Biography:

Mitzi Baum
CEO
STOP Foodborne Illness

Mitzi Baum began her role as CEO of Stop Foodborne Illness in May 2019. As CEO, Mitzi is responsible for leading and growing the organization to expand its impact of preventing foodborne illness in the United States and around the world. Prior to joining Stop, she spent 23 years at Feeding America leading their food safety advocacy work, developing programs, and assisting people affected by food insecurity. Mitzi lives in Chicago with her husband, 10-year-old daughter, and their dog. When she’s not working, Mitzi enjoys coaching her daughter’s softball team, Crossfit, yoga, reading, spending time with family and friends, cooking, and traveling.

Elise Forward
President & Principal Consultant
Forward Food Solutions

Elise Forward is the President and Principal Consultant of forwarding Food Solutions, which specializes in helping companies with their FSVP programs.  She is one of those rare people that LOVE supply chain work!  Forward Food Solutions also is happy to assist food manufacturers, distributors, and importers in updating and strengthening their food safety and quality systems.  Elise uses her production, distribution, and supply chain experience to help companies in both the international and domestic markets.  She is a member of IAFP, ASQ, IFT, and MWFPA.

Rob Mommsen
Sr. Director, Global Quality Assurance & Food Safety
Sabra Dipping Company

Rob Mommsen joined Sabra in 2010, left in 2013, and came back in late 2016 as the Sr. Director of Global Quality and Food Safety.

He is a food manufacturing executive with international, multi-facility experience in shelf-stable, frozen, refrigerated, and Ready-to-Eat/Ready-to-Heat food and alcoholic beverage products including meat, dairy, vegetable, fruit, and grain-based main courses, sides, snacks, sauces, dips, condiments, syrups, wine, and beer packaged in glass, cans, and rigid and flexible plastic.

Rob has over 40 years of hands-on know-how in quality assurance, food safety, regulatory compliance, thermal processing, process engineering, product development, continuous improvement, and R&D with food manufacturing firms that include Sara Lee, Hillshire Farms, and Baxters Food Group.  He has a proven record of building high-performance teams and leading successful start-ups and turnarounds.  Rob drives operational excellence and margin expansion in the most challenging cultures through organizational development, innovation, and sustainable improvement of Key Performance Indicators.

Maria Fontanazza
Editor-in-Chief
Food Safety Tech

Maria has more than a decade of experience in journalism, marketing, and communications within the publishing, conferences, and medical device industry. She has authored more than 250 articles that have appeared in domestic and international industry publications and has moderated educational sessions and panel discussions at industry events. Maria joins Innovative Publishing from Secant Medical, Inc., where she was the Marketing Communications Manager and Market Research Manager. Maria has a B.A. in Journalism and Mass Communications with a concentration in New Media and Visual Design, and a Minor in Fine Arts, from St. Michael’s College in Colchester, VT.