Presenters

Fiona Fleming, Chief Executive Officer, Australian Institute of Food Science and Technology (AIFST)
Fiona is a Director of FJ Fleming Food Consulting Pty Ltd and CEO of the Australian Institute of Food Science and Technology (AIFST). She is an experienced Corporate and Regulatory Affairs professional who has been involved in leading and facilitating change and developing management strategies across a portfolio of food policy and regulation matters in global FMCG and NGO environments. Fiona is a Fellow of the Australian Institute of Food Science and Technology. Fiona is currently serving as a Non-Executive Director and Deputy Chair of Healthy Kids. Fiona is a member of Allergy and Anaphylaxis Australia, an Associate Member of the Allergen Bureau, and a member of the Australian Institute of Company Directors. Fiona holds a Bachelor of Applied Science (Food Technology) from the University of Queensland and a Masters of Nutrition Management from the University of Wollongong.

Clare Nass, Senior Group Counsel, Asia Pacific, George Weston Foods Limited
Clare is a Senior Legal Counsel with one of Australia’s biggest food and beverage companies, George Weston Foods which is a subsidiary of the UK listed company, Associated British Foods. The group includes well known brands such as Tip Top, Twinings, DON, Pataks, Ryvita, Yumi’s, among many others. Clare has been working in FMCG for the last 10 years and prior to that honed her legal skills working in house at a large advertising company. Her current role covers both commercial advice in Australia and New Zealand as well as supporting the groups business across the Asia Pacific region on matters relating to intellectual property and information technology.

Dr Mirjana Prica, Chair & Managing Director, FIAL Food Innovation Australia
Dr  Mirjana Prica is an enthusiastic visionary who focuses on entrepreneurship and innovation to deliver commercial value. Mirjana leverages her research and commercial experience in food, agribusiness, advanced materials to drive innovation and business growth for Australian businesses.

Jo Davey, Director, Pirrama Consulting
Jo Davey is a company director and consultant experienced in general management, innovation, food safety, regulatory affairs and product development in the dairy and food manufacturing sectors. She is a Director of Pirrama Consulting Pty Ltd, which provides management and technical consulting services to the food and beverage industries. In addition to her FSANZ role, Jo serves as a Director of the Subtropical Dairy Programme (a Regional Development Programme of Dairy Australia) and as a Director of PPB Pty Ltd, a start-up diagnostics company. Previous directorships include Dairy Food Safety Victoria, Dairy Innovation Australia Ltd and its predecessor organisations, and Australian Dairy Proteins. She was a member of the industry Advisory Committee for CSIRO's Food Futures Flagship for 10 years. She has also served as the national and state President of the Dairy industry Association of Australia and President of the Australian Institute of Food science and Technology. Jo has held senior commercial and technical roles in the Dairy Farmers Group and was the Managing Director of a start-up food company, Diabetes Smart.

Kim Tonnet, Principal, Kim Tonnet Consulting
Kim is a Regulatory Scientist with over 30 years of experience in the food and grocery industry; working across several product categories in both business-to-consumer and business-to-business models (including quick service restaurants). She has held roles in Quality Assurance, New Product Development, Product Stewardship, Regulatory Science and Consumer Marketing in large multinationals such as Unilever, Mars, Coca-Cola South Pacific and Nestlé and, small/medium start-up enterprises such as the Lupin Protein Bread Company and All G Foods. Kim is a keen advocate for best practice regulation, representing industry and food science professionals. She regularly engages with government and other stakeholders and sits on several committees including those hosted by Food Standards Australia and New Zealand (FSANZ), the Australian Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry (DAFF) and the New Zealand Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI). She has also sat on working groups at the International Standards Organisation (ISO) and Standards Australia, to develop global standards for vegan, vegetarian and plant-based foods. Kim’s special interests include allergen management, the food-medicine interface and future foods, particularly complementary proteins. She is an Advisory Board member of the Australasian Plant Based Association (APBA), a professional member of the Australian Institute of Food Science and Technology (AIFST) and, a foundation member of the Alternative Protein Council of Australia (APC). Currently she is also engaging with Cellular Agriculture Australia (CAA) and FSANZ to develop a fit-for-purpose regulatory framework for precision-fermented proteins and cultivated meat.

Keith Chessell, AIP Education Team, Australian Institute of Packaging
Keith Chessell FAIP has over 46 years of experience within the Food, Beverage & Confectionery industry (Cottee’s, Schweppes, Pepsi, Cadbury, Kraft/Mondelez) with the innovation and development of new products and the relaunch of existing products and packaging.  In recent years his focus has been on sustainable packaging design and assisting the AIP & WPO with Save Food initiatives and training support for Educational institutions.  Judging packaging design awards has been a great interest over the past 12 years and he has combined this with his ‘Sustainable Packaging Design consultancy.  Keith is on the DCCEEW National Packaging Design Standards working group, an AIP representative on the APCO Materials Stewardship Committees, Standards Australia, and was on the APCO Board. Keith is a Fellow and Life Member of the AIP, a Lifetime Achievement Award winner for the WPO, and is an invaluable member of the AIP Education Team.