community as president of several scientific societies and as a member of committees such as PMSEIC giving advice to Government on scientific and technological matters. Cathy was awarded the `Woman of the Year’ by the NSW Government in 2013 and the International IEEE Award for Continuing and Significant Contributions to Applied Superconductivity 2014. In 2015 was awarded the Clunies Ross Medal of the Australian Academy of Technological Science and Engineering and in 2016 the Australian Institute of Physics Medal for Outstanding Service to Physics.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Mirjana Prica - Managing Director, FIAL

Mirjana will be speaking on Monday, 1 July 2019 in the Closing Plenary Session on connecting for growth.

Mirjana loves food and wine, which is why she works in the Australian food and agribusiness industry. She believes the impossible is possible and gets a buzz from developing creative solutions for maximum benefit.

She currently leads Food Innovation Australia Limited, a national and industry-led organization, established to drive innovation and market initiatives for Australia.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Brianna Casey - CEO, Foodbank Australia

Brianna will be speaking on Monday, 1 July 2019 in the Closing Plenary Session panel on building future industry leaders - what does leadership look like?

Brianna joined Foodbank Australia in July 2016, following her successful three-year term as Chief Executive Officer of Australian Childcare Alliance New South Wales, the peak body for privately owned long day care services in NSW. Prior to that, she spent 14 years in agri-politics, both in NSW and Queensland. Brianna served as a Policy Director (in Environment and Rural Affairs portfolios) at NSW Farmers, and was Executive Director of Queensland Farmers’ Federation.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Sharon Natoli - Food & Nutrition Australia & Author of Food for a Better Future

Sharon will be speaking on Monday, 1 July 2019 in the Closing Plenary Session panel on building future industry leaders - what does leadership look like? and on Tuesday, 2 July 2019 in the Plenary Session on being future ready - how health & nutrition will drive the future of food.

Sharon Natoli is a dietitian, speaker and author who works with leading food businesses to connect emerging consumer values in health and nutrition with corporate and brand strategy. She is Founding Director of Food & Nutrition Australia, and a sought after advisor to food producers, research and development corporations and food service providers.

She is author of Food for a Better Future, published in July this year, and is passionate about food businesses facilitating change that leads the population and the planet toward a better future.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Dr. Anneline Padayachee - The Food and Nutrition Doctor

Anneline will be speaking on Monday, 1 July 2019 in the Closing Plenary Session panel on building future industry leaders - what does leadership look like? and on Tuesday, 2 July 2019 in Session 4.4 on the evolution of dairy milk: what does the next stage look like?

With a PhD focusing on the effect of processing technology on nutrition, and over 15 years work experience in all sectors of the food industry from red meat and infant formula to tertiary degree design and coordination, Dr. Anneline Padayachee is a highly sought after food and nutrition expert in the food industry and media for a her simple communication style. Based in Brisbane, The University of Melbourne Associate Academic,is also the nutritional expert consultant with the Anytime Fitness group of fitness centres and quite often frequents the media.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Ishan Galapathy - Founding Director, Capability Unlimited

Ishan will be speaking on Monday, 1 July 2019 in the Closing Plenary Session panel on building future industry leaders - what does leadership look like?

Ishan has a wealth of knowledge in the field of Operational Excellence (OpEx), working across six countries for nearly two decades, including multi-nationals such as Kellogg’s and Arnotts. In his last corporate role, Ishan was responsible for OpEx in the Asia Pacific for Kellogg’s and was part of the global team that developed its global supply chain excellence program. An industry expert in OpEx, speaker and author, Ishan has appeared on several media platforms sharing his knowledge on all things OpEx. When he’s not thinking about or working on OpEx, you can find him playing backyard cricket with his sons or sipping a cup of coffee with his wife.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Alan Kirkland - Chief Executive Officer, CHOICE

Alan will be speaking on Tuesday, 2 July 2019 in the Opening Plenary Session on fads and facts: how our relationship with food is changing.

Alan Kirkland has been CEO of CHOICE, Australia’s largest consumer organisation, since 2012. Alan has a strong background in access to justice, having worked as CEO of Legal Aid New South Wales, Executive Director of the Australian Law Reform Commission and Chair of the National Legal Assistance Advisory Body. He has also been a part-time member of a number of state and federal tribunals.
Alan has also served on the boards of a number of social justice organisations, including the Australian Council of Social Service, the Public Interest Advocacy Centre and the Welfare Rights Centre.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Dan Purtell - Director of Innovation, British Standards Institute

Dan will be speaking on Tuesday, 2 July 2019 in the Keynote Address on the future of audit & the evolving digital assurance roadmap.

Dan Purtell is the Director of Innovation at the British Standards Institute. He is responsible for leading the organization’s expansion of disruptive technologies including Artificial Intelligence, Blockchain, and Predictive Analytics across the global organization. He formerly served as Senior Vice President of BSI’s Governance, Risk and Compliance group; a position he held for 15 years. He is a current board member of the Supplier Compliance Audit Network Association, a consortium of global importers and exporters.

Prior to BSI, he was a senior manager at Intel Corporation where he managed the Global Supply Chain Security and Risk Management Programs.

Mr Purtell received a Bachelor of Science degree in Criminal Justice and a Masters in Business Administration from Arizona State University.

