Women in Food Safety

Boar’s Head Appoints Natalie Dyenson as its new Chief Food Safety Officer

By Food Safety Tech Staff
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Boar’s Head Brand announced the appointment of Natalie Dyenson as its new Chief Food Safety Officer, effective May 12, 2025. This hire follows a series of food safety initiatives taken across the organization.

In her new role, Dyenson will spearhead the company’s comprehensive food safety program, leveraging her extensive expertise to ensure the continued integrity of Boar’s Head products. She will also work closely with the Boar’s Head Food Safety Advisory Council on continuous innovations and enhancements to the Company’s safety and quality processes.

Dyenson brings nearly three decades of distinguished experience in food safety to Boar’s Head, marked by a proven track record of developing and implementing robust food safety programs. Her deep understanding of the regulatory landscape, industry best practices, and innovative food safety technologies will be instrumental in reinforcing Boar’s Head’s commitment to consumer safety and well-being.

“We are delighted to welcome Natalie Dyenson to the Boar’s Head family,” stated Frank Carzo, Chief Human Resources Officer. “Her expertise and unwavering dedication to food safety perfectly align with our mission to provide consumers with premium, trustworthy products. We look forward to benefitting from Natalie’s leadership as we further elevate our already stringent food safety protocols and reinforce our commitment to excellence.”

Prior to joining Boar’s Head, Dyenson served as the Chief Regulatory and Food Safety Officer for the International Fresh Produce Association. Her career also includes leadership roles as Vice President of Food Safety and Quality at Dole Food Company, as well as significant positions at Walmart and Walt Disney World. Her experience also spans roles at Silliker, Kash n’ Karry Supermarkets, and Harris Teeter, providing a comprehensive understanding of the food supply chain.

“I am honored to join Boar’s Head, a company with a long-standing reputation for quality and a dedication to high standards,” said Dyenson. “I am passionate about ensuring the safety of our food supply, and I look forward to working with the team at Boar’s Head to further enhance its food safety programs and maintain the trust of consumers.”

Frank Yiannas, Chief Food Safety Advisor at Boar’s Head posted in in LinkedIn “Delighted that Natalie Dyenson is joining Boar’s Head Brand as their new Chief Food Safety Officer. Advancing food safety requires both – food safety leadership & food safety management – and Natalie will do a great job along with their team there at doing both.”

Beltway Beat

HHS USDA Launches Operation FAGA, Feed America Geese Again

By Food Safety Tech Staff
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The USDA has announced in a Press Release a set of actions and initiatives focused on Canada Geese (Branta canadensis), called “Operation FAGA, Feed America Geese Again.”  The first action in this initiative is changing the name of the bird to America Geese. “Since the majority of the birds are in America, it’s only natural to call them America Geese” said HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.

According to the press release, since there are a high population of America Geese in most parts of America, USDA’s second step in the initiative to replace ultra processed foods in school lunches with America Geese meat. Drake Larsen, a researcher in sustainable agriculture at Iowa State University, described them to The Atlantic magazine as “so yummy… good, lean, rich meat. I find they are similar to a good cut of beef.”

“FAGA is in line with MAHA (Make America Healthy Again)” added Secretary Kennedy. “The USDA will use all resources and authorities at its disposal to make sure America Geese products are safe and wholesome for the families and children who rely on them.”

When Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney learned of the bird’s name change, he commented “The animals are loud, obnoxious and make a mess everywhere they go. I guess the name fits!”

Editors note: No animal was injured in the publishing of this fake news. Photo credit: Rick Biros

PFAS

NSF Introduces PFAS-Free Certification

By Food Safety Tech Staff
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PFAS

NSF, a global public health and safety organization, has launched of NSF Certification Guideline 537: PFAS-Free Products for Nonfood Compounds and Food Equipment Materials (NSF 537). The new guideline leverages NSF’s laboratory and testing capabilities to confirm that products are free of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), a group of synthetic or man-made materials that resist degradation also known as “forever chemicals.”

Due to their oil and water-repellant properties, PFAS are often used to make water or stain-resistant, nonstick and grease-proof products, including consumer goods, food equipment and nonfood compounds such as food-safe lubricants, cleaners and sanitizers. At the same time, PFAS are known to be carcinogenic and have been linked to detrimental health conditions, including liver disease, certain types of cancers and delayed development in children. According to the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, people are most likely exposed to PFAS by consuming contaminated water or food.

“With growing concerns and new regulations being introduced on PFAS in our environment and food supply, NSF 537 represents a significant leap forward in consumer safety and transparency,” said Sam Cole, Director of Food Contact Evaluation at NSF. “This certification will empower forward-thinking manufacturers to clearly distinguish PFAS-free products, giving both retail and food businesses and consumers confidence and peace of mind.”

