Speaker details
Microbiological safety of UK raw milk cheeses seminar
08 March 2011
Campden BRI, Chipping Campden, Gloucestershire, GL55 6LD, UK
Phil Voysey
Campden BRI
Dr Phil Voysey is an experienced, well-respected food microbiologist with 'all round' knowledge and ability in food manufacturing and research environments. Phil studied Microbiology at the University of Surrey, Guildford and achieved his doctorate at the University of Bristol, Department of Biochemistry with his thesis entitled: 'Studies on the growth of the Chemoautotroph Nitrosomonas europaea.´ For 8 years Phil was a Research/Senior Microbiologist at the Flour Milling & Baking Research Association (FMBRA), and for a further 3 years the Group Microbiology Laboratory Manager at Northern Foods, Nottingham. Currently Phil is a section Leader in the Microbiology Department at Campden BRI (Chipping Campden) and his duties involve organising and running microbiology training courses and the Campden Microbiology Proficiency Scheme. Speciality areas of microbiology include: Listeria; Yeasts; Moulds; Microbiological Risk Assessment; Microbiological Criteria; and Cereals & Milling Microbiology. Phil has written numerous papers and contributed towards a variety of articles and publications and been invited to present at many International conferences.
Dr Michael Rowe
Queens University Belfast
Principal Scientific Officer in the Agri-Food and Biosciences Institute in Belfast and Lecturer at Queen´s University of Belfast.
– Lead Scientist at UK National Reference Laboratory for microbiological analyses under EU Milk Hygiene Directive.
–Technical Manager for UKAS accredited laboratory
– Theme Leader on EU project called ParaTBTools concerned with Mycobacterium paratuberculosis and its survival in dairy products.
– Consultant to EU for establishment of food control laboratories in Russia, Kazakstan and Serbia.
– Member of BSI Technical Committee on the microbiological testing of foods.
– Member of IDF Task Force on M. paratuberculosis.
– Over 150 research publications.
– Research areas:
– Psychrotroph spoilage of milk
– Taxonomy of Listeria spp.
– Use of bioluminescence to detect psychrotroph protease activity.
– Cross protection phenomenon as it relates to E. coli O157:H7 and those E. coli which harbour cytotoxic necrotizing factors and cytolethal distending toxins.
– M. paratuberculosis in milk and dairy products.
– Ecology of M. paratuberculosis in reservoirs and water treatment works.
– M. bovis and its survival in cheesemaking.
– Microbial ecology of constructed wetlands.
Dr Paul Neaves
Williams & Neaves, The Food Microbiologists
Paul Neaves joined the Leatherhead Food Research Association in 1973, having graduated from the University of Sheffield with a BSc in Genetics & Microbiology. During 10 years at LFRA, Paul worked mainly with Clostridium botulinum, gaining a PhD from the University of Surrey for studies on the fate of C. botulinum during UHT processing.
In 1984, Paul joined the Milk Marketing Board for England & Wales and became Deputy Manager for the Microbiology Laboratory, managing consultancy services, research projects and contract testing for the dairy industry and other food sectors. In 1994, the laboratory was acquired by LFRA and Paul returned to his former company!
In 1995, Paul teamed up with Tony Williams and formed Williams & Neaves International, offering technical information to the food industry worldwide. Paul maintains strong contacts with the dairy industry worldwide. He spends much of his time auditing food producers, notably cheesemakers, in the UK and other European countries, and is an auditor and mentor for SALSA. Paul also provides cheesemakers and the major retailers with specialist information on the safety of cheese made from unpasteurised milk and has assisted the Australian government in its hazard analysiss and risk ssessment for raw milk cheeses.
Paul is an honorary member of the Specialist Cheesemakers Association and is Chairman of the SCA Technical Committee. Together with AB Cheesemaking, Williams & Neaves designed a 4-day, practical, training course in artisan cheesemaking for Environmetal Health Officers, under the sponsorship of the Food Standards Agency. In 2005, ABC and W&N provided a participative demonstration of artisan cheesemaking to HRH The Prince of Wales.
Dr Christopher L. Baylis
Campden BRI
Dr Christopher Baylis is a food microbiologist with over 21 years experience in food microbiology, including 8 years as a microbiologist in the food industry and 13 years spent in research, largely focussing on method development, evaluations and validations. He holds a First Class Honours Degree in Applied Biology (Biochemistry and Microbiology) and a PhD from the University of Birmingham for his thesis on the detection and characterisation of Vero cytotoxin-producing Escherichia coli (VTEC) in foods, which was supported by an industrial fellowship award from the Royal Commission for the Exhibition of 1851. He manages the Microbiology Methods Research Group at Campden BRI, which undertakes work on the development, evaluation and validation of microbiological methods. The group is internationally renowned for performing validations and is an expert laboratory for the Association of Official Analytical Chemists Research Institute (AOAC RI) and the European Validation scheme MicroVal. He was an active member of the MicroVal Working Parties which were set up to develop the MicroVal scheme in Europe an has been a member of BSI working group AW9 "Methods for the Microbiological of Foods and Animal Feeds" which produces and reviews standard microbiological methods in the UK and other European countries. In addition, he manages the Containment Level 3 Laboratory, which provides facilities to study Hazard Group 3 organisms such as E. coli O157 and other VTEC.