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Carla Mejia - Regional Food Technology and Food Safety Officer, World Food Program

Carla will be speaking on Tuesday, 2 July 2019 in the Keynote Address on humanitarian feeding problems in the Asian Pacific region - the whole of the World Food Programme and in Session 3.3 on food technology for improved nutrition: Case studies in Asia.

Carla is the Regional Food Technology and Food Safety officer at the Regional Bureau for Asia and the Pacific of the UN World Food Programme (WFP). Her professional focus is food science and agri-food systems with an emphasis in innovation, value chain addition, SMEs, standard setting chemical safety and regulations. She has a MSc. and Ph.D. degrees in Food Science from Purdue University

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Hope Bertram - Humane Food Manager, RSPCA

Hope will be speaking on Tuesday, 2 July 2019 in the Opening Plenary Session on farming for the future: humane food.

As RSPCA Australia’s Humane Food Manager, Hope Bertram works behind the scenes with some of Australia’s biggest brands in order to improve farm animal welfare through their procurement policies. Hope manages the RSPCA’s Humane Food initiatives, such as the Approved Farming Scheme, an accreditation program focussed on better welfare for farm animals. Hope is passionate about giving farm animals a better quality of life and helps promote consumer awareness and education about more humane farming systems. Hope has a BA in Communications and has worked in the Not for Profit sector for the past 15 years and at RSPCA Australia for the past decade.

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Denise Hamblin - National FMCG Sector Head, Colmar Brunton

Denise will be speaking on Tuesday, 2 July 2019 in the Plenary Session on the future of protein: market insights and opportunities in Australian export markets.

A passion for insights and all things food and wine saw Denise trade in neuroscience for consumer science. Currently the National Sector Head for FMCG at Colmar Brunton, Denise leads a large variety of research programmes to maximise the success of Australian industries and businesses both locally and globally.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Dr. Sue Bastian - Associate Professor in Oenology and Sensory Science, University of Adelaide

Sue will be speaking on Tuesday, 2 July 2019 in the Plenary Session on harnessing consumers for new product success.

Dr. Sue Bastian is Associate Professor in Oenology and Sensory Studies, at the University of Adelaide. She has over two decades of experience working on beverage and food composition, sensory, quality and consumer research. As well as being an oenologist, Sue has a background in protein biochemistry and cell biology. Her research interests are in understanding the context, sensory and molecular drivers of consumer food choice and preference and the genetics of mouthfeel perception and individual phenotypes. Current research also focuses on consumers and cross-cultural market-insights, Virtual Reality, and emotions; terroir of Australian Shiraz wine; wine tourism; wine authenticity; wine and food pairing; cross-modal interactions; new product development; improvement of sensory and consumer methodologies and Chinese medicine and plant extracts in cancer and gut health.

Session Speakers:

Narelle Fegan - Food Safety and Stability Group, CSIRO

Narelle will be speaking on Monday, 1 July 2019 in Session 1.1 on science informing the future of food microbiology interest group.

Narelle Fegan is a microbiologist with the CSIRO Food Safety and Stability Group. Narelle has worked at CSIRO for over 20 years and her main research focus is understanding how foodborne pathogens survive, persist and are transmitted through the food chain.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

David Miles - Quality and Responsible Sourcing Team, Coles

David will be speaking on Monday, 1 July 2019 in Session 1.1 on food microbiology supporting the future - retailer's perspective.

Dr David Miles graduated from UTAS in 2001 and went on to work with the NSW Food Authority for 15 years. For the past 5 years, David has been working with Coles Supermarkets in the Quality and Responsible Sourcing Team. David leads a team to investigate customer complaints with Own Brand suppliers and also liaises with 3rd party labs to manage the Coles surveillance testing program.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Leanne Laajoki - Senior Project Manager for the Implementation Subcommittee for Food Regulation (ISFR), FSANZ

Leanne will be speaking on Monday, 1 July 2019 in Session 1.1 on kicking goals in reducing foodborne illness: the National Foodborne Illness Reduction Strategy 2018-2021+.

Dr Leanne Laajoki is the Senior Project Officer for the Implementation Subcommittee for Food Regulation (ISFR), providing technical and strategic support. Leanne has been involved in food regulation in Australia for 15 years and was previously the section manager for scientific strategy, international and surveillance within Food Standards Australia New Zealand.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Lisa Szabo - Group Director Food Safety/CEO Food Authority, NSW Department of Industry

Lisa will be speaking on Monday, 1 July 2019 in Session 1.1 on the regulatory environment keeping up with innovation.

Lisa joined the New South Wales Food Authority as its chief scientist in January 2006 and became its chief executive officer in 2015. The Food Authority is a statutory authority in the Australian state of New South Wales with responsibility for food regulation across the food chain. Lisa has been closely involved with food research, scientific management, food regulation and organisational development throughout her career. She has been an expert advisor or member of a number of national and state government inquiries and committees.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Georgie Aley - Director of Food & Agribusiness, KPMG Australia

Georgie will be speaking on Monday, 1 July 2019 in Session 1.2 on health trends in ASEAN region.

