Johnna Hepner

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Johnna Hepner

Vice President, Business Development & Partnerships, Starfish

Johnna Hepner brings over 30 years of experience in the food safety and supply chain sectors. Prior to joining Starfish, she held leadership roles at the Produce Marketing Association, Markon Cooperative Inc., and most recently at iFDS, where she continued to build strong industry relationships and champion initiatives focused on food safety and the adoption of innovative technologies in the produce industry.

A graduate of the California Agricultural Leadership Program, Johnna also holds a B.S. in Food Science, Minor in Chemistry from California State University Fresno. Her career reflects a deep commitment to advancing food safety standards and driving digital transformation within the agricultural sector.

Gustavo A. Reyes joined Western Growers in December 2023. He is the Senior Manager of Food Safety and Predictive Analytics, where he drives the integration of predictive analytics within GreenLink® to enhance produce safety risk management, improve data sharing, and enable more informed, data-driven decision-making. He is also responsible for coordinating the CA LGMA amendment process and developing technical resources to support members’ needs.

Before joining Western Growers, Gustavo spent 2.5 years in the food industry, where he led the implementation and management of food safety and quality systems. He holds a Ph.D. in Food Science and an M.S. in Applied Statistics from the University of Illinois, where his research focused on developing process models and risk assessments to advance food safety in produce systems. Gustavo earned his bachelor’s degree in food science from the University of Nebraska in 2017.

Martin Wiedmann, Dr. Med. Vet, Ph.D., Gellert Family Professor in Food Safety, Cornell University

Martin Wiedmann, Dr. med. vet, Ph.D. is the Gellert Family Professor of Food Safety at Cornell University. Martin received a veterinary degree and a doctorate in Veterinary Medicine from the Ludwig-Maximilians University in Munich, and a Ph.D. in Food Science from Cornell. His research interests focus on farm-to-table microbial food quality and food safety and the application of molecular tools and quantitative and modelling approaches to study the transmission of foodborne pathogens and spoilage organisms. Martin is particularly well known for his work on control of Listeria monocytogenes transmission. His team has published > 450 peer reviewed publications, which have been cited >35,000 times. He and his team are regularly asked to help industry across the world with a range of microbial food safety and quality challenges. He is a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), the Institute of Food Technologists (IFT), the American Academy of Microbiology (AAM), and the International Academy of Food Science and Technology.

Amy Philpott is the founder of Philpott PR Solutions LLC, a Washington, D.C.-based public relations firm specializing in food and agriculture. With over 20 years of experience, Amy helps food and agricultural companies and industry organizations navigate sensitive issues, including biotechnology, food safety, pesticide residues, and worker well-being. She uses effective risk communication across traditional and digital platforms to help U.S. and international food companies of all sizes build stakeholder trust, protect public health, and preserve their brand integrity. Amy also trains executive leadership and crisis response teams to prepare for, carry out, and recover from crises. 

Amy is fully accredited in public relations (APR) and holds bachelor's and master's degrees in business administration and international relations from California State University, Fresno, respectively. She also has a Master of Arts in Public Communication from American University in Washington, DC. She is co-chair of the Alliance for Recall Ready Communities’ Recall Simulation workgroup, which develops best practices for recall simulation training. From 2021 through 2023, she served on the Executive Advisory Board of the Food Safety Preventive Controls Alliance and co-chaired the Accreditation Committee for the National Area Chapter of the Public Relations Society of America. 

Samir Assar, Ph.D., Director, Division of Fresh Produce Safety, Office of Produce Safety, Human Foods Program, Food and Drug Administration

Dr. Samir Assar is the Director of the Division of Fresh Produce Safety in the Food and Drug Administration’s Human Foods Program. Since 2008, he has led the development of the FDA’s policy, regulation, and guidance on produce safety, including those mandated by the 2011 Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA). Dr. Assar provides strategic leadership in developing plans for prioritizing research, training, and compliance activities that target a safe and abundant produce supply. He is also committed to enhancing partnerships with produce safety stakeholders and has collaboratively forged international initiatives and agreements aimed at protecting public health. Dr. Assar serves in a leadership role on several major public–private partnerships, including the Center for Produce Safety, the Produce Safety Alliance, and those established through the Western Center for Food Safety. Dr. Assar received his M.S. and Ph.D. in Food Science from the University of Florida.

With over two decades of experience in food safety and quality, I bring a deep commitment to helping organizations enhance their operational excellence and meet rigorous industry standards. Beth founded Precision Food Solutions in order to specializing in sanitation, food safety, and quality solutions. She is driven by a mission to address complex challenges with tailored, effective strategies. My goal is to empower clients to improve efficiency and ensure compliance while fostering a culture of safety and innovation. 

Before Precision Food Solutions, Beth served as the Global Vice President of Food Safety and Quality at McCain Foods, where she led global food safety programs and drove operational excellence both internally and externally. Her expertise includes sanitation, quality management, and inventory control, which enabled our team to achieve measurable improvements in safety and efficiency. Building on this foundation, she now collaborates with clients to deliver impactful, customized solutions in the sanitation and food safety domain.

