Volunteers' Advisory Group

ALASTAIR MACGREGOR (Chair) Alastair is currently Chief Executive Officer of SSERC, an organisation that offers a broad portfolio of services, principally in support of the STEM areas of the curriculum, specifically; Provision of Career Long Professional Learning for early years, primary and secondary teachers and school and college technicians, The Advisory Service and Lead Coordination role for STEM Ambassadors in Scotland and wider STEM engagement activities. As well as being a FIFST, Alastair is an active STEM Ambassador and a previous member of the IFST Education and Careers Committee.  In his spare time, Alastair is a gym enthusiast and a season ticket holder and avid supporter of Rangers FC.

MAUREEN EDMONDSON Maureen Edmondson, OBE, BSc, PhD, FIFST, CSi, FIAFoSt, FECSS. Maureen was educated in Food Science at Queen’s University of Belfast and worked in Universities in NI and Melbourne Australia before joining the Mars company where she worked for 20 years. She was Director of International Scientific Affairs at Mars Inc until 2000. Maureen is Chair of the Patient and Client Council, the Ofcom Advisory Committee for Northern Ireland, the Board of Governors of Edgehill Theological College and is a visiting Professor in the University of Ulster School of Biomedical and Molecular Sciences. Maureen is currently Independent Assessor and was also Past President of IFST.

MARGARET EVERITT  Since 1986, Margaret’s vocation and passion has been working in the field of Sensory Science. She ran her own consultancy for seven years before retiring in 2015. She built her career and reputation working for Walker’s Snack Foods, Glaxo SmithKline, Campden BRI and Sensory Dimensions. As a founding member of IFST’s Sensory Science Group (SSG). Up to her retirement, she remained an active member of the SSG committee specifically acting as coordinator of its Education & Accreditation working group, and in this role was also involved with the Professional Development Committee (PDC). Margaret joined the Volunteers Advisory Group (VAG) at its inception.

RUTH PRICE Ruth is a Nutritionist/Food Scientist currently working as the Human Intervention Studies Manager in the Nutrition Innovation Centre for Food and Health (NICHE). Ruth has a BSc in Food Science and Technology, a Diploma in Industrial Studies, Associate Fellowship of the Higher Education Authority and a PhD in Nutrition. Her main research interests include whole grains and health, under- and over-nutrition and food choice. She has extensive experience in designing and conducting human intervention trials, dietary nutritional assessment and in working with food companies in food product development.

DAVID BROWN David is a Managing Director of FQC Solutions, a consultancy that specialises in food quality compliance and risk management. Before that he spent 18 years+ with Diageo plc and has vast experience in implementing both risk management and quality improvement across Africa, Latin America, Caribbean and USA and Europe. Having helped develop a set of global risk management standards, as lead auditor he has ensured improvement and compliance to these standards to beyond 97%. He is a FIFST and through FQC Solutions works closely with both FMCG and SMEs to help them meet their requirements from basic food safety and HACCP to integrated management systems.

ELENA GAFENCO Elena is currently a Field Veterinary Manager with Food Standards Scotland (FSS), ensuring meat official controls are delivered in line with legislation and internal policies. She is supporting FSS staff involved in food safety to join IFST, part of her leadership of the training and development portfolio within FSS. Elena is HACCP level 4 and Lead Auditor qualified and also trained and experienced in PRINCE 2 and AGILE project management methodologies. She is keen to share her knowledge and experience and support industry and other stakeholders in achieving their full potential in relation to food/feed safety. In her spare time, Elena loves scuba-diving, cycling, running, exploring the Scottish Highlands & Islands.

KIU SUM Kiu is a Registered Associate Nutritionist with the Association for Nutrition and currently a Doctoral Researcher in nutrition at the University of Westminster. Her main research interests include nutrition and dietary behaviour in the health and wellbeing of healthcare professionals and the use of mobile health. Kiu is keen to continue to support the work in promoting IFST activities and raising awareness of the broader opportunities there are in food science, nutrition and related areas. She is also the Chair of the Student Section at The Nutrition Society and the Vice-Chair on the IFST’s South Eastern Branch Committee.

JAY P MATIC  Jay has recently graduated with a BSc in Bakery Technology from National Bakery School, the oldest bakery school in the world at LSBU. He currently leads on the bread section at the County Hall Bakery, developing new bread products and improving the quality of some traditional breads. He is also an active member of the Alliance of Bakery Students and Teachers (ABST), where he competed and received several awards. He’s also a member of the Craft Bakers Association (CBA). He hopes that as an early career professional, he can be a voice for the Volunteers’ Advisory Group within the food sector.

Things are a bit of a mess and nobody is clapping for me! Time for a change

David Brown, VAG member, contributes to our occasional ‘think piece’ series.

The world’s a mess, nobody is clapping me working 40 hours a week on my food production line. Time for a change!

