Global Food Safety Initiative Appoints New Co-Chair to Lead Coalition of Action's Steering Committee

PARIS, May 25, 2021 /3BL Media/ – The Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI; the Coalition), The Consumer Goods Forum’s Coalition of Action on food safety, is pleased to announce the appointment of the new Steering Committee Co-Chair and Vice Co-Chair, representing retail members of the Coalition. Howard Popoola, Vice President - Corporate Food Technology and Regulatory Compliance at The Kroger Company is appointed the new retail Co-Chair, while Tom Wiester, VP, Global Food Safety & Science Affairs at Starbucks Coffee Company, becomes the new Vice Co-Chair. The pair join Roy Kirby, Global Director - Microbiology, Food Safety and Toxicology, Mondelēz International, and Monique Pellegrino, Chief Food Safety Officer, Danone, who are the manufacturing Co-Chair and Vice Co-Chair, respectively. The new appointments were ratified during the GFSI Steering Committee earlier this month.

The GFSI Steering Committee, created in March 2021 as the GFSI transitioned into a CGF Coalition of Action, is responsible for helping to shape GFSI’s agenda and ensure the successful implementation of the Race to the Top Framework. The Committee also has the mission of driving collaboration between retailers and manufacturers, and in ensuring transparent and effective relationships with the broader GFSI Community to deliver impact on the ground.

According to the WHO, an estimated 600 million people around the world – almost 1 in 10 – fall ill after eating contaminated food each year and concerns over food safety have been exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. To tackle this, the Coalition members are addressing challenges facing food safety systems in their supply chains and the markets they operate in and are helping to raise the food safety bar globally. Their ambition is to strengthen and harmonise food safety systems so they are able to feed the growing, global population and develop markets that can deliver food safely, no matter where in the world the consumer is.

Erica Sheward, GFSI Director, said, “We are delighted with the unanimous decision to appoint Howard and Tom. We now have a strong retail leadership team in place to work alongside Roy and Monique and help deliver GFSI’s global objectives. Since our transition to a Coalition of Action, things have been moving very quickly and I look forward to working more closely with our Co-Chairs and Vice Co-Chairs as we drive our Race to the Top Framework and strive to ensure safe food for people everywhere”.

Howard Popoola, New GFSI Co-Chair, said, “I’m honoured that my peers have put their faith in me to co-lead the GFSI Coalition of Action. There is a lot of work to be done, but our priority is on enabling the extensive collaboration that is so critical to safe food and in implementing the Race to the Top Framework that will help drive continuous improvements in the food safety system. Together we can be successful”.

Tom Wiester, New GFSI Vice Co-Chair, said, “I’m pleased to join GFSI in their mission to collaborate across borders and remove barriers to help ensure safe food for everyone. I look forward to working with Roy, Howard, Monique and the rest of the SteerCo, to ensure GFSI delivers on its Charter, works effectively with key stakeholders, and hold the coalition accountable. Food safety is everyone’s business, and by working together we will increase consumers’ trust in the food they buy.”

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About GFSI

The Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI; the Coalition) is a CEO-led Coalition of Action from The Consumer Goods Forum, bringing together 34 retailers and manufacturers and an extended food safety community to help oversee food safety standards for businesses and help provide access to safe food for people everywhere. As one of the world’s largest networks to help achieve safe food , GFSI is committed to making food safety everyone’s business and the Coalition members are addressing challenges facing food safety systems in their supply chains and the markets they operate in, and are helping to raise the food safety bar globally. Its ambition is to strengthen and harmonise food safety systems so they are able to feed the growing, global population and develop markets that can deliver food safely, no matter where in the world the consumer is. To learn more, visit www.mygfsi.com.

For further information, contact Lee Green, Communications Director, The Consumer Goods Forum: l.green@theconsumergoodsforum.com