Georgie Aley has held senior management and Non-Executive Director roles within the Australian food and agribusiness sector for close to 15 years. Her most recent roles include CEO of AIFST and Managing Director of the Grains & Legumes Nutrition Council and she currently serves as a Director of peak industry associations Pulse Australia and Agribusiness Australia. In her role at KPMG, Georgie advises clients across the full value chain from paddock to plate providing an insightful lens for clients on organisational and industry challenges, ensuring KPMG clients are equipped to solve complex challenges and remain competitive and sustainable in both today’s, and the future, operating environment.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Dr. Michelle Crino - Policy Officer, NSW Health

Michelle will be speaking on Monday, 1 July 2019 in Session 1.2 on healthy food finder: using technology to assist the implementation of healthy food and drink provision policies in NSW.

Dr. Michelle Crino is a Registered Public Health Nutritionist currently working as a Policy Officer at NSW Health. Michelle has extensive experience in monitoring and evaluation of food-supply based policies and food and nutrition composition data.
Michelle has a Bachelor of Food Science and Human Nutrition with Honours from the University of Newcastle and was awarded a Doctor of Philosophy in public health nutrition from the University of Sydney.

Michelle’s research focused on obesity policy and food systems, specifically, her thesis was titled ‘Food environment interventions to address obesity and related non-communicable diseases in Australia’.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Casey Lippmeier - Vice President of Research and Development, Conagen

Casey will be speaking on Monday, 1 July 2019 in Session 1.2 on a sweet choice: the best-tasting stevia sweetener approved in ANZ.

Casey currently serves as the VP of R&D for Conagen Inc. – a fully integrated biomanufacturing company which uses synthetic biology to deliver high value ingredients for the food, flavor, nutritional, pharmaceutical, and renewable materials industries.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Paul Kelly - Senior Policy & Regulatory Manager, Woolworths Ltd.

Paul will be speaking on Monday, 1 July 2019 in Session 1.2 on creating a healthier tomorrow.

Paul has recently been promoted to Senior Policy & Regulatory Manager at Woolworths Ltd. He holds qualifications in Food Technology and Law, and has worked in the retail sector for the last 4 years, and prior to that having worked in FMCG having held roles in policy, regulatory and nutrition.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Derek Williamson - Acting Program Delivery Manager, CSIRO

Derek will be speaking on Monday, 1 July 2019 in Session 1.3 on CREST and other STEM programs.

Daniel is an Asian markets specialist in KPMG’s Access Asia and Agri-Food teams. Focused upon the trade of consumable goods, Daniel has supported many organisations with positioning for export success. Daniel has degrees from Oxford University and Melbourne University and is originally from the UK.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Geoff Barbaro - Executive Manager, Skills Impact

Geoff will be speaking on Monday, 1 July 2019 in Session 1.3 on the increasing focus on vocations, skills and competencies.

Geoff is the Executive Manager, Industry Engagement for Skills Impact, an NFP working across Australia to benchmark learning and skills standards for the industry. Skills Impact is responsible for working with industry to identify skills needs in vocational training for the Food, Beverage and Pharmaceutical sectors, among others.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Alan Edwards - Senior Food Incident Response and Complaints Coordinator, NSW Food Authority

Alan will be speaking on Monday, 1 July 2019 in Session 1.3 on building from the ground up.

Alan Edwards is the Senior Food Incident Response and Complaints Coordinator with the New South Wales Department of Primary Industries (NSW DPI). Prior to joining the NSW DPI, Alan worked as a teacher and as a lawyer. He has over 20 years experience in investigation and prosecution work.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Dr. Polly Burey (PhD, Qld; BE Hons I, Auck.) - Senior Lecturer (Food Science), University of Southern Queensland

Polly will be speaking on Monday, 1 July 2019 in Session 1.3 on educating future generations of food scientists.

Dr. Polly Burey is the Senior Lecturer in Food Science at The University of Southern Queensland where she leads the BSc Food Science major. Her research lies in chemical and materials engineering with current interests in development of useful composite materials and ingredients from agricultural and food processing wastes.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Dr. Robert Barlow - Research Scientist, CSIRO

Robert will be speaking on Monday, 1 July 2019 in Session 2.1 on the evolution of food safety diagnostics - STEC as an example.

Robert is a Team Leader in the Food Safety & Stability group within CSIRO Agriculture & Food. Robert has 20 years’ experience conducting research projects for Meat and Livestock Australia and Australian Meat Processor Corporation investigating significant food safety issues (e.g pathogenic E. coli and antimicrobial resistance) that the Australian red meat industry address in order to deliver safe and trusted products into global markets. His current research efforts primarily focus on understanding the relationship between bovine and human STEC, particularly non-O157 STEC of regulatory importance and the improvement of STEC detection and confirmation test systems for use by the Australian beef industry. Most recently the Food Safety & Stability group have begun to use metagenomics to explore the pathways of STEC through the beef supply chain with a view that the outcomes will lead to enhanced opportunities for the control of STEC.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Dr. Tony Pavic - Chief Scientific Officer and Regulatory Affairs Manager, Baiada Poultry

Tony will be speaking on Monday, 1 July 2019 in Session 2.1 on validation of a new method for the enumeration of Campylobacter from raw poultry.

