A MULTI-DISCIPLINARY COLLABORATION TO IMPROVE PUBLIC HEALTH

Julie A. Caswell is a Professor of Resource Economics and Adjunct Professor of Food Science at the University of Massachusetts. She has a Ph.D. in Agricultural Economics and Economics from the University of Wisconsin, a MS in Economics from the University of Wisconsin, and a BS in Public Affairs Management from Michigan State University. Her research focuses on understanding the operation of domestic and international food systems, with particular interest in the economics of food quality, especially safety and nutrition, and international trade. Her edited books include Economics of Food Safety, Valuing Food Safety and Nutrition, and Global Food Trade and Consumer Demand for Quality. Dr. Caswell has provided her expertise to the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development on food safety and labeling issues. From 1989-2002 she chaired Regional Research Project NE-165, an international group of over 100 economists who analyzed the operation and performance of the food system. She has held numerous senior positions with the American Agricultural Economics Association and the Northeastern Agricultural and Resource Economics Association. Dr. Caswell is the recipient of an Outstanding Teaching Award and a Certificate of Achievement for Outstanding Research Contributions from the College of Food & Natural Resources at UMass. She has taught graduate courses in Poland, Italy, Brazil, and Spain. For more information see:

http://www.umass.edu/resec/faculty/caswell/index.html.

Michael P. Doyle is a Regents Professor of Food Microbiology and Director of the Center for Food Safety at the University of Georgia.  He is an active researcher in the area of foodborne bacterial pathogens and works closely with the food industry on issues related to the microbiological safety of foods.  His research has focused on the study of microbial pathogenicity, the development of methods for pathogen detection, and the identification of means to control or eliminate pathogens in foods.  Dr. Doyle is a graduate of the University of Wisconsin-Madison where he received his B.S. degree in Bacteriology, and M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in Food Microbiology.  He serves on food safety committees of many scientific organizations and has served as a scientific advisor to many groups, including the World Health Organization, the Institute of Medicine, International Life Sciences Institute-North America, the Food and Drug Administration, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the U.S. Department  of Defense,  and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency  He has published more than 400 scientific publications including editor of two authoritative books, Foodborne Bacterial Pathogens and Food Microbiology: Fundamentals and Frontiers; and has given more than 500 invited presentations at national and international scientific meetings.  In addition, he has received several research awards from academic and national scientific organizations, has been elected a Fellow of the American Academy of Microbiology, the International Association for Food Protection and the Institute of Food Technologists, and has been awarded several named Lectureships.

Jerry R. Gillespie, the first director of the Western Institute for Food Safety and Security, brings to his task expertise in several fields of veterinary medicine along with experience in building effective research teams and enduring interest in food safety on and around the farm.  Dr. Gillespie earned his Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree from Oklahoma State University in 1961, spent one year in veterinary practice, and completed his doctorate in comparative pathology at the University of California, Davis, in 1965. After a postdoctoral fellowship with the Cardiovascular Research Institute at the UC San Francisco Medical Center, he joined the faculty of the UC Davis Schools of Veterinary Medicine and Medicine. Dr. Gillespie remained in Davis from 1966 until 1985, becoming known for his applications of heart-lung physiology to the developing field of equine anesthesiology. He has published more than 100 original scientific publications contributing internationally to a fuller understanding of respiratory disease, equine exercise physiology and food safety.  In 1985, Dr. Gillespie moved to Kansas State University College of Veterinary Medicine to become Head of the Veterinary Teaching Hospital and Department of Clinical Sciences. While at the college, Gillespie observed the strong links between the state and its food agriculture industry and began to promote research on food animals and food safety. He helped found the Kansas State University Food Animal Health and Management Center in 1994.  The center's findings on the ecology of food-borne pathogens, the role of wildlife-livestock interaction in spreading disease to people, and other food-related matters have led to new recommendations for food safety strategies on the farm.  Dr. Gillespie served as first executive director of the Joint Institute for Food Safety Research, US Department of Agriculture and US Department of Health and Human Services.  From 2000 until 2002, he and the institute have brought together 20 federal agencies conducting food safety research and laid the groundwork for further collaborations with state agencies, private industry groups and international partners.  Professional service contributions encompass several national and international organizations, including the American Veterinary Medical Association, the Academy of Veterinary Cardiology, the American College of Veterinary Anesthesiologists and numerous equine groups. He has also led numerous professional committees and task forces related to food safety and veterinary education.  Dr. Gillespie's goals for the Western Institute for Food Safety and Security include fostering timely food safety research; applying new knowledge to both plant- and animal-based food products; responding to the public and food industries; and promoting the scientific scrutiny of issues throughout the food-production continuum—from the farm environment to the consumer—that will assure the highest international standards of food safety and quality.

