What’s your Affiliation?
How many years worked as a food safety professional?
What events did you attend?
Is this your first time attending a MCAFDO Conference?
Did attending the conference also encourage you to attend the Heartland Food Safety Roundtable?
If you attended the Heartland Food Safety Roundtable meeting, was this your first time attending?
Should MCAFDO consider hosting one or more workshops in conjunction with the annual educational conference?
If future workshops are to be held in conjunction with the MCAFDO conference, should the workshop be held?
Would you like MCAFDO to consider hosting workshops, or training events, in different locations within the MCAFDO affiliate region throughout the calendar year?
What types or workshops or trainings would you like MCAFDO to consider hosting, either for future annual educational conferences or throughout the calendar year?
| Plan review of facilities both manufacturing and retail. The separation of manufacturing and retail and how we can bring them together. I see many inspectors running into items being sold with only the name and social media information provided. They/ we are often met with ” if they are not selling wholesale …not our problem” Hybrid training I guess is what I am getting at. |
| Food labeling workshop – The workshop could be at least a full day workshop with more in-depth coverage about required elements of food labeling, as well as specifics about voluntary labeling statements/claims. Food labeling is an issue regulatory personnel will encounter whether conducting retail food inspections or manufactured food inspections. |
| More information about the specialized credentials. How to get online CEU’s for Food. |
| Just attended a great session at InFORM 2024, Environmental Assessment Learning Lab. The focus was not on environmental assessments. It was a workshop about understanding the root cause of an outbreak, how to identify contributing factors, and environmental antecedents. This was developed by CDC NEARS and can be replicated. |
| I don’t have specific suggestions. Maybe we should develop a survey of possible workshops and send it out? We should include the locals if possible on the survey. |
| Plumbing – backflow prevention Building HACCP Plans for specialized processes Food trucks Conducting plan reviews |
| Training for retail side to do mock inspections, products from retail and manufacturing on checking lot numbers. Classes for traceability, compliance and monitoring programs |
| special processes. |
| Basic Inspector Training |
| Special processes and HACCP Plumbing Report writing Conflict resolution Home based food establishments Cottage foods Retail labeling Common violations and how to gain on site compliance Shared kitchen guidance Food code and annex review |
| All tracts were great! So much helpful information. I also met so many incredible people who were not afraid to share information! I don’t care where these conferences are held–but I loved it in Omaha! Anything involving Cottage Foods would be great. Thank you for this incredible experience! |
Heartland Food safety roundtable and 2024 MCAFDO conference day 1
Please rate the following presentations:
| Very Good | Good | Fair | Poor | Did not attend | Not Applicable | |
| AFDO Performance Matrix – Steven Mandernach, Executive Director, AFDO | 15 | 11 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| FDA’s food labeling requirements and updates – Lynn Szybist, Director, Division of Food Labeling and Standards (VIRTUAL PRESENTATION) | 10 | 11 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 0 |
| FBI Outbreak Investigation Process – Thao Schlichte, IA Food Emergency Rapid Response Team Coordinator | 16 | 9 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Hydroponics: Dual Jurisdiction Challenges – Bart Hawcroft, MO Department of Agriculture Produce Safety | 16 | 8 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Behavior-based communication skills: A practical approach using DiSC framework – Art Wilson, Executive Business Coach, Gener8tor | 16 | 5 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Recalls in Retail – Past, Present and Future – Ellen Ciarimboli, Director Hy-Vee Retail Compliance & Food Protection; Kyle Oberender, Director Supply Chain Food Protection & Compliance | 17 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Managing Chemical Risks in the Food Supply Chain: An Industry View – Margaret Pandis, Senior Regulatory Affairs Specialist/Toxicologist, ConAgra Brands | 19 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| State Updates – Unique Regulatory Challenges Panel & Discussion – State Program and Industry Representatives | 15 | 9 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| AFDO State of the Association – Steven Mandernach, Executive Director, AFDO | 12 | 9 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 2 |
Please provide comments you wish to communicate regarding speakers and/or presentations for day one:
| This was the best conference I have attended! Much appreciated! |
| Maybe try to keep it a bit upbeat |
| AFDO Update – Appreciated the interjection of ice breaker jokes for conference participants. This helped to keep the session engaging. Freeze Drying – A very relevant topic related to trending processing methods for the cottage food and retail food industries. Lots of good informative information related to the freeze drying process and potential food safety issues. Looking forward to using knowledge gained from this session to answer questions from the public sector, as well as food establishment operators, and applying knowledge during regulatory inspections. MCAFDO Awards – Good to see so many individuals being recognized for their hard work, contributions, and acheivements. Hope to continue to see more of the same for next year’s conference. |
