AGENDA - Day 2

Please note that all times listed are EDT (Eastern Daylight Time, -5 GMT).   

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8:00 am

NETWORKING BREAKFAST:
BUILD COMMUNITY CONTACTS

  • Start your day off right and connect with food safety and regulation leaders.  
  • Get to know your industry peers and colleagues over a delicious breakfast.  
  • Source practical tips, discuss best practices, and prepare for the day ahead.  

9:00 am

OPENING COMMENTS FROM YOUR HOST

Gain insight into today’s sessions so you can get the most out of your conference experience.

9:15 am

OPENING KEYNOTE

UNDERSTANDING CFIA INSPECTION GUIDELINES

Navigate CFIA requirements to ensure your operations meet national standards for food safety, quality, and regulatory compliance. A clear understanding of these guidelines helps organizations minimize risk while maintaining consumer trust. Leave with a deeper understanding to:

  • Interpret CFIA inspection standards and procedures across different food categories.
  • Prepare your facilities, records, and staff for routine and targeted inspections.
  • Implement corrective actions and continuous improvement based on inspection findings.

 Master CFIA inspection guidelines to enable proactive compliance, reduce risk, and strengthen both operational efficiency and consumer confidence.

9:45 am

FIRESIDE CHAT

LESSONS FROM GLOBAL RECALLS IN 2025:
REGULATORY COMPLIANCE, CONTAMINATION CONTROLS, AND ALLERGEN OVERSIGHT

Explore how recent global recalls underscore regulatory expectations and expose weaknesses in contamination prevention, supply chain oversight, and allergen declaration practices. Understanding these enforcement signals helps organizations strengthen compliance, mitigate risk, and protect consumers. Build  compliance-focused roadmap to:

  • Review leading recall cases tied to contamination events, supply chain gaps, and undeclared allergens through a regulatory and enforcement lens.
  • Pinpoint compliance failure points across the supply chain where regulatory controls, documentation, or verification processes most commonly break down.
  • Enhance monitoring, traceability, and allergen management programs to meet CFIA and international regulatory standards, including recall readiness and communication protocols.

Use lessons from 2025 recalls to bolster compliance systems, improve supply chain integrity, and safeguard public health by ensuring robust, documented controls at every step of production and distribution.

10:15 am

ROUNDTABLES:
DISCOVER THOUGHT-PROVOKING IDEAS

Take a deep dive down the innovation rabbit hole in one of our roundtable discussions. Share common challenges and best practices with your food safety and compliance peers on a topic of your choosing:

  1. AI in Food Safety 
  2. Pathogen Detection 
  3. Avoiding Contaminants 
  4. Regulation and Compliance 
  5. Inspection Best Practice 
  6. Recall Strategies 
  7. Allergens 
  8. Environmental Monitoring 

10:45 am

EXHIBITOR LOUNGE:
VISIT BOOTHS & SOURCE EXPERTISE

  • Explore the latest food safety and compliance technology and strategies with our industry-leading sponsors. 
  • Share your challenges with the biggest innovators in the business.  
  • Schedule one-to-one private meetings for personalized advice. 

11:15 am

INDUSTRY EXPERT

SMART EQUIPMENT:
SELF-SANITIZING SURFACES AND AUTOMATION

Leverage next-generation equipment to reduce contamination risks and improve operational efficiency. By combining automation with self-sanitizing technology, food businesses can maintain higher safety standards while optimizing productivity. Craft a plan of action to: 

  • Implement self-sanitizing surfaces and automated cleaning systems to minimize microbial risks. 
  • Integrate smart equipment into production workflows for consistent, reliable performance. 
  • Monitor and maintain automated systems to ensure ongoing effectiveness and regulatory compliance. 

 Harness smart, automated equipment to enhance food safety, reduce human error, and strengthen operational efficiency across the supply chain. 

11:45 am

PANEL

FROM FARM TO FIRST CUT:
STRENGTHENING FOOD SAFETY FOR PRIMARY PROCESSORS

For primary meat processors, food safety begins long before production lines start. Managing microbial risks in raw, fresh, and frozen meats requires a strong foundation of hygiene, traceability, and proactive controls. By improving on-farm cleanliness and early-stage handling, processors can reduce microbial load, minimize contamination, and lessen reliance on chemical interventions downstream. Source practical strategies to: 

  • Understand microbial hazards commonly found in raw and frozen meats, including Salmonella, Listeria monocytogenes, and E. coli, and how they spread through early production stages. 
  • Enhance on-farm hygiene to lower contamination risks before processing begins and optimize cleaning and sanitation programs that balance microbial control with reduced chemical usage, supporting both sustainability and food safety goals. 
  • Leverage monitoring technologies and microbial testing to track cleanliness and verify interventions throughout the supply chain. 

Build a stronger food safety culture from farm to factory where better hygiene, smarter monitoring, and targeted interventions create safer meat products with fewer chemicals and greater consumer confidence. 

12:15 pm

NETWORKING LUNCH:
DELVE INTO INDUSTRY CONVERSATIONS

  • Meet interesting speakers and pick their brains on the latest industry issues. 
  • Expand your network and make connections that last beyond the conference.  
  • Enjoy great food and service while engaging with your food safety and regulation colleagues. 

