Food Safety Leadership Award

The Show Me Food Safety Leadership Award is aimed at individuals and organizations for outstanding contributions to the field of food safety. The application can be submitted by the individual or organization themselves or another person. This award consists of a plaque and industry recognition. 

Award Criteria

To be eligible for the Show Me Food Safety Leadership Award the individual or organization must meet the following criteria:

  • Be an individual or organization from the food safety industry. Industry organizations include, but are not limited to, academia, government, research, training and education, policy, or trade association.
  • Have outstanding contributions to the field of food safety.
  • Submit application as instructed by the deadline below. This includes:
    • Specific achievements or accomplishments in food safety
    • Work Experience
    • Professional Development
    • Involvement in the Community
    • Honors and Awards
    • Letter of Recommendation (No more than two)

Application Process

Applications are now being accepted for next year and will be accepted until March 31, 2022. All applications will be reviewed by the board of directors with a winner being announced May 1, 2022. 

Application Information:

  • Previous recipients of this award are not eligible to apply.
  • Applications must be submitted electronically to info@showmefs.org
  • Once you have submitted your completed application, you will receive an immediate acknowledgement via email.
  • Applicants will be notified of the final decision no later than May 1, 2022.
  • All applications must be submitted in English to facilitate review.

 

Click here to review and complete your application.

Leadership Award Recipient 2021 Bio – Darshita Patel


The recipient of the 2021 Food Safety Individual Leadership award is Darshita Patel. As our first award winner, we are very excited to honor Darshita’s accomplishments in the food safety industry and highlight her commitment to safe product manufacturing.


Darshita has been a leader in the industry guiding multiple large-scale companies to one of the highest levels of Food Safety Certification and has helped achieve superior ratings with her efforts. Darshita currently works as the Senior Food Safety & Quality Manager for a major manufacturer and is a leading force in making products within the US and Canadian markets safer for all consumers.


In Darshita’s current role and previous experiences she’s had the opportunity to provide mentorship to her peers and colleagues to ensure that safe practices are being followed and products are protected from known and potential hazards. Darshita recognizes that the credibility and strength of any food safety/quality system depends on commitment, remaining updated with regulations and guidelines, continued education, and timely decision-making abilities. Darshita uses these concepts to develop policies, procedures, hazard preventative controls, process controls, etc. and follows very strict regulations to ensure that safe products are making it to the market. As consumers, we can all be thankful for people like Darshita working hard to keep us safe.


Currently pursuing advanced training courses to enhance her expertise, Darshita is already certified in HACCP Systems and Training, Food Safety and Quality Systems Management, PCQI, FSMA, Advanced SQF Practitioner, and more. Aside from her goals for continued education, Darshita has also volunteered to lead several international discussions about the Importance of Food Safety.


Darshita is a mentor for her peers and has many goals to help improve the industry and responsibility for all food producers. She is committed to lead continuous improvement across the industry through systematic controls and education of those in food manufacturing operations, and she is exactly who we were looking for when we launched our Leadership Award Program. We love to see these passionate leaders taking action to keep our food safe and commend Darshita on her efforts thus far. Congratulations Darshita, keep up the great work! 

Leadership Award Recipient 2021 Bio – Jackie Bowen, Clean Label Project

 

Show Me Food Safety is excited for our first Leadership Organization Award winner, Clean Label Project for exceptional commitment to food safety and public education.

 

Jaclyn Bowen MPH, MS is a food and consumer products quality and safety systems engineer and executive director of Clean Label Project, a national non-profit and standards development organization with the mission to bring truth and transparency to food and consumer product labeling. Before coming to Clean Label Project, Jaclyn held numerous technical, standards development, food safety, quality, and executive roles within the World Health Organization Collaborating Centre, NSF International. Her expertise is in organic, gluten-free, non-gmo labeling, food safety, and label claim substantiation and compliance.  Bowen conducted one of the most comprehensive studies of heavy metals in the top-selling baby foods and infant formulas in America- testing 561 products for pesticides, heavy metals, plasticizers, and more.  Bowen and Clean Label Project have appeared on NBC, ABC, CNN, ‘The Doctors’, ‘Dr. Oz’, ‘Dr. Drew’ and 450+ print and online

media outlets including USA Today and Huff Post. The Clean Label Project takes consumer care in mind and aims to improve the entire food chain by
scientifically providing the data on which products are safe to consume and
which products may lead negative health impacts.

On behalf of consumers, Clean Label Project has conducted food and consumer product investigations into America’s best-selling protein powders, baby foods, infant formulas, CBD and more. Clean Label Project’s work includes peer-reviewed academic publications and a presentation to the United Nations Commission on Narcotics. Clean Label Project recently announced the launch of a new podcast- The Coming Clean Project Podcast- the all thing’s environmental toxins podcast providing consumers solutions for cleaner living. Find more information about Clean Label Project’s efforts on their website: https://cleanlabelproject.org/

We could not think of a better organization to be the recipient of our first Leadership Award. Clean Label Project has shown their commitment to the health and education of consumers and we are excited to honor their dedication.