Key features of NSF Certification Guideline 537: PFAS-Free Products for Nonfood Compounds and Food Equipment Materials (NSF 537):

  • Evidence-based: The guideline is backed by decades of specialist food industry knowledge and standards development and is based on existing limits in state regulations.
  • Thorough Formulation Review: Technical review of product ingredients, confirming there are no intentionally added PFAS.
  • Comprehensive Testing: Ensures minimal to no detected total organic fluorine (TOF) levels with retesting every year.
  • Rigorous Disclosures: This requirement requires the manufacturer to attest that no PFAS additives or post-consumer recycled material are used in the product and that manufacturing facilities minimize cross-contamination.
  • Certification Mark: NSF PFAS-Free certified products are accompanied by the relevant official NSF certification mark, signifying compliance with the guideline to retailers and consumers.
  • Public Listing: Certified nonfood compounds are listed in the NSF White Book™ and certified food equipment materials are listed in NSF’s Certified Food Equipment listing.

“Certification to NSF 537 helps to reduce human exposure to these harmful chemicals while underscoring a commitment to meeting evolving regulations, consequentially opening up exporting opportunities,” Cole added. “By demanding NSF 537 certification, specifiers and buyers can further advance sustainable operations, including in food processing facilities, equipment manufacturing and the retail, foodservice and hospitality sectors.”

Designed by food safety specialists, NSF 537 is based on industry needs, in-depth food industry knowledge and decades of standards development. To achieve certification, nonfood compound products must first be registered under NSF’s Nonfood Compounds Guidelines or certified by NSF to ISO 21469, Safety of Machinery, Lubricants with Incidental Product Contact-Hygiene Requirements. Food equipment materials must be certified to NSF/ANSI Standard 51: Food Equipment Materials to ensure that products meet minimum public health and sanitation requirements.

Note: PFAS-Free means that the product contains no intentionally added PFAS, no post-consumer recycled material, no intentionally used PFAS additives (PPA, etc.) and the Total Organic Fluorine is less than 50 ppm.

Beltway Beat

FDA Intends to Extend Compliance Date for Food Traceability Rule

By Food Safety Tech Staff
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The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced on its website that it intends to extend the compliance date for the Food Traceability Rule (the “final rule”) by 30 months. The FDA intends to extend the compliance date using appropriate procedures at a later time, including publishing a proposed rule in the Federal Register.

The FDA remains committed to successful implementation of the full requirements of the final rule, as they will allow for faster identification and removal of potentially contaminated food from the market, resulting in fewer foodborne illnesses and deaths. Accordingly, the compliance date extension does not amend the requirements of the final rule. Instead, the compliance date extension affords covered entities the additional time necessary to ensure complete coordination across the supply chain in order to fully implement the final rule’s requirements—ultimately providing FDA and consumers with greater transparency and food safety.

The final rule establishes additional traceability recordkeeping requirements (beyond what is already required in existing regulations) for persons who manufacture, process, pack, or hold foods on the Food Traceability List. The final rule requires a higher degree of coordination between members of the food industry than has been required in the past. Therefore, to achieve the full public health benefits of the final rule, all covered entities must be in compliance. Even those few entities who are well positioned to meet the final rule’s requirements by January 2026 have expressed concern about the timeline, in part because of their reliance on receiving accurate data from their supply chain partners, who are not similarly situated. Therefore, FDA intends to allow industry additional time, across all regulated sectors, to fully implement the final rule’s requirements.

The FDA intends to use the extended time period to continue the agency’s work with stakeholders, including by participating in cross-sector dialogue to identify solutions to implementation challenges and by continuing to provide technical assistance, tools, and other resources to assist industry with implementation.

The final rule applies to domestic and foreign entities producing food for U.S. consumption and was issued in 2022 in accordance with the FDA Food Safety Modernization Act.

Food lab
Beltway Beat

HHS, FDA Announce Chemical Contaminants Transparency Tool for Foods

By Food Safety Tech Staff
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Food lab

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced in a Press Release, the Chemical Contaminants Transparency Tool (CCT Tool), an online searchable database providing a consolidated list of contaminant levels (e.g., tolerances, action levels, and guidance levels) that are used to evaluate potential health risks of contaminants in human foods. Chemical contaminants include a broad range of chemical substances that may be present in food and that have the potential to cause harm.

To protect public health and help industry market products that are safe for U.S. consumers, the FDA establishes or utilizes tolerances, action levels and guidance levels for some contaminants in food. These are levels above which the agency may find that a food may be unsafe but do not represent permissible levels of contamination. The FDA uses these levels to help minimize or prevent chemical hazards in food.

