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Dear Colleagues,
On behalf of the entire Board of Directors and staff of AOAC INTERNATIONAL, welcome to the
131
st
Annual Meeting and Exposition in Atlanta, Georgia. It’s going to be a great week of advancing
standards development activities and finding the best methods in the areas most important to
our stakeholders. And, of course, catching up with old friends and making new connections.
This is an especially exciting time to be part of the important work of the association—a world-class leader in
providing science-based solutions through voluntary consensus standards development and
Official Methods
SM
. It is a
time for new ideas, new engagements, and empowerment at AOAC. The Board of Directors has been actively engaged in
new strategic planning and is moving on an ambitious goal to take AOAC to the next level in international outreach and
engagement. In fact, members of the staff and Board have been working closely with an outstanding consulting firm
throughout the spring, culminating in a mid-June planning retreat where the foundation was laid for the new strategic
directions that AOAC INTERNATIONAL is beginning to pursue.
One of the best examples of the association’s important work can be seen at the AOAC Annual Meeting and Exposition,
where members’ passion for science is unsurpassed. I urge you to attend at least one of the stakeholder panels, working
groups, or expert review panels and see for yourself the proven AOAC process in action. AOAC stakeholders have a voice
in driving priorities, setting standards, and recommending the best methods that are fit-for-purpose and most needed
in their respective communities.
One of AOAC’s greatest strengths is its ability to bring people together from around the globe, representing various
sectors and with unique and diverse perspectives to work together toward a common goal. This remarkable collaborative
process has resulted in a myriad of voluntary consensus, globally recognized and accepted standards and methods that
can help solve global food safety issues.
In addition to standards development and
Official Methods
SM
activities, AOAC is honored to announce this year’s keynote
speaker, Wamwari Waichungo, Vice President for Global Scientific and Regulatory Affairs at The Coca-Cola Company.
She leads the multinational beverage corporation’s efforts to evaluate and substantiate the safety and efficacy of
ingredients, products, and packaging. In addition, her team is responsible for ensuring the regulatory compliance of all
ingredients, products, and packaging. The keynote address will be delivered on Monday, September 25, 2017.
This year’s Harvey W. Wiley Award recipient, Kaushik Banerjee of the Indian Council of Agricultural Research’s National
Research Center for Grapes, is a chemist who helped build India’s modern analytical testing program for pesticide
residues and other contaminants in foods. He is head of the National Referral Laboratory on Agrochemical Residues.
Banerjee is being recognized for his achievements in not only administration and international harmonization, but
WELCOME
FROM THE PRESIDENT
OF AOAC INTERNATIONAL