Virginia Dare welcomes Verdi; Borzelleca wins IACM award

Register now for Wellness 13
Registration for Wellness 13 is open, and the event promises discussions about the latest practices and innovations for developing and marketing healthful foods as well as some new additions. The conference will be held Feb. 27–28, 2013.

The Emerging Technologies educational track is a new track focusing on the changes in the healthful foods industry and how product developers and industry professionals can stay ahead of the curve. Another new feature at Wellness 13 is the live streaming of the opening session, keynote speaker, and consumer panel, for a nominal fee, for those who are unable to travel to the event. The consumer panel session, one of the most popular sessions as rated by past attendees, will focus on what teens consider healthy. Finally, Supplier Solution sessions scheduled for 15 minutes each will provide focused information about new and innovative ingredient and process solutions.

A number of educational sessions are scheduled and will cover a variety of different issues affecting the healthful foods industry.

A short course, “Functional Oils & Grains for Health and Innovation,” will be held on Feb. 26, 2013. Attendees will receive an update on consumer trends for health and wellness products, emerging nutrition research on fats and grains and how they affect disease and promote health, innovative oil and grain products in development and their practical applications, and labeling and regulatory policy.

Wellness 13 and the short course will be held at the Intercontinental Chicago O’Hare, Rosemont, Ill. For more information, visit www.ift.org/wellness.

Virginia Dare welcomes Verdi
Virginia Dare Extract Co. has hired Robert (Bob) J. Verdi as Business Director–Health & Wellness.

Verdi, who has more than 20 years of experience in the food ingredient business and the scientific arena, is responsible for managing and developing the health and wellness strategy and business. He most recently worked for Farbest Brands.

Verdi received a B.S. degree in food science and an MBA degree in marketing from Rutgers University and a Ph.D. degree in food chemistry from Cornell University. He is a Professional Member of IFT.

Borzelleca wins IACM award
The International Association of Color Manufacturers has presented Joseph F. Borzelleca with its inaugural Lifetime Service Award. Borzelleca helped develop lifetime toxicity and carcinogenicity studies sponsored by IACM’s predecessor organization, Certified Color Manufacturers Association. These studies remain the standard of excellence for food color safety assessment more than three decades after Borzelleca’s work. He is a Professional Member of IFT.

Kemin hires Thomas
Kristen Thomas has joined Kemin as a technical sales manager. She is responsible for growing the food technologies business in Illinois, Wisconsin, innesota, Iowa, Nebraska, North Dakota, and South Dakota. Thomas, a Member of IFT, previously worked as an account executive for Saratoga Food Specialties. She received her B.S. degree from University of Illinois at Chicago.

SafetyChain Software appoints Acheson
David Acheson, a partner at Leavitt Partners, has joined the SafetyChain Software board of directors.

Acheson oversees the food and import safety practice at Leavitt Partners and is a frequent author and speaker about food safety and quality assurance topics. His past professional experience includes Chief Medical Officer of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, Associate Commissioner for Foods at the FDA, Chief Medical Officer at the U.S. Dept. of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service, and Chief Medical Officer at the FDA Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition. He is a Member of IFT.

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Section & Division meetings
Visit www.ift.org to view the Events Calendar, including listings for Section and Division meetings, and for information on how to list your event.