1:15 pm

CASE STUDY

TRACK 1: FOOD SAFETY

SUSTAINING EXCELLENCE: BUILDING TRUST THROUGH CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT IN FOOD SAFETY

1:15 pm

MASTERCLASS

TRACK 2: FOOD REGULATION

TRACEABILITY IN ACTION IN COMPLEX CANADIAN SUPPLY CHAINS

Build regulatory-ready food safety systems with full supply chain visibility and documented accountability from farm to fork. In today’s regulated marketplace, traceability isn’t optional — it’s a legal expectation and a cornerstone of public trust. Strengthen compliance and readiness to:

  • Implement traceability frameworks aligned with Canadian federal regulations and international food safety standards.
  • Deploy digital systems to rapidly track, trace, and verify product movement, supporting swift regulatory response and recall execution.
  • Maintain complete, auditable records to meet inspection requirements and demonstrate proactive risk management.

 

Position traceability as a regulatory asset, ensuring compliance, protecting consumers, and enabling confident oversight at every stage of your supply chain.

2:00 pm

MASTERCLASS

TRACK 1: FOOD SAFETY

AI AND EI IN CANADIAN FOOD SAFETY

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is revolutionizing industries worldwide, and the food safety sector in Canada is no exception. Today, we will examine insights into how AI, intertwined with Emotional Intelligence (EI), is setting new benchmarks in food safety protocols and management. This intersection of AI and EI fosters an environment where technology not only solves complex problems but does so with an understanding of human values, emotions, and the societal impact of its implementations.

By the end of this masterclass, participants will:

  • Understand how AI and EI work together to strengthen food safety outcomes
  • Identify 3 practical applications they can implement in their organization
  • Develop an action plan for integrating human-centred AI approaches in food safety protocols

2:00 pm

MASTERCLASS

TRACK 2: FOOD REGULATION

ADVANCING ALLERGEN MANAGEMENT: UPDATES FROM THE CODEX COMMITTEE

Get a top-level overview of the latest work by the Codex Committee on Food Labelling as it relates to food allergens.

  • Gain insight on the most recent international discussions, proposed changes to priority allergen lists, and evolving guidance on precautionary allergen labelling.
  • Explore food hazards including microbiological risks, contaminants, additives, pesticides, veterinary drugs, and allergens.
  • The importance of reducing technical barriers through standardized terminology, testing methods, and regulatory expectations.

2:50 pm

EXHIBITOR LOUNGE:
ATTEND VENDOR DEMOS & CONSULT INDUSTRY EXPERTS

  • Enjoy exclusive sponsor demos and experience the next level of food safety and compliance innovation firsthand. 
  • Meet one-on-one with leading solution providers to discuss organizational hurdles. 
  • Brainstorm solutions and gain new perspectives and ideas. 

3:15 pm

PANEL

HARNESSING RESEARCH TO STRENGTHEN FOOD SAFETY AND LABELLING COMPLIANCE

Apply the latest scientific and regulatory insights to improve food safety and labelling practices, ensuring accurate consumer information and full compliance with Canadian and international standards. As expectations evolve, informed labelling is not only a legal requirement — it’s a critical trust-builder. Follow a compliance-focused roadmap to:

  • Use evidence-based criteria to develop labels that accurately communicate ingredients, allergens, nutritional information, and safety claims.
  • Integrate labelling requirements into food safety systems, ensuring packaging and labelling work together to meet regulatory mandates and reduce consumer risk.  
  • Continuously monitor regulatory updates to adjust labelling strategies and maintain compliance across diverse markets.

 

A research-driven approach to labelling strengthens food safety assurance, enhances consumer confidence, and ensures regulatory alignment while supporting safe, transparent food systems.

3:45 pm

INDUSTRY EXPERT

ADVANTAGES OF COMBINING PRODUCT INSPECTION TECHNOLOGIES

Maximize food safety and operational efficiency by integrating multiple inspection technologies. Combining complementary tools allows for more accurate detection, faster processing, and enhanced compliance across the supply chain. Build an action plan to: 

  • Leverage complementary inspection technologies (metal detection, X-ray, vision systems, etc) for comprehensive contaminant detection. 
  • Optimize inspection workflows to balance speed, accuracy, and cost-effectiveness. 
  • Continuously evaluate and refine technology integration to respond to evolving risks and regulatory requirements. 

 Combining inspection technologies enhances detection capabilities, reduces risk, and ensures more reliable and efficient quality control throughout the production process. 

4:15 pm

PANEL

MANAGING ALLERGEN RISK IN A PERSONALIZED NUTRITION ERA

As personalized nutrition gains momentum, allergen management becomes more critical than ever. Companies must navigate evolving consumer expectations, global standards, and digital transparency tools to ensure safety and trust. Source innovative insights to: 

  • Understand the growth of allergen-free markets and the implications for food manufacturing, retail, and service. 
  • Implement next-generation allergen labelling strategies, including digital QR code transparency. 
  • Align allergen management practices with global standards to ensure consistent safety across markets. 

Proactively managing allergen risk in the personalized nutrition era safeguards consumers, strengthens brand trust, and ensures compliance in a rapidly evolving market. 

4:45 pm

CLOSING COMMENTS FROM YOUR HOST

Review the key solutions and takeaways from the conference. Source a summary of action points to implement in your work.

5:00 pm

CONFERENCE CONCLUDES