Tony Pavic graduated from the University of Tasmania, School of Applied Science in 1992, with a Bachelor’s degree in Microbiology and Human Biology and completed his PhD at the University of New South Wales in Microbiology and Immunology. Tony is an active member in the Australian and International Scientific communities and is involved in collaborator research with local and international entities. Tony has been described as a passionate thought leader by his peers.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Clare Winkel - Executive Manager, Technical Solutions at Integrity Compliance Solutions

Clare will be speaking on Monday, 1 July 2019 in Session 2.1 on salmonella in raw fish fillets - why do we not consider it a food safety hazard?

Clare has audited against GFSI stds, in 13 countries, across numerous industry sectors including seafood processing (wild harvest, farmed, shellfish, molluscs, fish, cephalopods, reptiles & crustaceans) (shucking, hot/cold smoking, MAP, Sous vide). Clare has substantial knowledge of the seafood chain across the Pacific, particularly the Alaskan wild salmon chain.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Jasmine Lacis-Lee - Food Safety Manager, DTS Food Assurance

Jasmine will be speaking on Monday, 1 July 2019 in Session 2.1 on salmonella in raw fish fillets - why do we not consider it a food safety hazard?

Jasmine currently works for DTS Food Assurance as their Food Safety Manager – Microbiology and Allergens. In this role, she is responsible for providing guidance to the food industry with relation to result interpretation, mitigating microbiological and allergen risks in facilities and providing training to clients. She began her career in the food industry more than 20 years ago working as a microbiologist in a commercial food testing laboratory.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Dr. Vikrant Dutta - Senior Staff Scientist, bioMérieux Inc.(US, Scientific Affairs)

Vikrant will be speaking on Monday, 1 July 2019 in Session 2.1 on food microbiology testing: whats next?

Vik Dutta is currently working as a Senior Staff Scientist on the Scientific Affairs team for bioMérieux Inc. Prior to his current role, he was employed as a Senior Microbiologist at the Enteric Disease Laboratory Branch at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Atlanta, GA. Vik earned his doctorate in Veterinary Medicine from MAFSU India, and a PhD in Microbiology from North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC. Vik has been working with different aspects of food safety and food-borne pathogens for over 13 years with work experience ranging from basic to applied science, including development/commercialization of isothermal/PCR-based tests, and WGS-based detection and subtyping tests. He has authored or co-authored over 20 peer-reviewed articles/book chapters. He currently serves as a member of the editorial board for the Food Protection Trends, is a Review Editor for the Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems, and is an active reviewer/contributor for a number of microbiology journals and other food safety publications.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Dr. Dai Suter

Dai will be speaking on Monday, 1 July 2019 in Session 2.2 on a possible explanation for the gluten-free phenomenon.

Dai has more than 40 years experience in cereal sciences, baking, wheat quality and held positions as R&D manager and Chief Scientist during 37 years at George Weston. Amongst many other achievements he championed the research,development and launch of Bürgen® Soy-Lin®.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Lynne Cobiac - Science Director and Deputy Director of CSIRO Health and Biosecurity, CSIRO

Lynne will be speaking on Monday, 1 July 2019 in Session 2.2 on advances in personalised nutrition.

Professor Lynne Cobiac is the Science Director and Deputy Director of CSIRO Health and Biosecurity and is also developing a Precision Health Future Science Platform. Lynne has 30 years of experience and leadership in research and management in nutrition and preventative health. Lynne is an active diversity and inclusion champion.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Michael Lee (M.App.Sc, B.App.Sc (hons), Dipl.Bus, MAIFST, MAIP) - High-Value Food Frontiers Manager, Meat and Livestock Australia (MLA) Ltd

Michael will be speaking on Monday, 1 July 2019 in Session 2.2 on personalised nutrition and 'connected food' - an opportunity for the Australian red meat industry.

Michael comes from a food technology background with 20+ years’ experience across the meat supply chain from retail to operations. Prior to Meat and Livestock Australia (MLA) he has worked for Woolworths Supermarkets National Office, Hans Smallgoods, and JBS Australia. Michael completed his post-graduate research in new packaging formats and business models for fresh and cooked meats.

Since 2012, Michael has been with MLA working on off-farm demand building research and development and innovation programs to create and capture value for the industry. Michael’s key focus is envisaging and developing foods for tomorrow’s consumer, which includes exploring global consumer and market insights and experimenting with novel science and technologies applied to red meat through a network of strategic research providers and industry partners.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Alex Blow - Innovation Manager - R & D, Mars Food Australia

Alex will be speaking on Monday, 1 July 2019 in Session 2.2 on seeds of change accelerator - start-ups, disruption & personalised nutrition.

Over 20 years’ experience in FMCG including several careers in Mars Food spanning Sales, Category Management, Front End Innovation and now leading the Seeds of Change Accelerator program. “Mars is a purpose-led organisation with values strongly aligned to my own. It’s a business that strives to do the right things, not the easy ones.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Chris Preston - Principal Legal Adviser, Australia, ComplyANZ

Chris will be speaking on Monday, 1 July 2019 in Session 2.3 on a food needs pyramid: conceptualising the function and role of food regulation.

