Food industry needs to be pre-emptive to boost image: IFST chief

Jon Poole, the recently appointed new chief executive of the Institute of Food Science & Technology (IFST), told FoodNavigator that the industry needs to be pro-active and not reactive.

“There’s a lot we can do by being pre-emptive,” ​said Poole. “The food industry is facing huge issues: Food is a sensitive area, the public react quickly, and the industry ends up on the back foot and defensive.​

“The industry needs to be pre-emptive in its communication,” ​he said. “We need to dispel the myths around many of the issues in food, like GM and nanotechnology, and present a balanced scientific view.”​

Independence you can depend on​

Poole says that independence of the IFST – a registered charity in the UK – can help. “The public needs to make better and informed decisions, and understand the impact of its choices. The independence of the IFST can help inform the public,”​ he said.

“We can provide an independent voice,”​ said Poole, before noting “to date we haven’t done enough with that voice.” ​

By September Poole plans to have “thorough business plan” ​for the next three to five years. The priorities include increasing the voice of the institute, he said, and this involves identifying who it is talking to, on what subjects, and the positions they will take.

Poole also notes that IFST is an accrediting organisation, providing a level of acknowledgement for individuals. “This will help build public trust, because it shows people are reaching high professional standards,”​ he said.

“The caveat to all of this is that it cannot be done alone,”​ he said. “We need collaboration, and we need to set an agenda for areas of common interest.”​

Opportunities​

One area when the institute’s position as an independent accrediting organisation could offer opportunities for industry is from a regulatory point of view, said Poole. “There is an opportunity to develop a voluntary regulation to register food safety professionals, for example,”​ he said. “This would allow the professionals to say they meet certain requirements and provide a level of self-regulation.”​

Looking far afield​

The institute currently counts about 2,000 members, with 80 per cent based in the UK. This is made up of academia, professionals, and some retired people.

“We are not UK focussed but we are based in the UK,”​ said Poole. The next 18 months to two years will be spent consolidating the position in the UK, he said, and then the institute will look beyond the UK. Any moves “should build on the strengths of our name”,​ he said.

The institute’s main income is from publications, and specifically its peer-reviewed journal, International Journal of Food Science & Technology​ (published by Wiley-Blackwell). No funding is obtained from government or industry, said Poole, and membership provides only a small amount of income.

http://www3.interscience.wiley.com/journal/117988998/home

Talent scouts​

One of the quickest and easiest ways of promoting the sector is to build relationships with young people and emphasise the potential of careers in the sector, said Poole.

“Food is the largest manufacturing sector in the UK, and this is often missed by the government. We need government to understand the importance of the food sector,”​ he said.

The industry is struggling to attract people, and food science needs to be pushed. “Food science and technology is not about cooking,”​ he said, “and we need to emphasise that it is a really interesting profession with clear career paths”​.

There is also the potential to use food science in the classroom. “Science is becoming more and more difficult to do in classrooms because of health and safety, so we can use food to illustrate science in everyday life.”​