Last night I clapped for Sir Tom, again for the NHS, but also for the postal workers, the refuge collectors and the person at my click and collect. This morning, I found myself wondering why I hadn't clapped for the person that mixed my muesli, baked my bread and packed my eggs.

Our food manufacturers have been working across the entire year of the pandemic, wondering if Brexit was going to take away their jobs and constantly being concerned about the changes to their world.

Working from home that’s available to so many others, therefore allowing me to sit in my kitchen and eat my breakfast this morning, protected and safe, is impossible for a food manufacturer on a production line.
The world has changed and it will need to change still more, but we truly do have an opportunity to completely change how we do things, but that requires a cultural change.

I could argue that it will take ten years, because of the pandemic and Brexit and climate change and the increase in population and hundreds of other things, to progress to a point where we will be in a much better industry position.

That’s because we will have moved our philosophy on quality to a much improved level of standards, improved manufacturing and growing techniques.

But will we?  For the sake of this conversation, I am just talking about Britain and Europe maybe too, but...

If we look at the comparisons of quality products in 2020 then beyond Brexit and Covid, we could possibly see a big difference in the commitment to food quality, probably first world too?

Perhaps, though we will see quality improvements increase much faster if we have realised, REALLY realised how important better hygiene is in food production, how important cross contamination prevention is and most of all how important MANAGING RISKS most certainly are, in our industry.

Have we really considered the damage and loss of market share to other parts of the world through Brexit and Covid, through ignoring the climate changes and population rises. I am not taking sides here. Right or wrong.  I am just asking the question.

The food industry has performed magnificently, no more so than here in Britain. Has it been recognised? NO! Why? Because providing food for our table has always been possible, has always been expected and hopefully always will be, but maybe we have now found areas for concern, but also some areas to exploit perhaps.

Think about it!

The hospitality sector has suffered greatly due to the restrictions of the pandemic and we all know about it. Food Manufacturers may not have been considered “front line”, but they have been important and greatly needed to put that food on our tables, and have been suffering too. We have done well, but we mustn't go back to the pre Covid, pre Brexit ways of doing things, when all this has settled down. We must learn all the lessons and we now will have the opportunities as we move forward, through 2021and the next ten years.

So, let’s move away from the old stereotypes about unfair competition, dumping cheaper unit price items, cheaper wages, EU tariffs, USA chlorinated chicken and hygiene issues, and start our drive to be the absolute best in the world.

It’s not too late. Now is the time. Now are the opportunities and we can do it in the next few years.

For companies to establish superior manufacturing practices and provide superlative services, we must change though and now. The cultural biased can be ours.

What bothers me most is that when we have the means of resolving problems, we studiously ignore them. The more difficult the implementation of change, the more we ignore it.

It’s been like that with the pandemic and when the inevitable happens and we loose market share, perhaps through Brexit, we whinge about that unfair competition, customers transferring loyalty, lack of government focus and support.

Well this time don't blame anyone. Don't blame the pandemic or Brexit.

Understand the risks, understand the need for change, take the opportunities, forget that nobody has clapped you for their breakfasts and 'GO DO IT'!

David Brown, VAG Member

Feel free to respond to this article with your own thoughts, or why not submit an article that you think others might like to read and respond to.

 

True to our quality

David Brown, VAG member, contributes to our occasional ‘think piece’ series.

The purpose for most business today usually comes down to improving the bottom line and delivering more profit.

No more so than now during this second surge in the global pandemic.

The culture of countries and their governments is being tested to their limits and in the delivery of quality in the food and beverage industries, it is no different.

The right culture can do anything, including helping our industry continue to provide high-quality food and drink that is safe.

Our government and food standards creators have a key role in cultivating our people, bringing out their best.

We can’t perhaps predict the future of our industry after the pandemic and after we leave the EU, but perhaps we can create it. Our food and beverage industry are orientated towards maintaining excellent standards. Sustainability requires that we orient ourselves towards the same in the future, post-pandemic and post-EU.

This desire leaves me with some questions for us in the industry and all those who support the industry.

Will the quality of our food products slip after Brexit? Our Government claims that will not be allowed and that our excellent standards will be maintained and any deals with the likes of the USA, for example, and therefore allowing chlorinated chicken to be sold in the UK, will not happen. 
If and perhaps when we start purchasing food from new platforms, will standards be maintained and how?

Even Jamie Oliver has raised concerns about the effects of reduced standards.

There are concerns about British farmers and the effect on them if different standards are applied. How will these affect the food manufacturers, those that run these bastions of industry , the jobs they create and therefore YOU?

We must remain true to the quality of our food standards culture, to the quality of food business culture and true to the quality of our skilled and technically brilliant people.

David Brown, VAG Member

Feel free to respond to this article with your own thoughts, or why not submit an article that you think others might like to read and respond to.