| I think you should have had the State Updates – Unique Regulatory Challenges Panel and Discussion on Day 1 of the Conference (like you had it on the Agenda). People left early and did not get to hear these presentations. |
| The business meeting could be a little more “formal”. Buit I also understand that we don’t typically have much business to address during that meeting. |
| Excellent! Loved the scientific aspect of the fermentation and freeze-drying presentations. Also liked the inclusion of Produce Safety and Texas’ sense of humor ^_^ |
| The Ag secretary’s presentation seemed out of place |
| This was my first attendance to MCAFDO but I honestly felt the first day was great. I thought the timing of the roundtable before the conference was a little confusing. For those of us not staying on site, we had to choose working a half day and then attending the conference or going to the roundtable. All of us chose the roundtable. So, I guess I am suggesting make that part of the conference, not an optional part, if possible. I would also suggest holding the business meeting and award ceremony maybe at the beginning of the day. |
| I wanted to attend the Heartland roundtable, but the room was far too full and uninviting. We don’t need an hour on traceability rule at every meeting. Maybe half an hour would be better. |
| The speakers were well chosen! |
2024 MCAFDO conference day 2
Please rate the following presentations:
| Very Good | Good | Fair | Poor | Did not attend | Not Applicable | |
| Heartland Food Safety Roundtable | 11 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 7 | 1 |
| Registration Table and Greeting | 21 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Call to Order and Welcome – Hunter Galusha, MCAFDO President and Sherry Vinton, NE Department of Agriculture Director | 18 | 7 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| AFDO Update – Katherine Simone, AFDO President, MN Department of Agriculture & Feed Safety | 18 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Getting great things out of mixed microbes: Kombucha and others – Heather Hallen-Adams, Associate Professor of Practice, University Nebraska-Lincoln | 17 | 8 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| FSMA Traceability Rule – Melinda Hayman, Consumer Safety Officer, FDA (Virtual Presentation) | 8 | 14 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Freeze Drying and Potential Food Safety Challenges – Mary-Grace Danao, Research Associate Professor, University Nebraska-Lincoln | 25 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| The Produce Safety Rule as it Applies to the Food Chain – Rene Nieto, TX Department of Agriculture; Justin McConaghy, OK Department of Agriculture | 12 | 10 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| MCAFDO Awards Ceremony & Awards Presentations | 11 | 10 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| MCAFDO Business Meeting | 7 | 10 | 4 | 0 | 5 | 1 |
Please provide comments you wish to communicate regarding speakers and/or presentations for day Two:
| The panel discussion felt like statements and no discussion I would have liked more time for the performance matrix and behavior based communication |
| Day #2 topics – lots of good content and great speakers. Food labeling – Really wished this could have been an in-person presentation. The content was good, but food labeling is such a complex issue. Would have appreciated some additional examples (pictatorial or verbal) when describing required labeling content. Overall, a very good presentation. Hydroponics – Bart is a great presenter. Appreciated the examples of different types of hydroponics set-ups. A very informative presentation. Behavior based communication skills – Appreciated that Art was an engaging and dynamic presenter. Soft skills are something every regulatory official needs when dealing with the public, or colleagues for that matter. Observe, Repeat, Adjust is the acronym I remember from this presentation. Recalls/Hy-Vee: Interesting to hear the recall process perspective from an industry partner. Hy-Vee has a significant presence in the MCAFDO affiliate region. Managing Chemical Risks: Great information. Appreciated hearing the challenges that industry partners face when dealing with suppliers and sourcing materials. State Updates: Wished additional time could have been alloted for this subject. I believe many of the MCAFDO affiliate states and/or local health jurisdictions have interesting information to share. |
| Exceeded my expectations. All info presented was very relevant, and I appreciated the inclusion of industry and was interested in their perspectives. Love hearing about growing techniques and peoples’ behavior and communication styles. |
| The venue was great! And the food, snacks, and drinks were well planned and executed. Great food. I would build in maybe a stand-up break between the speakers. Maybe not a fifteen minute break but maybe an activity (voluntary participation) to keep us alert. |
| Goodness gracious the labeling presentation was dense. I don’t know what the speakers could have done to make it engaging given the subject matter, but it was a tough hour. All of the non-regulatory speakers were engaging and had interesting presentations. |
| When the speaker is virtual, make the presentation full screen. |
| The Communication skills was surprisingly good and useful to me. |
| All were great! |
conference Others
Do you use pre-approved NEHA continuing education credits?
