Cornell Offers Three Food Safety Experts for Media

Newswise — To help reporters answer food safety questions regarding the recent outbreak of E. coli, Cornell University offers three experts. To reach these professors, please call the Cornell Press Relations office

The experts are:"¢ Robert Gravani, professor, Department of Food Science. He focuses on food safety extension and outreach where he maintains a very active program and conducts short courses, seminars, and workshops for food processors, food retailers, the food service industry, and government regulatory agencies. He is interested in the microbiological safety and quality of foods and consumer knowledge of these important issues. He was appointed to the food science faculty in 1978 and currently serves as the department extension leader and Director of the National Good Agricultural Practices Program.

"¢ Kathryn Boor, professor, Department of Food Science. She conducts research on microbial quality, as well as the physiology and genetic characteristics of pathogenic bacteria. She joined the Cornell faculty in 1994.

"¢ Martin Wiedmann, associate professor, Cornell Department of Food Science. His research focuses on pre- and post-harvest food safety and on improving our understanding of the transmission of food-borne bacterial pathogens from farm animals and from foods to humans. He says that a better understanding of the transmission pathways of food-borne pathogens is necessary to design better strategies to prevent and control human disease. He joined the faculty in 1999.