Chris Preston has over 30 years of experience providing legal advice and services to manufacturers and brand owners regarding the regulatory regimes governing food, beverages, cosmetics, OTC pharmaceuticals and general consumer goods. He served as Director, Legal and Regulatory with the Australian Food and Grocery Council, and has advised multinational and domestic clients of all sizes in over 15 years of private legal practice.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Lauren D'Ambrosio - Senior Associate, King & Wood Mallesons

Lauren will be speaking on Monday, 1 July 2019 in Session 2.3 on don’t judge a book by its cover – a critical look at the presentation of alternative proteins through the ACL microscope.

Lauren advises clients in the food and consumer products sectors on Food Code compliance, therapeutic goods regulation, IP, consumer law and marketing issues. She also advises on commercial agreements, including supply, procurement, manufacturing, sponsorship and distribution arrangements, as well as social media, franchising and IP/IT aspects of M&A transactions.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Dr. Matthew O'Mullane - Standards and Surveillance, FSANZ

Matthew will be speaking on Monday, 1 July 2019 in Session 2.3 on future of novel food regulation - safeguarding health, supporting innovation.

Matthew leads the Standards and Surveillance Section at Food Standards Australia New Zealand, which manages the setting of food standards for both countries and undertakes surveillance of chemicals in the Australian food supply. He has worked extensively across government in the regulation of food, chemicals and GMOs.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Julie Cox - Special Counsel, Baker & McKenzie

Julie will be speaking on Monday, 1 July 2019 in Session 2.3 on trends in Asian food regulation.

Julie Cox is a Special Counsel at Baker McKenzie with over 15 years experience advising multinational food and beverage brands on food and trade regulatory, advertising and IP matters. Julie is an editor of Baker McKenzie’s APAC Food Law Guide and has worked with key industry bodies such as the AFGC to help build awareness of key non-tariff barriers to entry into the Asian food market.

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Dr. David Cusack - Manager of Food Standards and Programs, NSW DPI

David will be speaking on Monday, 1 July 2019 in Session 2.4 on the national traceability project - enhancing our traceability systems for the future.

Dr. David Cusack has worked with the NSW Department of Primary Industries for 13 years in food safety/regulatory affairs. His current role as Manager Food Standards and Programs involves working with Food Standards Australia New Zealand on various standards development matters. David also works on traceability projects including the National Traceability Project and reforms to the property identification code system arising from the Agriculture Ministers response to the IGAB review.

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Andrew Steele - Industry Manager - Food and Beverage, GS1 Australia

Andrew will be speaking on Monday, 1 July 2019 in Session 2.4 on traceability - what's happening in the food industry today

Andrew is a leading industry expert and well-respected supply chain professional with over 25 years’ experience in fast-moving consumers good and the food retail sector. Andrew currently leads the Supply Chain Integrity team at GS1 Australia who are responsible for developing insightful initiatives to ensure the highest level of efficiency, safety, traceability and best practice in the Australian Food and Beverage and retail sector. Andrew is an active member of a number of industry working groups in the retail grocery, liquor, meat and fresh produce sectors.

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Maria Velissariou (PhD) - Chief Science and Technology Officer, Institute of Food Technologists

Maria will be speaking on Monday, 1 July 2019 in the Gold Partner Address on food chains of the future and new supply-demand dynamics and in Session 2.4 on food traceability capabilities and benefits.

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Cathy Moir - Senior Food Microbiologist, CSIRO

Cathy will be speaking on Tuesday, 2 July 2019 in Session 3.1 on food microbiology underpinning food innovation and reformulation.

Cathy has extensive knowledge and expertise in the microbiology of a wide range of foods and food processes. Her work involves expert professional services and advice to assist industry and government relating to food safety hazard identification, characterisation, risk assessment and management of the microbiological safety and stability of food.

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Assoc Prof Mark Turner - Deputy Head of School of Agriculture and Food Sciences Faculty of Science, University of Queensland

Mark will be speaking on Tuesday, 2 July 2019 in Session 3.1 on the effects of alternative processing treatments on spoilage bacteria populations in rice and milk.

Mark Turner is an Associate Professor in Food Microbiology and Deputy Head in the School of Agriculture and Food Sciences at the University of Queensland (UQ). He leads a research team in the area of food quality and safety and was the recipient of the 2017 AIFST Keith Farrer Award of Merit.

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Nathan Flick - Account Manager - Meat and Food Cultures, Chr Hansen Pty Ltd

Nathan will be speaking on Tuesday, 2 July 2019 in Session 3.1 on protection from listeria - naturally.

Nathan Flick’s start in the food industry was as an apprentice butcher and smallgoods manufacturer, he then went on to complete a degree in food science and an MBA whilst working for some of Australia’s largest smallgoods and fresh meat processors. In his role at Chr Hansen, Nathan is responsible for meat and bio-protection accounts for Australia and New Zealand.

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Karen Ferres - Manager of Food Safety & Audit, SA Health

Karen will be speaking on Tuesday, 2 July 2019 in Session 3.1 on culture and behaviour - an innovative approach to supporting foodborne illness reduction.

Karen has over 30 years’ experience working in food safety and quality assurance, 12 years as a regulator and 18 years across food industry, airline, and academia sectors. Karen has many years’ experience in risk assessment and management as well as building and maintaining a ‘safety’ culture, integral to the performance of the organisation. Karen has participated on national /state government committees focussing on improving food safety outcomes.