Are you are likely to attend the MCAFDO conference if pre-approved NEHA continuing education credits are offered/available?
Did you receive a “save the date” announcement regarding the conference/Heartland Food Safety Roundtable?
How did you hear about the conference/Heartland Food Safety Roundtable?
Was information on the conference, website, clear, concise, and or helpful?
Was registration for the conference completed by you, or another individual on your behalf?
Did you receive a copy of the electronically generated billing invoice once registration was completed?
Did you receive a copy of the Billing invoice showing settlement of payment?
Did you experience difficulties with the registration process?
Provide feed related to difficulties you experience with the registration process:
| None |
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| NONE Add choice N/A other registered for |
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| For the most part all of the presentations were excellent. |
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| I wish the “my agency is paying” option would have been easier to find. But otherwise it was very easy to register. |
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| The only thing I missed was information about parking at the conference–but it was self evident once we got there. |
Did you experience difficulties with the process of payment?
Please describe any difficulties you experience with the payment process:
| None |
| None |
| None. |
| NONE Make choice of Other Paid for |
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| Unclear on where to send payment |
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Please describe suggestions. You might have for improvement of the payment process:
| NA |
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| NONE |
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| None |
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What part conference was most valuable to you?
| I enjoyed the opportunity to meet those in various disciplines of food safety. |
| Freeze drying talk |
| Every presentation of the conference was very valuable to me, but if I had to select the top five, they would be: Freeze Drying, Fermentation, Hydroponics, Recalls and Labeling |
| Presentations on Freeze drying, fermentation, food labeling, and communication behavior skills. |
| Getting great things out of mixed microbes: Kombucha and others. |
| All useful and timely topics. It is a great wat to network with other agencies and make the connections for information sharing. |
| Networking, presentations were very good this year and covered a variety of topics. |
| Technical knowledge (special processes, labeling, growing techniques etc) and industry perspectives on recalls, traceability, challenges with workforce shortages and navigating the increasing complexity of regulatory requirements. Behavior and communication. Relationship between Retail, Manufacturing and Produce Safety Rule. Also, the lunch at the Scott Conference Center was awesome! Yum! |
| round table and panel discussion |
| freeze drying was valuable |
| FDA’s food labeling Managing chemical risks Freeze Drying |
| Networking |
| This was a great conference! From the round table discussion to the last presentation. |
| Heartland round table |
| Extended break times to meet with people I don’t see often |
| AFDO Performance Matrix |
| State updates – sharing existing and emerging issues |
| It was all applicable |
| Loved the part about freeze drying and the Hy-Vee people. So interesting! |
What part of the Conference was least valuable to you?
