February 5
(Slides updated 2/5)
Hot Topics: Food & Politics; Food Regulation & GRAS; Food Stakeholders & Social Media; Food Trucks & Business
FDLI’s annual Food Week events kicked-off with a one-day conference devoted to the hot topics facing the food industry and regulators. Attendees heard from experts on the effects of politics on food policy and litigation, with analysis of the consequences of President Obama’s re-election, pending changes from Capitol Hill, local government activity and community grassroots movements. Other hot topics included what some label the “loophole” of the “generally recognized as safe” (GRAS) standard, the impact of social media on food promotion, and the regulations affecting food trucks that dot the landscape of every major city.
8:00 – 8:30 am
Registration and Continental Breakfast
8:30 – 8:35 am
FDLI Welcome and Announcements
Susan C. Winckler, President and CEO, The Food and Drug Law Institute
8:35 – 9:15 am
Keynote Address: The Current Landscape of Food Policy and Regulation
Frederick H. Degnan, Partner, King & Spalding LLP | Slides
9:15 – 10:30 am
Hot Topic I
Politics & Food: New Paradigms?
Robert E. Brackett, PhD, Vice President and Director, IIT, Institute for Food Safety & Health | Slides
Patty Lovera, Assistant Director, Food & Water Watch | Slides
John R. Manthei, Partner, Latham, & Watkins LLP | Slides
Moderated by Fern P. O'Brian, Partner, Thompson Hine LLP
10:30 – 10:45 am
Refreshment Break
10:45 am – 12:15 pm
Hot Topic II
Generally Recognized as Safe: A Loophole that Swallowed the Law?
Suzanne White Junod, PhD, Historian, FDA History Office, FDA | Slides
Leon Bruner, DVM, PhD, Senior Vice President Science and Regulatory Affairs, Chief Science Officer, Grocery Manufacturers Association | Slides
Mitchell Cheeseman, PhD, Managing Director, Steptoe & Johnson LLP
Antonia Mattia, PhD, Director, Division of Biotechnology and GRAS Notice Review, Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition, FDA | Slides
Thomas G. Neltner, Project Director, Food Additives Project, The Pew Charitable Trusts | Slides
Moderated by Josephine M. Balzac, Burdock Group Associate, Burdock Group Consultants | Slides
12:15 – 1:30 pm
Lunch
1:30 – 2:45 pm
Hot Topics III
Social Media: Using Emerging Technology to Promote & Discuss Food Products
Carol A. Hazen, Director of Advocacy Resources, Rudd Center for Food Policy & Obesity, Yale University | Slides
Eric Mittenthal, Vice President, Public Affairs, American Meat Institute | Slides
Moderated by Carolyn Elefant, Owner, Law Offices of Carolyn Elefant | Slides
2:45 – 3:15 pm
Refreshment Break
3:15 – 4:45 pm
Hot Topics IV
Food Trucks: Driving Toward the Next Regulatory Roadstop
Gary Koppelman, Publisher, MobileFoodNews.com | Handout
Che Ruddell-Tabisola, Executive Director, DC Food Trucks Association
Moderated by Crystal T. Williams, Associate, Barnes & Thornburg LLP | Slides
4:45 - 6:00 pm
Networking Reception (Foyer)