Shawn Stevens is the founding member of Food Industry Counsel, the only law firm in the world that represents the food industry exclusively.

As a food industry consultant and lawyer, Mr. Stevens works throughout the U.S. and abroad with food industry clients—including the world's largest growers, processors, restaurant chains, distributors, and grocers—helping them protect their brands by reducing food safety risks, complying with FDA and USDA food safety regulations, managing recalls and defending high-profile foodborne illness claims. Mr. Stevens also speaks regularly to audiences on a wide variety of emerging scientific, regulatory, and food safety legal trends, authors columns for food industry publications, and is quoted regularly by national media publications such as TIME Magazine and Corporate Counsel.

In this episode of Food Safety Matters, we speak to Mr. Stevens [18:20] about:

• Recent recall trends related to the impacts of COVID-19
• Using data from the Food Recall Reporter online tracking tool to generate predictive analytics
• Changes in inspections as we emerge from the pandemic
• Examining recalls by category, allergen, pathogen, and foreign material
• Controlling Listeria monocytogenes in food facilities
• Upcoming changes to FDA's policy around Listeria—it's about persistence
• Trends in regulatory enforcement
• Industry trends related to the Smarter Era of Food Safety
• Food Safety Summit workshop—Mock Civil Trial 2.0.

News and Resources

FDA Resumes Domestic Surveillance Inspections [4:00] FDA Announces List of Priority Guidance Topics for Foods Program [7:49] The Acheson Group: FDA Plans 2022 Guidance FDA Releases FASTER Act Video Overview for Food Industry [13:10] Organizations Petition FDA to Deny BPA Approvals, Limit Use in Food and Beverage [16:01]

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