UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -- Anticipating potential terrorist threats to the nation's food supply, a one-day conference on "Risk Management and the Threat of Bioterrorism in the Food System" will be held May 2 at the Executive Education Center on Penn State's University Park campus.

The seminar, a joint venture of Penn State's College of Agricultural Sciences and Penn State Executive Programs, will prepare senior managers to face changes posed by global events. Barry Zoumas, the Alan R. Warehime Professor of Agribusiness and Food, says the conference features experts on crisis management, public affairs, bioterrorism and legislative policy.

"We hope to shed some light on the risk management aspects of bioterrorism," Zoumas says. "At the end of the seminar, participants will have a game plan to help them look critically at their own companies' issues and put together strategies for minimizing risk."

Executives and senior management engaged in quality-assurance issues, recalls, security and safety in the food and agribusiness industry will benefit from attending this seminar. Zoumas says the conference will address crisis management concerns faced by food producers, food-processing and distribution industries, biotechnology companies and insurance and industrial security firms.

"We'll offer strategies for getting reliable information on bioterrorism threats, help define the leadership role in managing a potential food crisis, explain risk management principles and bring new - see other side perspectives in addressing food-processing safety and quality issues," he says.

Ernest Del Bueno Jr., vice president of Rowan and Blewitt Inc., will be a keynote speaker. With more than 20 years as a crisis and public affairs expert, Del Bueno served as public affairs officer for the U.S. Coast Guard during the Exxon Valdez oil spill clean-up. He is the author of an antiterrorist contingency plan for the Port of New York.

Caren Wilcox, co-keynote speaker for the seminar, is former deputy undersecretary for food safety for the U.S. Department of Agriculture. She developed strategic response mechanisms before and during critical food-safety emergencies and advised the U.S. secretary of agriculture on many food-safety issues and significant national recalls. She also served as advisor to the president and White House senior staff in 1992.

Other speakers will include Samuel Hayes, Pennsylvania Secretary of Agriculture; Kelly Johnston, executive vice president for government affairs and communications for the National Food Processors Association; Bobby Richey, director of Food Safety and Technical Services in the Food and Agricultural Services division of the USDA; and Thomas Welgoss, director of risk management for the Massachusetts Turnpike Authority.

Sessions will include "Bioterrorism: How Real is the Threat?," "New Initiatives of the Food Safety Inspection Service and Pending Guidelines," "Impact of Global Political Economy," "Managing Business Risk in the Food System" and "Experiencing a Major Food Recall." Time is allotted for discussions with speakers, and opportunity will be provided to use their insights in designing a better risk profile and bioterrorism defense plan.

The conference is the first in a series of "Hot Topic" seminars that provide valuable insight into global events, technological advancements and breakthrough research likely to be posing challenges for senior managers and agribusiness executives now or in the future.

To request registration materials and a detailed schedule, call 814-865-8301, or visit the Office of Conferences and Short Courses World Wide Web site at http://conferences.cas.psu.edu/. For more information on seminar content, call Zoumas at 814-863-2847.

A registration fee of $395 includes instructional materials, break refreshments and lunch. A block of rooms has been reserved at Penn State's Nittany Lion Inn at a special rate of $85 per day (single or double). Reservations can be made by calling (800) 233-7505 or 814-863-5050.

###

EDITORS: Contact Barry Zoumas at 814-863-2847.

Contact:

Gary Abdullah gxa2@psu.edu 814-863-2708 814-865-1068 fax