“Ideally there would be no contaminants in our food supply, but chemical contaminants may occur in food when they are present in the growing, storage or processing environments,” said Acting FDA Commissioner Sara Brenner, M.D., M.P.H. “Because many of the most nutritious foods can also contain contaminants, consumers should eat a variety of nutrient-dense foods across and within the main food groups of vegetables, fruits, grains, dairy and protein to help protect from possible exposure effects.”

The CCT Tool, which provides contaminant levels in one location for ease of searching, is one of the outcomes of the FDA’s initiative to modernize food chemical safety. The consolidated list includes the contaminant name, commodity, contaminant level type (e.g., action level, guidance level), level value and reference (e.g., Code of Federal Regulations, FDA Guidance for Industry). The list can also be filtered by contaminant type.

Beltway Beat

Maryland District Court Enters Consent Decree of Permanent Injunction against Totally Cool and CEO

By Food Safety Tech Staff
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The FDA announced that on Tuesday, March 18, the United States District Court for the District of Maryland entered a consent decree of permanent injunction against Totally Cool, Inc., a Maryland-based manufacturer of ice cream and frozen desserts, and its CEO and owner, Michael J. Uhlfelder. On July 8, 2024, the FDA suspended Totally Cool’s food facility registration after an inspection of the firm revealed Listeria monocytogenes in the facility, as well as numerous failures of the firm to adhere to current good manufacturing practice for food safety, including sanitation requirements for employees and equipment. The consent decree prohibits Totally Cool and Mr. Uhlfelder from directly or indirectly receiving, preparing, processing, packing, holding, and/or distributing any article of food unless and until they meet certain requirements.

In 2024, Totally Cool recalled over 65 ice cream products due to listeria contamination.  The brands involved were Abilyn’s Frozen Bakery, Amafruits, Chipwich, Cumberland Farms, Dolcezza Gelato, Friendly’s, Hershey’s Ice Cream, Jeni’s, LaSalle, Marco, Taharka Brothers, the Frozen Farmer and Yelloh. More than 65 products were recalled, including ice cream cakes and sandwiches, as well as sorbets.

Baby Bottle
Beltway Beat

HHS, FDA Announce Operation Stork Speed

By Food Safety Tech Staff
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Baby Bottle

The FDA is announced in a Press Release a set of actions and initiatives focused on infant formula, called “Operation Stork Speed” such as beginning the nutrient review process and increasing testing for heavy metals and other contaminants. The agency is also encouraging companies to develop new infant formulas and clarify opportunities to help inform consumers about formula ingredients.

The FDA uses its authorities, both longstanding and newly granted, to uphold the safety, nutritional adequacy and resilience of infant formula and the infant formula supply. With Operation Stork Speed, the FDA is:

  • Starting the nutrient review required by law by issuing a Request for Information in the coming months to start the first comprehensive update and review of infant formula nutrients by the FDA since 1998
  • Increasing testing for heavy metals and other contaminants in infant formula and other foods children consume
  • Extending the personal importation policy
  • Encouraging companies to work with the FDA on any questions regarding increased transparency and clearer labeling
  • Communicating regularly with consumers and industry stakeholders as significant developments occur to ensure transparency, including information regarding nutrients and health outcomes
  • Collaborating with the National Institutes of Health and other scientific bodies to address priority scientific research gaps regarding short- and long-term health outcomes associated with formula feeding in infancy and childhood across the lifespan

“The FDA will use all resources and authorities at its disposal to make sure infant formula products are safe and wholesome for the families and children who rely on them,” said HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.

Vulto Creamery Cheese
Beltway Beat

FDA Provides Update on the Federal-State Milk Safety System

By Food Safety Tech Staff
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Vulto Creamery Cheese

The FDA is sharing interim results from its ongoing sampling of 60-day aged raw milk cheese. As of March 10, 2025, 110 samples of the planned 299 have been collected. Of those 110 samples, 96 were negative by PCR (meaning that H5N1 was not detected in the analyzed samples), and 14 are still in progress. Final results are expected later this spring.

In addition, the preview appearing in a published pre-print of the research funded by the FDA and New York State and conducted at Cornell University suggests that aging raw milk cheese for 60 days or longer is not effective at eliminating H5N1. The previewed findings also suggest that either heat treating raw milk to adequate parameters or manufacturing cheese at or below a pH of 5.0 could be effective at inactivating H5N1.

