The dairy industry’s food-safety crisis drills provide an excellent platform to test and strengthen crisis-preparedness plans and protocols. New this year, the drills will offer breakout sessions that will focus on applying and implementing the proposed voluntary traceability guidelines released this year by the Innovation Center for U.S. Dairy.
This year’s meetings are slated for Alexandria, Va., June 5-6; Salt Lake City, September 25-26; and Minneapolis, November 20-21. Except for travel expenses, there is no cost to participate. The registration deadline for the June event is Friday, May 10.
Industry members from the Innovation Center’s traceability subcommittee will lead the breakout sessions, beginning with an overview of the proposed guidelines and following with exercises based on a fictional crisis. Participants will be asked to execute a trace-back project and determine the appropriate communications to internal and external audiences.
The crisis drills are open to professionals from across the dairy supply chain, as well as federal, state and local government agencies, including the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the FBI, the Food and Drug Administration and the Department of Homeland Security.
The drills provide an opportunity for participants to evaluate their crisis plans, identify areas for improvements and test their traceability capabilities. They also offer the opportunity to see how social media shapes public perception and industry response and to demonstrate how companies can contribute to the conversation.
The drills are offered by the Dairy Communications Management Team, which includes representatives from IDFA, Dairy Management Inc., the Innovation Center for U.S. Dairy, the Milk Processor Education Program, the National Milk Producers Federation and the U.S. Dairy Export Council.
For more information and to register, visit the Food-Safety Crisis Drill microsite.
Members with questions may contact Peggy Armstrong, IDFA vice president of communications, at parmstrong@idfa.org or 202-220-3508.