Ep. 131: Michael Cramer: Teachings for Next-Gen FSQA and Sanitation Professionals

<p><strong>Michael Cramer</strong> started his food career with Swift and Company at a turkey processing facility in eastern Pennsylvania while attending West Chester University. He graduated in 1977 with a B.S. degree in Health Education. During his career with Swift and Company, he was Quality Assurance (QA) Manager at plants in Pennsylvania and North Carolina, a Production Specialist, and a Documentation Manager at the corporate headquarters.</p> <p>In 1993, Michael started with Specialty Brands Inc. in Ontario, Canada, where he was Director of Food Safety and Quality. He spent 27 years with the company, and remained as Senior Director of Food Safety and Quality Assurance (FSQA) through the purchase by Ajinomoto Foods North America Inc. He developed and implemented programs to ensure production of safe, quality, ethnic frozen foods. Mike retired from Ajinomoto Foods in July 2021.</p> <p>Mike has been a member of the International Association for Food Protection (IAFP), and was part of the FSQA team at Ajinomoto Foods that won the prestigious Black Pearl Award in 2020. In addition to authoring <em>Food Plant Sanitation</em>, he is also on the Editorial Advisory Board of <em>Food Safety Magazine</em> and has written articles for <em>Food Safety Magazine</em> dealing with <em>Listeria</em> control, biosecurity, sanitation and sanitary design, and allergens. He was also a contributing member of the American Frozen Foods Institute (AFFI) <em>Listeria</em> Working Group. In addition, he has participated in multiple <em>Food Safety Matters</em> podcasts, conducted food sanitation webinars, and has been a presenter at numerous food safety and quality conferences. He remains active in retirement, giving back to the industry.</p> <p><strong>In this episode of <em>Food Safety Matters</em>, we speak with Mike</strong> [18:25] <strong>about:</strong></p> <ul> <li>What led him to write and publish <em>Food Plant Sanitation</em> and its two subsequent versions, and how the third edition touches on real-life experiences with