Noel Griffin, Nutrition Legislation Team, Department of Health
Noel Griffin has headed the Nutrition Legislation team for just over two years. He has been involved in the food labelling good number of years, acting as the UK delegate in all of the working procedures of EU law making (Regulatory Committee, European Parliament/Council Co-decision) for the adoption of the nutrition and health claims regulation and the delegated acts for Foods for Special Groups. Noel joined the European Commission in 2010 to lead on the finalisation of the scientific assessment of the Nutrition and Health Claims, draft and guide the EU legislation to agreement as chair of the expert Working Groups. After a break from food labelling to work on the regulation of cosmetic practices, Noel took over leadership of the nutrition policy and nutrition legislation team in 2015. Noel can speak about all the nutrition legislation.
Sam Jennings, BSc FIFST, Berry Ottaway & Associates Ltd
Sam Jennings provides advice to industry and governments globally on scientific, technical and regulatory aspects of food, particularly in relation to food supplements and functional foods. She offers support for dossier production for submission to the Commission and EFSA, particularly for novel foods, food additives and health claims. Since 2006, Sam has been Technical Adviser to the Council for Responsible Nutrition UK (CRN UK). She has been a member of the International Alliance of Dietary/Food Supplement Associations (IADSA) international Technical Working Group since its conception in 2010, and was appointed Chair of this group in 2012. She has been directly involved with the Codex Committee on Food Additives since 2013 and attends the annual meetings as Head of Delegation and spokesperson for IADSA, an accredited NGO under Codex Alimentarius.
Sam is a Fellow of the Institute of Food Science and Technology (IFST) in the UK and is active on the IFST Food Law Group. She is also a member of the Institute of Food Technologists, USA and of the Society of Dairy Technology. Sam has authored and co-authored papers on a variety of food-related topics, and has also co-authored a number of chapters in books on food science, food technology and food law, a recent one of which has been translated and published in China and Russia. She was one of the editors of, and contributor to, the 3rd edition of the UK Council for Responsible Nutrition (CRN)’s ‘Technical Guide for the Manufacture of Food Supplements’ (2009) and is joint editor, and contributor to, a new text book by the CRN UK Technical Committee (publication due early 2017).
Sam has presented to governments and industry worldwide on topics including stability of food supplements, EU food law, GMP and other technical issues as required. She also runs tailored workshops for companies on EU food law and claims.
Naomi Johnson, Scientific and Regulatory Manager at the British Specialist Nutrition Association (BSNA)
Naomi is the Scientific and Regulatory Manager at the British Specialist Nutrition Association (BSNA), the trade association representing manufacturers of high quality foods designed to meet the needs of people with very special nutritional requirements. Members produce infant formula, follow-on formula, young child formula, complementary weaning foods, gluten-free foods, parenteral nutrition and medical foods for diagnosed disorders and medical conditions. She works closely with healthcare professionals, government bodies and trade bodies such as Specialised Nutrition Europe (SNE) on food legislation and scientific developments in relation to the specialist nutrition industry. Naomi has a First Class Honours degree in Nutritional Sciences and a Master’s degree in Public Health Nutrition. She has worked in the food industry for the last 7 years, and has previously been involved in nutrition lecturing and clinical consulting
Suzane Leser, Head of Nutrition - Volac Human Nutrition, Vice Chair, ESSNA
Suzane is Vice-Chair of the European Specialist Sports Nutrition Alliance (ESSNA) and the Head of Nutrition for Volac, a major European producer of whey proteins supplying the global sports nutrition market. Suzane leads Volac’s external affairs in human nutrition, by influencing the regulatory environment for Volac and customers and driving activity in a number of industry partnerships engaged in policy changes and in fostering science. Suzane has over 15 years of experience in the food industry, working with R&D of sports nutrition products, both in the UK and internationally. Suzane holds a BSc in Nutrition from Brazil, an MSc in Sports Nutrition from Loughborough University, and an MSc in European Food Regulatory Affairs from the University of Ulster.
Ned Mazhar, Higher Executive Officer, Food Allergy and Intolerance Branch, Food Standards Agency
Since joining the Food Standards Agency in 2005, Ned Mazhar has developed a range of food policy experience including food hygiene, fish and shellfish, local authority delivery, and animal feed. He currently works across two FSA teams – the Food Allergy and Intolerance Branch and the Central Communications Team. Recently he has played an active role in the implementation of allergens legislation, providing risk assessments in response to UK allergen incidents, and handling media enquiries on many different matters involving the FSA. Before joining the FSA, Ned worked in the public affairs industry and studied business and politics in university.