Process Specific Food Safety, Data Solutions, and Recall Perspectives From 2025 Food Safety Summit Day Three

Industry experts from the 2025 Food Safety Summit weigh in on topics ranging from fundamental food safety responsibility to needed shifts in recall perspectives.

Food Safety Summit Technology Session Image
Larry Keener, Ph.D., President and CEO of International Product Safety Consultants, sits next to Purnendu Vasavada, Ph.D., Professor Emeritus of Food Science at the University of Wisconsin-River Falls, and Alvin Lee, Ph.D., Director of the Center for Processing Innovation at the Institute for Food Safety and Health during the 2025 Food Safety Summit.
Christopher Smith via PMMI Media Group

The 2025 Food Safety Summit in Rosemont, IL holds no shortage of insight for food manufacturers. The third day of the Summit featured food safety experts from a variety of backgrounds, and processors will appreciate their insights and perspectives. Here are three key takeaways based on Wednesday's speaker sessions.

Food safety operations depend on the product

During the "Innovative Processing Technologies for Challenging Food Products" session on Wednesday, Larry Keener, Ph.D., a Certified Food Scientist (CFS), Institute of Food Technologists (IFT) Fellow, and President and CEO of International Product Safety Consultants, provided insight into the state of food safety regulation in the U.S. versus other countries, emphasizing that regulations are specific to products and processes.

"Food safety is process and product specific," Keener said.

Keener provided the example of countries having a variety of diets and food cultures in which foods are processed differently, and thus, present specific food safety risks associated with them. Moreover, Keener said that while regulatory agencies like the FDA help enforce food safety, it ultimately falls onto the shoulder of manufacturers, as the FDA functions as more of an overseer, rather than an active approver of company products and technologies.

"The [responsibility] of food safety resides with the company that manufactures and markets food, not the FDA," Keener explained.

Companies must ensure their products are safe for consumption and technology is appropriately validated. This is done not only through internal measures, but can be conducted through independent consultants and third-party testing labs.

Utilize plant management platforms to improve operations

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