IAFP Announces 2023 Award Recipients

Wednesday, May 17, 2023

Des Moines, Iowa – The International Association for Food Protection (IAFP) will present awards recognizing excellence in food safety to the following organizations and individuals at IAFP 2023, July 16–19, in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

The IAFP Fellow Award is awarded to professionals who have contributed to IAFP and its affiliates with distinction over an extended period of time. This year’s recipients are Arun Bhunia, Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana; Catherine Cutter, Penn State University, University Park, Pennsylvania; Beilei Ge, U.S. Food and Drug Administration, Laurel, Maryland; Vickie Lewandowski, Barry Callebaut, Amery, Wisconsin; and David Tharp, IAFP (retired), Clive, Iowa.

Jeff Farber, University of Guelph, Guelph, Ontario, Canada, will be awarded the President’s Lifetime Achievement Award. This award, given at the discretion of the IAFP President, recognizes an individual who has made a lasting impact on Advancing Food Safety Worldwide® through a lifetime of professional achievements in food protection.

The Honorary Life Membership Award will be presented to Katherine Glass, University of Wisconsin – Madison, Madison, Wisconsin; Mark Harrison, University of Georgia (retired), Athens, Georgia; Peter Hibbard, Hibbard Consulting Services, LLC, Oviedo, Florida; Fumiko Kasuga, Nagasaki University, Tokyo, Japan; Lynn McMullen, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada; Stephanie Olmsted, Safeway Inc. (retired), Kent, Washington; Laurie Post, Deibel Laboratories, Hackettstown, New Jersey; and David Tharp, IAFP (retired), Clive, Iowa.  

The Harry Haverland Citation Award will be awarded to Abani K. Pradhan, University of Maryland – College Park, in College Park, for his years of devotion to the ideals and objectives of the Association.

Vitsab^™ International AB, Winslow, Maine, will receive the Food Safety Innovation Award, given for its development of Freshtag^™ Catering TTI (time temperature indicator) labels.

The International Leadership Award will be presented to Panagiotis Skandamis, University of Athens, Athens, Greece, for his dedication to the high ideals and objectives of IAFP and for promotion of the mission of the Association in countries outside of the United States and Canada.

The Food Safety Preventive Controls Alliance, Bedford Park, Illinois, will receive the Food Safety Award in recognition for highly significant food safety development.

The Frozen Food Foundation Freezing Research Award will be presented to Craig Hedberg, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis. This award honors an individual, group, or organization for preeminence and outstanding contributions in research that impacts food safety attributes of freezing.

The Maurice Weber Laboratorian Award will be presented to Martin Wiedmann, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York, to recognize his service for outstanding contributions in the laboratory and recognizing a commitment to the development of innovative and practical analytical approaches in support of food safety.

Abigail Snyder, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York, will be presented with the Larry Beuchat Young Researcher Award. This award is presented to a young researcher who has shown outstanding ability and professional promise in the early years of his or her career.

The James M. Jay Diversity in Food Safety Award will be presented to Salina Parveen, University of Maryland Eastern Shore, Princess Anne, Maryland. This award recognizes an individual who has made exceptional contributions to enhancing diversity, equity, and inclusion in the field of food safety.

Keith Warriner, University of Guelph, Guelph, Ontario, Canada, is the recipient of the Ewen C.D. Todd Control of Foodborne Illness Award. This award recognizes an individual for dedicated and exceptional contributions to the reduction of risks of foodborne illness.

Debra “Deb” Smith, Vikan, Swindon, United Kingdom, will receive the Sanitarian Award to recognize her dedication and exceptional service to the profession of sanitarian, serving the public and the food industry.

Jennifer McEntire, Food Safety Strategy, LLC, Frederick, Maryland, is the recipient of the Harold Barnum Industry Award. This award recognizes her outstanding service to IAFP, the public, and the food industry.