To read more about this research and to see recommendations for industry and consumers from the FDA, visit: Investigation of Avian Influenza A (H5N1) Virus in Dairy Cattle

SGS, food safety

SGS Launches FSMA 204 Food Traceability Solutions

By Food Safety Tech Staff
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SGS, food safety

SGS, a testing, inspection and certification company, has launched comprehensive, integrated FSMA 204 Food Traceability Solutions to help food manufacturers and producers meet the US Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) latest Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) Section 204 requirements.

FSMA 204 aims to enhance food safety by improving supply chain traceability. It targets high-risk foods on the Food Traceability List and mandates detailed recordkeeping, traceability plans and rapid data sharing.

While the compliance deadline is January 20, 2026, many retailers are already seeking early adoption by suppliers.

Naghmeh Raiyat, Global Head of Food Assurance at SGS, said: “As the compliance deadline for FSMA 204 approaches, businesses face mounting pressure to enhance their traceability systems. Thanks to our extensive knowledge of FSMA requirements, we have developed a solution that will empower businesses with the tools and confidence to not only achieve compliance but also build more resilient and transparent supply chains. Ultimately, this marks another welcome step forward in strengthening consumer trust in food safety.”

Designed to address the increasingly complex compliance needs of stakeholders in the food industry, FSMA 204 Food Traceability Solutions combine FSMA 204 audits, training and the TRAKKEY digital traceability platform:

  • FSMA 204 audits: ensures that organizations meet the FDA’s rigorous traceability requirements. These audits focus on verifying the accuracy, completeness and timeliness of Key Data Elements (KDEs) and Critical Tracking Events (CTEs). By assessing the readiness of traceability systems, the audits support the swift identification and removal of contaminated food products to safeguard public health
  • FSMA 204 training: provides food businesses with the knowledge and skills to implement robust traceability plans. Available online and in person, these courses cover critical aspects of FSMA 204, including traceability rules, KDEs and CTEs, enabling organizations to navigate FDA inspections and meet regulatory demands confidently
  • TRAKKEY digital traceability platform: ensures real-time supply chain-wide visibility. Validated by billions of annual transactions, TRAKKEY integrates effortlessly into existing IT systems and workflows, offering a scalable and powerful tool to:
    • Enhance outbreak investigations: quickly identify contamination sources to enable faster responses
    • Reduce recalls: pinpoint contaminated products to minimize financial losses
    • Improve product information: insights into the origin, processing and distribution of food items
    • Streamline data sharing: efficient communication between trading partners

For more information about the FSMA 204 Food Traceability Solutions, please visit: https://www.sgs.com/en/services/fsma-204-food-traceability-solutions

Beltway Beat

RFK Jr Moves to Eliminate GRAS and Synthetic Dyes

By Food Safety Tech Staff
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HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. directed the acting FDA commissioner, to take steps to explore potential rulemaking to revise its Substances Generally Recognized as Safe (GRAS) Final Rule and related guidance to eliminate the self-affirmed GRAS pathway. According the HHS website, this will enhance the FDA’s oversight of ingredients considered to be GRAS.

“For far too long, ingredient manufacturers and sponsors have exploited a loophole that has allowed new ingredients and chemicals, often with unknown safety data, to be introduced into the U.S. food supply without notification to the FDA or the public,” said Secretary Kennedy. “Eliminating this loophole will provide transparency to consumers, help get our nation’s food supply back on track by ensuring that ingredients being introduced into foods are safe, and ultimately Make America Healthy Again.”

Eliminating the self-affirmation process would require companies seeking to introduce new ingredients in foods to publicly notify the FDA of their intended use of such ingredients, along with underlying safety data, before they are introduced in the food supply.

“The FDA is committed to further safeguarding the food supply by ensuring the appropriate review of ingredients and substances that come into contact with food,” said Acting FDA Commissioner Sara Brenner, M.D., M.P.H. “The FDA will continue to follow our authorities and leverage our resources to protect the health of consumers to ensure that food is a vehicle for wellness.”

The statement said, HHS is committed to working with Congress to explore ways legislation can completely close the GRAS loophole.

Synthetic Dyes DOA

On Monday, in his first meeting with top executives from PepsiCo, W.K. Kellogg, General Mills and other large companies, Secretary Kennedy bluntly told them that a top priority would be eliminating artificial dyes from the nation’s food supply according to a NY Times article.

In a letter to it’s members, Melissa Hockstad the Consumer Brands Association’s President wrote “Decision time is imminent” According to the letter, Mr. Kennedy also warned food companies that they should anticipate significant change as a result of his quest for “getting the worst ingredients out” of food. And while Mr. Kennedy said in the meeting that he wanted to work with the industry, he also “made clear his intention to take action unless the industry is willing to be proactive with solutions,” according to the Hockstad letter.