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Prof Russell Keast - Sensory Science Professor, Deakin University

Russell will be speaking on Tuesday, 2 July 2019 in Session 3.2 on the relationship between taste, pleasure and weight gain.

Russell Keast is a Professor of Sensory and Food Science at Deakin University, Melbourne Australia. Russell leads the Centre for Advanced Sensory Science and is Discipline leader for Food Innovation. His research focuses on the sense of taste and the associations with acceptance and consumption of foods and health.

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Dr. David Cox - Principal Research Scientist, CSIRO

David will be speaking on Tuesday, 2 July 2019 in Session 3.2 on personalised nutrition: the sensory drivers of children's food intake.

Dr. David Cox is a Principal Research Scientist at CSIRO Health and Biosecurity, Adelaide. His work has focused upon the sensory and psycho-social drivers of food intake and his publications have been cited ~2000 times. He currently leads a $4M project seeking to increase children’s vegetable intakes and a consumer acceptance project on preventative health and maintains a unique Australian Sensory-Diet database.

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Dr. Heather Smyth - Senior Research Fellow, University of Queensland

Heather will be speaking on Tuesday, 2 July 2019 in Session 3.2 on the importance of food texture in consumer enjoyment and healthy eating.

Dr. Heather Smyth is a flavour chemist and sensory scientist who has been working with premium food and beverage products for more than fifteen years. With a background in wine flavour chemistry, her expertise is in understanding consumer enjoyment of foods and beverages in terms of both sensory properties and composition. Dr Smyth has a special interest in describing and articulating food quality, understanding regional flavours of locally grown produce, and modelling food flavour and textural properties using instrumental measurements. Dr Smyth also specialises in researching how human physiology, such as saliva and chewing behaviour, can impact sensory perception and therefore food choice.

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Jay Sellahewa - Food Process Engineer, CSIRO

Jay will be speaking on Tuesday, 2 July 2019 in Session 3.3 on innovations in humanitarian food science and technology - update following the Sydney 2017 symposium.

Jay Sellahewa is a Food Process Engineer with 40 years’ experience in the food sector in the UK and Australia. Following his retirement from CSIRO in 2014, Jay is actively working in the field of humanitarian food science and technology where he is coordinating the activities of a global team of volunteers.

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Andrew Ash - Chief Research Scientist, CSIRO

Andrew will be speaking on Tuesday, 2 July 2019 in Session 3.3 on linking research and the private sector in smallholder food systems in eastern Indonesia - synopsis.

Dr Andrew Ash is a Chief Research Scientist in CSIRO Agriculture. He has 35 years research experience in tropical agricultural systems in northern Australia and south-east Asia with a particular emphasis on developing management systems to improve profitability and environmental outcomes for rural communities

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Lynette Ryan - Head of Sustainability, Sunrice

Lynette will be speaking on Tuesday, 2 July 2019 in Session 3.3 on an industry case study.

With a background in legal, Lynette has held roles as in-house legal counsel with large Australian and International organisations such as Lion Nathan and Qantas. She took her passion to see business facilitate a change for good, to move into the CSR and Sustainability sector working with key stakeholders to develop and implement sustainability strategies, delivering financial and social returns and bringing about positive systemic change. Lynette is currently Head of Sustainability at SunRice, global food business and one of Australia’s leading branded food exporters.

Lynette holds a Bachelor of Commerce and Law from UNSW and a Graduate Certificate in Social Impact with UNSW and Centre for Social Impact.

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Carla Mejia - Regional Food Technology and Food Safety Officer, World Food Program

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Dr. Steven Lapidge - AIFST NED; CEO, Fight Food Waste CRC

Steven will be speaking on Tuesday, 2 July 2019 in Session 3.4 on Fight Food Waste CRC and it's initial research portfolio.

Dr Steven Lapidge is the inaugural CEO of the Fight Food Waste Cooperative Research Centre and a Non-Executive Director of AIFST. Steve’s qualifications include a BSc(Hons), PhD and an MBA. He is a graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors and a Fulbright Professional Business/Industry Fellow.

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Carolyn Cameron - General Manager of Food Sustainability, FIAL

Carolyn will be speaking on Tuesday, 2 July 2019 in Session 3.4 on a national food waste benchmark study.

Carolyn Cameron has over 40 years experience in environmental and strategic planning working with universities, state and national governments. She has worked in six states including with the NSW EPA and DPI in Victoria.

More recently Carolyn was a Senior Executive with the Commonwealth Department of Environment, leading teams to undertake regional sustainability planning across the country.

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Richard Collins - Principal Environmental Consultant, Arcadis

Richard will be speaking on Tuesday, 2 July 2019 in Session 3.4 on a national food waste benchmark study.

Richard worked for a decade as an influential analyst and commentator on the waste industry as managing editor of Inside Waste magazine before joining Arcadis to lead the NSW waste advisory team. He works right across the waste and resource recovery agenda and at scales ranging from strategic national projects through to facility appraisal, project business cases and investment due diligence. From an infrastructure perspective, Richard has advised regional council organisations and individual councils on waste options assessments and procurement pathways, and coordinates grant advisory support services team for the NSW EPA, providing wide exposure to development activities and market trends.

