Food Safety Virtual Office Hours
Virutal , Event
January 20, 2026
12:00 pm – 1:00 pm
Cornell University hosted a Food Safety Virtual Office Hours, where panelists of food safety professionals discussed consumer food safety expectations and building trust.
The Food Safety Virtual Office Hour session explored how to navigate evolving consumer expectations around food science. The discussion examined how trends, such as ingredient transparency, chemical contamination, wellness and risk fatigue, balance with the challenges of communicating scientific trade-offs effectively. Attendees gained practical insights on how to maintain public trust.
Expert Panel:
- Meredith Carothers, Public Affair Specialist, United States Department of Agriculture (USDA)
- Dr. Ben Chapman, Professor, North Carolina State University (NCSU)
- Matt Herrick, Executive Vice President and Chief Impact Officer, International Dairy Foods Association (IDFA)
- Jason Jacobs, Vice President QA and Technical Services at Beech-Nut Nutrition Company
- Brittany Towers, Product Development and Food Science Educator (@theBlackFoodScientist on Instagram)
- Dr. Caitlin Karolenko (Moderator), Institute for the Advancement of Food and Nutrition Sciences
- Dr. Abby Snyder (Moderator), Associate Professor, Department of Food Science, Cornell University