2022 UArizona Food Safety Conference

The 2022 UArizona Food Safety Conference, hosted by the Food Safety Consortium (FSC), provided attendees an exciting hybrid conference experience with virtual presentations and in-person networking and poster sessions. The virtual meeting, held Oct 26th, included nearly 100 attendees from around the world to participate in a wide variety of presentations covering topics relevant to food safety research and various food industry sectors, as well as a panel session on irrigation water quality and safety.

Conference Dedication Awards

Each year, since 2019, the conference has been dedicated to an individual who has provided valuable service to the Food Safety Consortium. The 2022 conference was dedicated to Hank Giclas, formerly of Western Growers Association. Hank was passionate about facilitating the connection between academia and producers. He served on the Consortium’s advisory committee and provided invaluable support. Unfortunately, Hank passed away on Aug 5, 2022. A conference dedication award was presented to, and accepted by, his family, including Kathleen Giclas (wife), Henry Giclas Jr. (father), and Patric Giclas (brother), as well as, his Western Growers colleague, Sonia Salas.

With the return to in-person programing, the Consortium also presented plaques to the 2019, 2020, and 2021 awardees. These included the Dr. Lynn Joens Family, the Dr. John Marchello Family, and Dr. Ron Allen, respectively. Without their service and support, the Food Safety Consortium would not be what it is today.

Student and Staff Poster Sessions

The in-person networking and poster sessions, along with the dedication plaque ceremony, were held in Tucson, AZ on Oct 27th. Following the poster presentations, awards were presented to the top three student posters, Richard Park, Janell Kartoz, and Miely Suarez, each of whom received $500 prizes.  Additionally, student Kirat Bains, received the Yuma Center of Excellence in Desert Agriculture (YCEDA) award and the Dr. Dan Engeljohn Crowd Favorite award each with a $100 prize. The 2022 conference for the first time included the Top Staff Poster award ($500 travel/research grant) given to Dr. Bibiana Law. Congratulations to the 2022 poster award winners!

Thank you to all of the 2022 conference sponsors for making this conference possible!

Conference Sponsors

Platinum Sponsors

• JV Smith Food Safety Endowment
• ALVSCE Research, The University of Arizona
• School of Nutritional Science and Wellness, The University of Arizona
• Yuma Safe Produce Council

Gold Sponsors

• School of Animal and Comparative Biomedical Sciences, The University of Arizona
• Cooperative Extension, The University of Arizona
• CALES Academic and Career Services, The University of Arizona
• Western Growers Association
• BioSafe Systems
• Yuma Fresh Vegetable Association
• Duncan Family Farms

Silver Sponsors

• Aquaculture Pathology Lab, The University of Arizona
• Scott Resources
• The Barkley Company of Arizona

General/Student Award Sponsors

• YCEDA, The University of Arizona
• Phoenix Biometrics