Ep. 9. Bill Sperber: "We never had these problems until you came along"

Dr. William Sperber is a renowned food microbiologist who has been appointed five times by the U.S. Secretary of Agriculture to the National Advisory Committee on Microbiological Criteria for Foods and has been recognized for his pioneering work at the Pillsbury Co. in the development of the Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP) food safety program model.

During his career, Dr. Sperber worked for three major food companies—Best Foods, Pillsbury and Cargill—and has become one of the world’s experts in controlling the microbiological safety and quality of foods.

A former chair of the IFT Division of Food Microbiology and the Food Microbiology Research Conference, Dr. Sperber was appointed in 2000 to the FAO/WHO roster of experts for microbiological risk assessments.

In 2001, the International Association for Food Protection presented Dr. Sperber with the Harold Barnum Industry Award, and in 2002, the American Meat Institute Foundation presented him with its inaugural Scientific Achievement Award. In 2004 he received our Food Safety Magazine Distinguished Service Award.

Now retired, Dr. Sperber is a strategic advisor to Cargill’s food safety program and remains actively involved in professional activities on a personal level, including the development of a textbook on food safety and HACCP.

In this episode of Food Safety Matters we speak to Dr. Bill Sperber about:

• Bill’s early life influences and what lead him to a career in food microbiology
• Why Salmonella is his ‘favorite’ bacterium
• The food industry before HACCP
• Developing and implementing HACCP
• Listeria hysteria
• Canned foods regulation, pasteurization, and raw milk
• Who’s responsible for safe foods?
• Insights from visiting 1,000+ plants in 20 years
• Top advances in food safety in the last 50 years
• The advent of 'The Friendly Microbiologist'

 

Articles by Dr. Sperber in Food Safety Magazine:

Good Consumer Practices Are Necessary to Further Improve Global Food Safety  (April/May 2015) By Sean Leighton, M.Sc., M.B.A., and William H. Sperber, Ph.D. http://www.foodsafetymagazine.com/magazine-archive1/aprilmay-2015/good-consumer-practices-are-necessary-to-further-improve-global-food-safety/

Happy 50th Birthday to HACCP: Retrospective and Prospective (December 2009/January 2010) By William H. Sperber. Ph.D., and Richard F. Stierhttp://www.foodsafetymagazine.com/magazine-archive1/december-2009january-2010/happy-50th-birthday-to-haccp-retrospective-and-prospective/

Shifting the Emphasis from Product Testing to Process Testing (April/May 2010)  http://www.foodsafetymagazine.com/magazine-archive1/aprilmay-2010/shifting-the-emphasis-from-product-testing-to-process-testing/

Advancing the Food Safety Agenda (June/July 2004) An interview with William H. Sperber, Ph.D.  http://www.foodsafetymagazine.com/magazine-archive1/junejuly-2004/advancing-the-food-safety-agenda/

Resources Mentioned in This Episode:

USDA Integrates Recall Information into 'FoodKeeper' Application http://www.foodsafetymagazine.com/news/usda-integrates-recall-information-into-foodkeeper-application/

FDA Launches Food Safety Plan Builder to Help with FSMA Requirements http://www.foodsafetymagazine.com/news/fda-launches-food-safety-plan-builder-to-help-with-fsma-requirements/ 

Federal court upholds Seafood Traceability Rule; targets fraud http://www.foodsafetymagazine.com/news/federal-court-upholds-seafood-traceability-rule-targets-fraud/

USDA Offers Food Safety Tips for Areas Affected by Hurricanes http://www.foodsafetymagazine.com/news/usda-offers-food-safety-tips-for-areas-affected-by-hurricane-harvey/