| Over all I enjoyed the conference. maybe the passing of the torch so to speak I think I would have liked to heard a bit more from past president and the new president. |
| Really thought all of the conference content and subjects were valuable. |
| FSMA Traceability Rule |
| Business meeting. |
| The business meeting 😛 |
| Business meetings and communication discussion |
| Since I just became a member, I wasnt sure how the award ceremony would work. |
| hyrdroponics course. i just didnt feel like he really imparted any information to us. |
| None |
| 🙂 |
| A lot of manufactured food presentations. |
| FSMA traceability rule |
What topic or speakers would you suggest for the next conference?
| High Pressure Processing (HPP) I would be interested in hearing a lawyer’s perspective or final rulings from the courts on legal outcomes related to foodborne outbreaks where injury or death resulted from contaminated food. |
| HACCP and juicing HACCP and meat processing |
| How the FDA manages the food vendors at large events like the Superbowl. |
| Hemp in food and regulations, cottage food, home/residential food regulations and investigations. |
| Managing traceability and recalls using AI. |
| aquaculture/hydroponic industry side, more unique manufacturing/industry sides |
| Continue produce safety group, though would like to attend round table also |
| Continue with the non-regulatory and special process speakers. Those are interesting to learn about. |
| Plant based foods |
| Not sure at this time |
What we feel this conference could be improved?
| There was hair in the food … several items |
| Have each State bring something for the Silent Auction. |
| This year there was not really a social event like previous years. Might be a good idea to try to include again on the future agenda to facilitate networking opportunities or have longer breaks that encourages networking. |
| I think it is a great conference every year! |
| Invite each agency in attendance to “ask” the group for a resource they really need. For example… Nebraska needs a risk-based inspection SOP, and we don’t have time to start from scratch. I did find a couple of states who seemed willing to send me theirs, but it took some legwork, and it was awkward. I may have gotten better information more quickly if I had been invited to announce it. |
| more active presentations, more hands on or participative |
| I would love to see the PowerPoint slides be available whenever possible. So much information to take in and it would be nice to be able to go back and reference what we learned. |
| Add polling to presentations |
| Presentations could be shorter and breaks could be longer. Make the hour-long presentations 45 minutes and make the 15 minute breaks 20-30. |
| Too much sitting. |
| Not sure at this time |
| It was great–the meeting rooms, the food, the speakers. All great! |
Which Factors most influence your decision to attend the conference?
Which factors most influenced your decision to attend the MCAFDO Annual Educational Conference?
| Very Good | Good | Fair | Poor | Did Not Use | Not Applicable | |
| Lodging at the Residence Inn | 5 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 9 | 9 |
| Lodging at the Courtyard Inn | 2 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 9 | 11 |
| Lunch provided at the Scott Conference Center | 20 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| Food, Snacks, & Beverages for Breaks | 17 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
Which factors most influenced your decision to attend the MCAFDO Annual Educational Conference?
| Strongly Influenced | Somewhat Influenced | No Influence | |
| Hotel Lodging Rate | 4 | 5 | 18 |
| Conference Registration Cost | 4 | 7 | 16 |
| Conference Location | 17 | 4 | 6 |
| Conference Agenda/Topics | 18 | 6 | 3 |
| Conference Speakers/Presenters | 16 | 5 | 6 |
| Professional Development Opportunities | 17 | 9 | 1 |
| Networking with Peers | 20 | 6 | 1 |
| Agency Travel Restrictions and/or Mandates | 9 | 3 | 15 |
| Travel Cost Reimbursement Opportunity | 5 | 3 | 19 |
What other recommendations would you like to suggest for future MCAFDO conferences?
| Getting the word out…I had not heard of this conference prior to attending it |
| The food was awesome! Very much appreciated. The toilets were short (LOL) |
| Keep providing lunch! And drinks, snacks. Love not having to choose where to go or travel during the lunch hour. Want to eat on-site with peers. |
| small breakfast snacks to go with the coffee, donuts, bagels, even fruit in the mornings |
| Room was a little wider than ideal but the facility was very nice. Good location also. Great work by the Board and Planning Committee! Best Secretary/Treasurer ever! |