Steven Mandernach is the executive director of the Association of Food and Drug Officials (AFDO), which unites high-level regulatory officials, industry representatives, trade associations, academia, and consumer organizations. Prior to becoming executive director in 2018, Steve was the bureau chief for food and consumer safety at the Iowa Department of Inspections. He is a past president of AFDO and current co-chair of the Association’s Laws and Regulations committee. He has a J.D. from Drake University Law School. Ernest Julian, Ph.D. is chief of the Center for Food Protection for the Rhode Island Department of Health, a position he has held for the last 30 years. Prior to this, he was with the Connecticut Department of Health for 14 years. He is president of the Association of Food and Drug Officials (AFDO) and he has served as AFDO’s representative to the Council to Improve Foodborne Outbreak Response (CIFOR), and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)’s FSMA Surveillance Workgroup. Ernie is also an adjunct assistant professor of Health Services, Policy, and Practice at Brown University. In this episode of Food Safety Matters, we speak to Steve and Ernie [37:07] about: Recruiting and retaining employees in food regulation and industry sectors Proper allocation of resources for food facility inspections The importance of following up after a less than stellar inspection Teachable moments and their effect on behavioral change with consumers How upper management can become powerful advocates for inspectors in the field How AFDO approaches messaging with consumer audiences Leafy greens contamination Ongoing and potential future food safety challenges We also speak to the International Food Information Council (IFIC)'s Joe Clayton (CEO) and Silvia Dumitrescu [16:25] about: IFIC's recent leadership restructuring How the organization is aligning itself with ever-changing consumer demands and needs Keeping science at the forefront of consumer messaging, and how social media has changed the way data is disseminated New research and data on food fraud ​Steve Mandernach's Articles in Food Safety Magazine Keeping Food Safe in the C-Store Environment  Unsung Heroes: State and Local Public Health Officials Innovating Outbreak Investigations Responding to Harvey and Irma: Rapid Response Teams Take Action Building an Integrated Food Safety System One Brick at a Time  Integrating the Nation's Food Safety System: What You Need to Know  Ernie Julian's Articles in Food Safety Magazine Where the Rubber Meets the Road: RRTs in Action Creating the Rapid Response Road Map: Collaboration Points the Way Forward Resources: AFDO Retail Webinars (Hepatitis A and Norovirus)  FoodInsight.org   IFIC Presentation: Trust in a Changing World: Consumer Perception in the Age of Social Media  Q&A: "Scheduling Nightmares" I have only recently begun listening to your show, and love the content. It is interesting and engaging while still being challenging, complex, and informative. There may be some past content which I have not observed that answers my question, but I have a question for your team. With some recent spikes in demand, our plant has opted to fluctuate/extend schedules and has a history of regular (excessive) overtime requirements. We are fortunate to have a solid staff with dramatically improved retention and our plant safety mechanisms have been successfully over-hauled. Now however, we have begun to ask operators to work additional days and also begin their shifts much earlier from (6 am to 3 am). This is having a directly negative impact on our sanitors who typically have to react to the changing production schedules, reduces supervisory oversight, and may lead to burnout. The QA staff is also not available to be on-site during the extended manufacturing hours. As a team leader in Quality Assurance, I am attempting to demonstrate that there is sufficient added risk in these methods to rule them out except under de