Seasoned Food Safety Expert Willette Crawford Joins SCS Global Services to Support Expanded Training Menu

SCS Global Services, a food safety and sustainability leader, is pleased to announce that Willette M. Crawford Ph.D., M.P.H., has joined its food safety team as Senior Technical Trainer.  As SCS expands its mix of professional course offerings, Dr. Crawford will design, develop and deliver regulatory and food safety standard trainings, and create customized curriculum to support SCS customers’ complex training needs.    

Dr. Crawford’s experience as a food safety professional spans both regulatory and industry issues in the primary production and processing arenas. She served as technical advisor and subject matter expert in developing policy for the US Food and Drug Administration’s Food Safety Modernization Act Produce Safety Rule, and has held leadership positions in companies such as Chiquita Brands and Green Giant Fresh.

“Willette is a passionate leader in the food and agriculture space, and has the in-depth knowledge to add clarity to complex issues, whether developing interactive courses or providing training in the classroom,” said Margaret Kolk, Managing Director of SCS’ Food and Agriculture division.  “We are very excited to have her on board to support the growth of our food safety training service offerings, and to reinforce our clients’ food safety programs.”

Training attendees often comment on how helpful it is to have the inside scoop when trying to interpret the FSMA rules.  Dr. Crawford explained, “My goal is to support each of our clients’ unique training needs, especially as they navigate through the many new FSMA regulations.” 

Dr. Crawford supports SCS approach in offering a wide menu of targeted courses. One new public course, HACCP for Packing, Storage and Distribution (March 21-22 in Fresno; May 25-6 in Salinas), covers risk-based prevention for requirements specific to FSMA’s Preventive Controls and Sanitary Transport Rules, as well as provisions for GFSI standard audits such as PrimusGFS and SQF. “Many of our clients take HACCP training to comply with standard requirements, yet a basic HACCP class is limited. This new course targets the specific needs of our fresh produce industry clients,” said SCS Training Manager Diane Dulmage (510-452-8003; [email protected]).

SCS also provides “made to order” on-site training workshops that mix and match training elements to meet the clients’ exact needs.  Its various training “recipes” integrate aspects of the FSMA Rules, HACCP, SQF, BRC, GLOBALG.A.P. and PrimusGFS. For example, two such workshop “recipes” include:

• FDA-recognized Preventive Controls for Human Food, with a dash of SQF Version 8 update, to foster understanding of FSMA requirements for a specific facility, and alignment with SQF Version 8; or, alternatively:
• Customized SQF with Version 8 updates, plus a dash of FSMA PC alignment, for a facility with a well-established food safety plan, targeting managers and supervisors who need a better understanding of their responsibilities in relation to the SQF Code, including the updates and FSMA requirements.

About SCS Global Services (www.scsglobalservices.com) – SCS has been a global leader in third-party food quality, environmental and sustainability certification, auditing, testing, and standards development for more than three decades. Its programs span a cross-section of industries, recognizing achievements in food and agriculture, forestry, manufacturing, green building, consumer goods, and more. SCS is a chartered benefit corporation, reflecting its commitment to socially and environmentally responsible business practices, and a 2016 recipient of the Acterra Business Environmental Award for Sustainability.