Rob Atwill is a veterinary epidemiologist with the School of Veterinary Medicine, UC Davis, and principal investigator for the Western Center for Food Safety, which works in collaboration with FDA scientists throughout California and the United States on food safety and water quality projects. His focus is on developing management strategies for minimizing microbial contamination of food and water, minimizing environmental dissemination of microbial pathogens, and clarifying the epidemiology of zoonotic pathogens in livestock and wildlife populations. 

Lianna Kelly holds a bachelor’s degree in Environmental Toxicology from the University of California, Davis and has worked in food and agriculture for over 10 years. In 2020 she joined the FDA and is part of the Human Foods Program, working in the Office of Microbiological Food Safety. She began her career working in small wineries, where she first learned the importance of cleaning and sanitation. Since 2014, Lianna has worked exclusively in fresh produce food safety. She was the Director of Food Safety for a produce purchasing cooperative where she interacted with over 200 very small to very large produce operations across North America helping to understand and improve food safety practices. Lianna has a passion for fresh and safe produce. 

Natalie Krout, Director for the Division of Inspection Services, California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA)    

Natalie attended the University of California, Davis, where she focused her studies in animal science and nutritional biology. Her research work surveyed mycotoxin contamination to the California feed supply. Beyond her leadership in Inspection Services Natalie is engaged both locally and nationally in food safety, nutrition, and agricultural systems related to One Health. Natalie's leadership skills include completing the CDFA Executive Program in Leadership, becoming a Certified Instructor in Franklin Covey content, and serving hundreds of hours leading or facilitating engagement with industry and stakeholder groups. Prior to working for CDFA, Natalie spent time working with dairy farms in the midwestern states and in California. She grew up in Sonoma County on a ranch in Petaluma and is involved with the Future Farmers of America (FFA) and volunteers in running her children's 4-H club.

Justin Kerr, Factor IV Solutions LLC

Justin Kerr has a B.S. in Dairy Product Technology from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo and has worked in sanitation and support of food processing for the last 25+ years.

Justin founded Factor IV Solutions, LLC in 2013. The team at Factor IV focuses on building stability in food safety and sanitation programs through procedure verification, training, and monitoring of operations throughout North America.

 Dr. Jiyoon Yi is an Assistant Professor of Biosystems Engineering at Michigan State University and holds a Ph.D. in Food Science from UC Davis. Her research combines lab experiments, field measurements, and data-driven modeling to understand better and forecast how foodborne pathogens behave under real-world conditions. She leads the Food AI and Engineering Lab, translating complex biosystems data into actionable insights. 

Aimee McDonald is a senior food safety and quality systems leader with more than 20 years of experience across fresh produce, food manufacturing, and cooperative supply chains. She currently serves as Director of Food Safety at Markon Cooperative, where she works closely with members and suppliers to strengthen food safety programs regulatory compliance.

Aimee has held leadership roles across food safety, quality assurance, and compliance, with hands‑on experience in FSMA, HACCP, supplier approval programs, sanitation, audits, and corrective action systems. She focuses on practical, workable food safety solutions that fit real‑world operations. Aimee holds a bachelor’s degree in food science from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo and is pursuing a Master of Food Safety at Michigan State University.

Alexis Johnson serves as Director of Food Safety and Quality Assurance for Taylor Farms with ten years of experience in the food manufacturing industry. She earned her Bachelor of Science in Food and Nutritional Sciences from California State University, Fresno. Alexis is passionate about developing strong teams, strengthening food safety culture, and creating strong partnerships between QA, operations, and sanitation to support consistent and sustainable results.

Greg Komar, Technical Director, CA Leafy Greens Marketing Agreement

Greg brings 30 years of experience in the technical aspects of agricultural and horticultural production, with a primary focus on fresh fruit and vegetable systems. Prior to his appointment as Technical Director of the California Leafy Greens Marketing Agreement (CA LGMA) in 2019, he held a wide range of roles across the agricultural value chain.

His professional experience includes farming operations, laboratory analysis, applied plant biology research, and seed breeding. Greg has also led and managed compliance programs for major U.S. produce and fresh-cut salad companies and supported certification programs for leading third-party certification bodies operating in North America, Central America, and South America. The compliance programs under his leadership have included Quality Assurance, Food Safety, Organic, HACCP, Good

Manufacturing Practices (GMP), Preventive Controls, Good Agricultural Practices (GAP), Chain of Custody, Traceability, and Sustainability.

At the core of the CA LGMA is a comprehensive food safety audit and training program based on a defined set of food safety requirements. As Technical Director, Greg is responsible for ensuring that LGMA members are prepared to implement these requirements and works closely with the California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA) and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to ensure the audit program remains effective and credible. He also collaborates with LGMA stakeholders to ensure that food safety requirements are science-based, current, applicable, and auditable, and plays a key role in the development and delivery of industry training programs. 

Greg holds a Bachelor of Science in Plant Biology from the University of California, Davis, and a Master of Science in Food Safety from the University of Arkansas.