He works closely with the private sector, including scoping of waste market entry strategies and acquisition targets, investment due diligence that includes the $650 million Initial Public Offering of Bingo Industries.

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Robbie Davis - CEO, Potatoes South Australia Inc.

Robbie will be speaking on Tuesday, 2 July 2019 in Session 3.4 on food waste and loss - a $20b problem or $40b+ opportunity?

Robbie has business experience in both the private and public sectors domestically and internationally, and at Board level as a Board member and reporting to a Board in the capacity of CEO. With a strong understanding of the whole of industry value chains from the paddock to the end-consumer, she is also a producer of beef cattle in the upper south-east of South Australia. Following almost ten years living and working in Southeast Asia, she was self-employed as an agribusiness consultant until her appointment as CEO of Potatoes South Australia in 2012.

She was profiled under PIRSA’s Women Influencing Agriculture and Regions in 2015 and is the RIRDC 2016 SA Rural Woman of the Year.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Pablo Juliano - Principal Research Scientist, CSIRO

Pablo will be speaking on Tuesday, 2 July 2019 in Session 3.4 on food loss mapping and elimination initiatives in horiculture.

Pablo Juliano is a Principal Research Scientist, leader of the Bioproducts Supply Chain team and the Eliminate Food Loss test bed at CSIRO, leading multidisciplinary projects on emerging food processing technologies and redesign and optimisation of food supply chains. He obtained his PhD in Food Engineering at Washington State University in the USA and a Master of Business Administration at Deakin University in Australia. Pablo was previously in quality and research management roles with Nestlé Uruguay and with a major dairy exporter in Uruguay.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Bogdan Zisu - Senior Process Engineer, Fluid Air

Bogdan will be speaking on Tuesday, 2 July 2019 in the Lunchtime Session.

In 2005, Bogdan received his PhD in the field of dairy science. A ten-year industry engagement followed where he worked as a research scientist for Dairy Innovation Australia. From industry, Bogdan moved to academia and became a senior lecturer in food science and nutrition at the School of Sciences, College of Science, Engineering and Health at RMIT University, Australia. His 15+ years research experience has focused primarily on dairy science, spray drying and novel technologies including advances in the field of ultrasonics. In late 2018, Bogdan joined the Fluid Air division of Spraying Systems to launch Polar Dry, the low temperature spray drying technology in Australia and New Zealand.

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Kirsten Grinter - Regulatory, Scientific Affairs & Nutrition Manager (Nestlé Oceania) & Allergen Bureau President

Kirsten will be speaking on Tuesday, 2 July 2019 in Session 4.1 (Allergen Bureau Session) on the Allergen Bureau - next generation allergen management.

Kirsten has worked in several different capacities across her career, R&D, Manufacturing, Research, Regulatory and Nutrition. Her current role is Regulatory, Scientific Affairs & Nutrition Manager for Nestlé Oceania. Kirsten has been involved with the Allergen Bureau at its inception in 2005 and is passionate about delivering industry allergen management initiatives. Kirsten is the President of the Allergen Bureau and is driving international acceptance of the VITAL risk based program, through the work of the VITAL Scientific Expert Panel. Kirsten considers that working collaboratively with industry stakeholders, consumer groups and Government to be key for the industry to remain competitive and successful globally.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Lisa Warren - VITAL Support, Allergen Bureau

Lisa will be speaking on Tuesday, 2 July 2019 in Session 4.1 (Allergen Bureau Session) on the allergen risk review website – what’s next?

Lisa is a food technologist with over 20 year’s industry experience in food regulations, nutrition and product development. In the Allergen Bureau’s VITAL® Support role, Lisa led the working group who developed the Allergen Risk Review website.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Julie Thompson - QA Improvement Manager, Lion Dairy & Drinks

Julie speaking on Tuesday, 2 July 2019 in Session 4.1 (Allergen Bureau Session) on allergen management - the tricky bits.

Experienced Quality Assurance Manager with a demonstrated history of working in the food & beverages industry. Skilled in Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP), GMP, Quality Assurance, Management, and Continuous Improvement, Internal and External Auditing. Strong Operations professional with a Post Graduate Diploma Medical Laboratory Science focused in Haematology, Physiology, Biochemistry, Microbiology from University of South Australia.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Adam Moore - Talent Chef (Corporate Chef and Business Development Manager), NAFDA Foodservice

Adam will be speaking on Tuesday, 2 July 2019 in Session 4.2 on using culinary and sensory to develop Great NPD for the future.

With more than 25 years in the industry to his credit, Adam has worked in restaurants, foodservice, retail, food manufacturing, marketing and sales. In the corporate sector, past employers include Mars Australia, George Weston Foods, Suntory and Cerebos Foods, and the multinational Campbell Arnotts. He’s currently executive chef/ innovator/ consultant of his own business, focused on consumer/end-user-lead recipe development, creating culinary trends and insights, as well as creating and developing New product development and helping food and drink companies with their innovation.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Leigh Mackellar - Head of Consumer Innovation and Insights, Asahi Beverages

Leigh will be speaking on Tuesday, 2 July 2019 in Session 4.2 on leaner, faster innovation - a new model for designing consumer relevant experiences.

