Food safety expert to present 33rd annual Shugart Lecture at K-State

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Source: Kevin Roberts, 785-532-2399, kevrob@k-state.edu
News release prepared by: Sara Shellenberger, 785-532-6415, media@k-state.edu

Monday, March 26, 2007

FOOD SAFETY EXPERT TO PRESENT 33RD ANNUAL SHUGART LECTURE AT K-STATE

MANHATTAN -- Barbara Kowalcyk, director of the Food Safety Center for Food Borne Illness Research and Prevention, will be the speaker for the 33rd annual Grace M. Shugart Lecture at Kansas State University.

Kowalcyk will present "The Emotional and Economic Impact of Food Borne Illness" at 1:30 p.m. Thursday, April 19, in Forum Hall at the K-State Student Union. Kowalcyk is a former board president and spokesperson for Safe Table Out Priority, a nonprofit organization dedicated to food safety. She has actively promoted safe food practices since losing her son to E. coli poisoning in 2001.

"Barbara is a great speaker and shares the story of her son Kevin, who she lost to E. coli 0157:H7, and the importance of ensuring food safety throughout the food chain," said Kevin Roberts, K-State instructor of hotel, restaurant, institution management and dietetics. "Her story really brings home the importance of food safety and the necessity of following safe food practices at home."

The lecture will be in conjunction with K-State's food safety campaign sponsored by the department of hotel, restaurant, institution management and dietetics in the College of Human Ecology. The department will launch a four-week food safety campaign on campus beginning April 2 to promote food safety among college students.

The Grace M. Shugart Lecture Series brings food service and hospitality experts to K-State for the enrichment of student curricula and to provide continuing education for practitioners in the field. The lectureship was established in 1975 to honor the late Shugart, former head of the department of hotel, restaurant, institution management and dietetics. The co-author of "Food for Fifty" and "Food Service for Institutions," Shugart helped build the profession of dietetics and institutional management throughout the United States, serving as president of the American Dietetic Association.