American Council for Food Safety & Quality

President's Message

By Gary Ford

Dear ACFQS/DFA and SCTC Members:

As the summer quickly turns into fall, we are reminded that life is ever-changing. This is one of the great joys and challenges to life. As many of you know, one large change to the association has been the appointment of a new CEO. While I know most of you, please allow me to formally introduce myself. My name is Gary Ford and I was appointed CEO/President of the American Council of Food Safety and Quality (ACFSQ) and the Specialty Crop Trade Council (SCTC) on June 29, 2009. Although my time with the association has been short, my experience in the industry is quite the opposite. I have been in food processing and marketing for the past thirty years. My career began with Frito-Lay and after 13 years I moved to Chicago to work with Metz Baking Company. For the past 11 years, I have been COO/EVP for Diamond Foods; my time with the company and the employees were one of the most rewarding in my career. During my time with Diamond I had the opportunity to serve on the Board of Directors for the ACFSQ/DFA, in which I became very familiar with the organization prior to assuming the CEO role. I look forward to leading our organization into the future.

As we have all witnessed first hand, the focus on food quality and safety grows with each passing day. I recently sent a summary of the food safety bill that just passed the House of Representatives, and another summary on a bill that is working its way through the Senate. There will be a food safety bill that is passed in the near future that will require all of our members to make changes in your plants to meet these new requirements. The Grocery Manufacturers Association (GMA) has thrown its support behind the proposed legislation. In my opinion, support from GMA will not only lead to legislation passing, but will also make certain that food processors are at the table to ensure that the new laws are reasonable and will have a real impact on Food Safety in the entire supply chain.

As we move forward during these challenging times, I would like all of our members to remember the hard work the Board invests on your behalf. I am personally grateful for their support of me in this new opportunity, and look forward to working with them in the future.

On a final note, I would like to remind everyone of our mission statement: "To utilize our expertise and integrity to provide value through innovative and objective quality services. It is through our commitment to providing value to our customers that we continue to be so successful.

I look forward to working with you all in the future in maintaining and improving the quality and safety of the industry’s products. I would love to hear from you, please feel free to contact me with any concerns.

Sincerely,

Gary