Leigh has over 20 years’ experience in the FMCG environment using Consumer Insights and Consumer Science methodologies to identify, create and deliver the strategic innovation vision leading to highly consumer-engaged and successful consumer experiences.

She has worked across the entire Innovation pipeline, from marketing to product development, bringing a holistic appreciation of businesses’ need.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

David Cross - New Product Development, Nestle

David will be speaking on Tuesday, 2 July 2019 in Session 4.2 on prototyping as a development chef.

David is a development chef and food technologist from Brisbane, Queensland. After 7 years as a chef, David then graduated with first class honours from a Bachelor of Food Technology at UQ in 2018. David now does NPD at Nestlé and is involved in social enterprise Ground Chai.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Ralph Moyle - Education Coordinator, Australian Institute of Packaging (AIP)

Ralph will be speaking on Tuesday, 2 July 2019 in Session 4.3 on sustainable packaging.

Ralph is an experienced food-packaging consultant with 40 years in the food processing industry and 20 years focused on packaging. Through a unique range of senior management experiences in Packaging, Operations, Technical and Quality Assurance in large and medium FMCG businesses, Ralph has brought increased value to many organisations through the value of smarter packaging at less waste. Ralph’s packaging knowledge has resulted in successful contemporary designs and material selections, improved shelf life, lower material costs, shorter supply chains and environmentally-friendly selections that have provided greater economic value. Ralph is a past National President of the AIP, a Certified Packaging Professional (CPP) and a Fellow of the AIP.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Dr Karli Verghese (FAIP) - Principal Research Fellow in the Industrial Design program, School of Design, RMIT University, Melbourne

Karli be speaking on Tuesday, 2 July 2019 in Session 4.3 on packaging and food waste statistics.

Karli is predominantly involved in designing, developing and leading industry applied and government funded research projects in the fields of food waste, packaging sustainability, waste management and life cycle assessment. She also supervisors Honours, Masters and PhD students and teaches into the Industrial Design program. Her research projects have included the development of decision support tools for packaging, resource efficiency, food waste, eco-design and one currently being developed for Australia’s Antarctic research station (Casey). Karli is the Reduce Research Program Leader in the Fight Food Waste Cooperative Research Centre (CRC) and a member of the international Packaging Saves Food Research Group.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Nerida Kelton - Executive Director, Australian Institute of Packaging (AIP)

Nerida will be speaking on Tuesday, 2 July 2019 in Session 4.3 on why sustainable & save food packaging are so important.

Nerida has worked in the packaging industry for over two decades. She holds a position on the Department of Environment and Energy's National Food Waste Strategy Steering Committee for Fight Food Waste and is the AIP lead for the Fight Food Waste Cooperative Research Centre. Nerida is also the ANZ Board member for the World Packaging Organisation.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Thomas King - CEO, Food Frontier

Thomas will be speaking on Tuesday, 2 July 2019 in Session 4.4 on from cell to fork, plant and to plate: re-imagining the future of meat.

Thomas King is the CEO of Food Frontier and a 2019 Myer Innovation Fellow. For almost a decade, Thomas has driven initiatives in conservation, climate education and poverty alleviation across five continents. He was named Young Australian of the Year VIC in 2015. Realising the limitations of the current food system to sustainably feed our growing population, Thomas founded Food Frontier, a think tank and industry body that supports the ecosystem for plant-based meat alternatives and cell-based meat in Australia. Food Frontier advises and connects industry, innovators and government to navigate and engage with Australia’s alternative protein sector, with the aim of creating a more diversified, sustainable and future-proof food system.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Dr Sara Grafenauer - General Manager, Grains & Legumes Nutrition Council

Sara will be speaking on Tuesday, 2 July 2019 in Session 4.4 on plant to plate: whole grain & legume insights.

Dr Sara Grafenauer is the General Manager of the Grains & Legumes Nutrition Council. She is an Advanced Accredited Practising with experience over 20+ years in health, food industry (consulting and brand management) and tertiary education. Her PhD research focused on dietary patterns and dietary change in weight loss. She is a Fellow of the University of Wollongong providing lectures and research supervision. She has additional qualifications in Communications and Public Relations and significant work history leading marketing and communications. Naturally, her focus is now on whole grains and legumes.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Dr. Anneline Padayachee - The Food and Nutrition Doctor

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Skye Blackburn - Founder of the Edible Bug Shop

Skye will be speaking on Tuesday, 2 July 2019 in Session 4.4 on the rise of insect proteins, it's happening now.

Skye Blackburn has a unique set of skills, and in 2007 combined her knowledge in Food Science and Entomology to establish Australia’s first edible insect farm. The products she has developed for her company, The Edible Bug Shop, use insect protein products in familiar foods, to help consumers include them in their diets very easily. Skye’s passion for edible insects is contagious and once you meet her, you will also believe that edible insects are sustainable, nutritious and an important part of our food future. 

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Go back to main 2019 AIFST Convention page

2019 AIFST Convention Speakers

You are here

The Australian Institute of Food Science & Technology would like to thank our 2019 AIFST Convention Keynote, Plenary and Session speakers:

Keynote & Plenary Speakers:

Session Speakers: