WK Kellogg, Keranova, the National Restaurant Association and the International Dairy Association have joined the Alliance to Stop Foodborne Illness, a program called Stop Foodborne Illness (STOP).
The goal of this multi-industry effort is to improve food safety culture throughout the supply chain by bringing together major food companies and consumers affected by food safety violations to effect positive change.
“Safety must be a core value in our food system,” said Alliance Program Director Vanessa Coffman. “We know many companies are already doing the right thing. The Alliance is a unique collaborative where companies work together to advance a food safety culture in their own companies and in their supply chains through the sharing of best practices. People are still getting seriously ill from food, and we're trying new things to help reduce those numbers.”
Launched in 2018 with 10 companies, the Foodborne Illness Prevention Alliance now includes more than 20 industry partners, including the new members mentioned above. Current alliance members include the American Frozen Food Association, Cargill, Chipotle Mexican Grill, Conagra Brands, Consumer Brands Association, Costco Wholesale, Empirical Foods, Hershey's Company, JBS, Maple Leaf Foods, Mars, Nestle, PepsiCo, TreeHouse Foods, Walmart, Wawa and Wegmans.
No other organization focuses on collaboration between food companies and consumers on food safety culture, and no other organization like STOP exists to support those affected by food safety failures. Now in its 30th year, STOP strives to prevent illness and death from foodborne pathogens by advocating for and representing survivors of foodborne illness, improving public understanding of foodborne illness, and supporting public policies and industry practices that strengthen prevention.
“The Alliance offers an innovative, award-winning online Food Safety Culture Toolkit for small businesses. To date, more than 600 companies in 81 countries have accessed this free resource,” Coffman said.
STOP and the Alliance continue to work with farmers, food companies, regulators, academia, consumers and food associations to strengthen food safety culture measures beyond minimum standards and regulations.