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Newsletter Volume 15, Issue 26
Hi FSQA Professional, In this issue we feture a great article from Jon Woody and Johnna Hepner, Jon is a former FDA Director with 24 years of federal service. A great article worth sharring!
Click on the headlines to open the links that allow you to read the complete articles, register for the webinar or to download the whitepaper or eBook.
You can always read the most current articles and search archived FSQA articles from FST's Home Page. Thank you for your interest in Food Safety Tech.
Until next week or the next big story, Cheers! Rick Biros, Content Director, Publisher and Founder.
Food Safety Hazards
Organized by Food Safety Tech, this conference will focus on the detection, mitigation, control and regulations of food safety hazards through technology, best practices and data analytics. The Hazards addresses in the program include Listeria, e-Coli, Salmonella, Allergens, Chemicals and Foreign Matter. The conference scope includes both human and pet foods. Submission Deadline: Friday, December 18, 2026.
FSMA 204 & Food Fraud
Bu Jon Woody, President & Founder, Woody Food Strategies and Johnna Hepner, Vice President Business Development & Partnerships, Starfish
Food fraud isn’t new. What’s changed is our awareness of it. At its core, food fraud is the intentional substitution, addition, tampering, or misrepresentation of a food or ingredient for economic gain. The drivers haven’t changed much: high-value ingredients, complex global supply chains with more intermediaries than most people realize, price volatility from tariffs or natural disasters, and food safety standards that vary from country to country. Put those together and food fraud is going to keep happening. The question is how well food and beverage companies understand where they’re vulnerable and what they’re doing to reduce that risk.
Food Labs
Most Nutrition Facts problems that surface in a retailer audit don’t start in the lab. The analysis or database calculation is usually sound. The error creeps in at the last step, when raw numbers are converted into the values printed on the panel.
Food Manufacturing
Cleaning and maintenance protocols are essential for maintaining food safety in industrial food processing and meeting standards such as HACCP. Hygienic equipment design, validated cleaning cycles, preventive maintenance, and real-time monitoring help reduce contamination risks and ensure consistent sanitation. These practices help food processors protect consumers, maintain regulatory compliance, and support efficient operations.
Food Safety Resources
Contamination pressures are shifting, detection budgets are tightening, and FSQA teams are being asked to do more with the same equipment. FlexXray’s third annual Foreign Material Contamination Benchmark Report surveys 172 U.S. and Canadian food manufacturers to give the industry a clear, current read on how peers are actually managing the problem.
The report covers how often contamination events occur and whether that’s changing, which technologies plants have in place versus what they’re planning to add, how confident teams are in their own equipment, and who makes the call when product goes on hold. It also includes new data on the specific types of material showing up most often — and what that means for the equipment already on the line.
Built on this year’s survey and benchmarked against 2025, the report is designed to help FSQA and quality leaders see where they stand relative to the rest of the industry, grounded in data rather than assumptions.
Suspect foreign material contamination? Look closer. FlexXray’s third-party FM inspection pinpoints exactly what product is affected — and isn’t — so you can salvage more instead of discarding the full lot. See how FlexXray’s inspection services work → www.flexxray.com
Food Safety eBook
Modern food safety programs require more than routine testing. Learn how HACCP-driven strategies, PCR pathogen detection, and connected diagnostics help food manufacturers improve prevention, strengthen compliance, and respond faster to risk. In this eBook you will learn:
• How to build a HACCP-based testing strategy.
• Environmental vs. product testing best practices.
• Why PCR plays a critical role in modern food safety.
• Key factors that impact PCR performance and reliability.
• How connected diagnostics support faster decision-making.
Thought Leadership and Demand Generation Opportunities for FSQA Technology & Service Providers
