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(Washington, D.C. - June 15, 2009) Allen R. Sayler, vice president of the International Dairy Foods Association, was named the 2009 recipient of the Harold Barnum Industry Award by the International Association for Food Protection, an organization of 3,400 food safety professionals committed to advancing food safety around the world. Named for a past president of IAFP, the Harold Barnum Award recognizes outstanding service to IAFP, the public and the food industry.

"IDFA is pleased that Allen's deep involvement with international dairy standards and commitment to safety programs are being recognized by IAFP," said Connie Tipton, president and CEO of IDFA. "In the more than ten years that Allen has worked with IDFA, he has contributed greatly to our member companies, to the organizations, agencies and committees with whom he shares his time and talents, and to all of us who have the pleasure to work with him."

Sayler, IDFA vice president of regulatory affairs and international standards, is a nationally recognized expert on Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) systems. He frequently consults with the Food and Drug Administration and the National Conference on Interstate Milk Shipments on the development of HACCP regulations and guidelines.

At IDFA, Sayler is responsible for leading the association's HACCP activities, monitoring international regulatory issues and participating on NCIMS, the International Dairy Federation and various Codex Alimentarius Commission committees.

Before joining IDFA in 1997, Sayler was a dairy products marketing specialist with the Dairy Programs Standardization Branch of the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Agricultural Marketing Service. Before that, Sayler worked four years with the FDA's Milk Safety Branch and 10 years with the North Dakota Department of Agriculture.

"I have worked with Allen on various projects between Kraft Foods and IDFA," said Loralyn Ledenbach, senior associate principal scientist, Kraft Foods Global Inc. "He has been a valuable asset for us in advocating for important science-based changes to regulatory standards for dairy products.

Sayler will receive the award recognizing excellence in food safety at IAFP's annual meeting, July 12-15, in Grapevine, Texas. The association includes educators, government officials, microbiologists, food industry executives and quality control professionals, representing more than 50 countries.

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The International Dairy Foods Association (IDFA), Washington, DC, represents the nation's dairy manufacturing and marketing industries and their suppliers, with a membership of 550 companies representing a $110-billion a year industry. IDFA is composed of three constituent organizations: the Milk Industry Foundation (MIF), the National Cheese Institute (NCI) and the International Ice Cream Association (IICA). IDFA's 220 dairy processing members run more than 600 plant operations, and range from large multi-national organizations to single-plant companies. Together they represent more than 85% of the milk, cultured products, cheese and frozen desserts produced and marketed in the United States. IDFA can be found online at www.idfa.org