J. Glenn Morris, Jr is professor and chairman of the Department of Epidemiology and Preventive Medicine at the University of Maryland School of Medicine.  Dr. Morris has a strong research interest in the area of emerging pathogens: he maintains an active, NIH-funded laboratory working in the area of molecular genetics and molecular epidemiology; is involved in hospital studies looking at emergence of resistant microorganisms; has worked extensively with clinical, laboratory, and environmental issues related to harmful algal blooms; and serves as co-PI of the CDC Emerging Infections Program sentinel surveillance site (FoodNet) in Maryland.  He has served on four National Academy of Sciences expert committees dealing with food safety.  From 1994-1996, he worked with the Food Safety Inspection Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, on the first major revision of food safety regulations since 1906.  He received his BA from Rice University in Houston in 1973, and his MD degree and a master’s degree in public health and tropical medicine from Tulane University, New Orleans, in 1977. 

Michael R. Taylor is Senior Fellow and Director of RFF’s Center for Risk Management At RFF, Taylor is developing a research program on the policy and institutional issues affecting the success of the global food system in the area of hunger and food security in developing countries, food safety, the natural resource and environmental sustainability of agriculture.  Prior to RFF, Taylor served in government, practiced law in Washington, and worked in private industry. He was Administrator of the USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service from 1994 to 1996; Deputy Commissioner for Policy at the Food and Drug Administration from 1991 to 1994; and an FDA staff lawyer and Executive Assistant to the FDA Commissioner from 1976 to 1981. He practiced food and drug law and was a partner in the law firm of King & Spalding for ten years and most recently was Vice President for Public Policy at Monsanto Company.  Taylor has served on several NAS committees and is currently the co-chair Taylor is an adjunct professor of law at Georgetown University Law Center and a member of the Board of Trustees of Resolve. He received his law degree from the University of Virginia and his B.A. in political science at Davidson College.

Ewen C.D. Todd is Director of the National Food Safety and Toxicology Center at Michigan State University. He is also Adjunct Professor in the Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition. At the NFSTC, Dr. Todd coordinates research in microbiology, toxicology, epidemiology, risk assessment and social science in the area of food safety, distance education programs, and outreach in the community. He is a graduate of Glasgow University with a B.S degree in Bacteriology and a PhD degree in bacterial systematics. Dr. Todd was formerly in the Bureau of Microbial Hazards, Health Products and Food Branch, Health Canada, Ottawa where he was a research scientist for 33 years working on methods development for pathogens in foods, foodborne disease investigation and reporting, costs and surveillance of disease, illnesses caused by seafood toxins, and risk assessment of foodborne pathogens such as E. coli O157 in hamburgers, Salmonella Enteritidis in eggs, E. coli O157:H7 in lettuce, L. monocytogenes in cabbage, and Vibrio vulnificus in oysters. He also helped develop risk management strategies for the Department including producing videos and pamphlets on food safety education. He serves on the FAO/WHO expert consultation for producing a risk assessment for L. monocytogenes in ready-to-eat foods. He is also currently working on Listeria modeling projects with colleagues at MSU. He also associated with MSU faculty involved with international projects in helping developing countries respond to SPS agreements. Dr. Todd has published more than 100 research papers, book chapters and booklets.  He also has made over 250 presentations and posters at national and international meetings with over 170 invitations to speak. He has received the Government of Canada Distinctive Service Award for extraordinary teamwork and support to the Science and Technology Community; Recipient of the Excellence in Science Award for 1998 by Health Canada; Deputy Minister's Award of Team Excellence for the work done in promoting the Fight BAC! campaign in Canada;  the Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada Gold Medal for Pure and Applied Science; and he is Fellow of the International Association for Food Protection.

Helen H. Jensen is professor of economics and head of the Food and Nutrition Policy Division in the Center for Agriculture and Rural Development (CARD) at Iowa State University. Her major areas of research are food and nutrition policies, food security and the economics of food safety and food hazard control options. In CARD, she leads a research program on economics of food programs and policies, including food safety. Her research addresses the implications of changes in the design of food programs and food safety regulations. Within the Consortium, she is developing methods and procedures for assessing exposure to foodborne contaminants in the food supply and studying the economics of hazard controls in pork processing. This includes the development of a statistical framework for evaluating relative health risks and intervention strategies in the food distribution chain, monitoring food hazard exposure, evaluating the cost effectiveness of HACCP implementation, and valuation of food safety.She recently served as chair of the Food Safety and Nutrition Section of the American Agricultural Economics Association, and is currently serving on several committees of the National Academy of Sciences. She joined the faculty at Iowa State in 1985.  Dr. Jensen holds a masters degree in agricultural and applied economics from the University of Minnesota and a Ph.D. degree in agricultural economics from the University of Wisconsin.

Michael Batz is a Research Associate at Resources for the Future and Program Manager of the Food Safety Research Consortium.  His research focuses on applying computer-modeling methods to environmental and human health issues, particularly the application of risk analysis to foodborne disease. Batz received an M.S. in electrical and computer engineering and a B.S. in electrical and computer engineering and engineering and public policy, both from Carnegie Mellon University.

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