US Foods Executive Promotes Collaboration at 2012 Global Food Safety Conference

ROSEMONT, IL--(Marketwire - Feb 17, 2012) - US Foods further solidified its commitment to food safety by participating in the 2012 Global Food Safety Conference in Orlando, Fla. from February 15-17. The conference, hosted by the Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI), brought together more than 1,000 leading food safety specialists from more than 60 countries around the world.

Participants, including food retailers, manufacturers and government officials, discussed food safety best practices and other issues to ensure the quality of the world's food supply.

Jorge Hernandez, senior vice president of food safety and quality assurance, US Foods, contributed to a panel discussion titled "Advancing Global Food Safety through Collaboration."

"Sharing food safety best practices with global leaders leads to innovative thinking and global food safety solutions and US Foods is pleased to share what we've learned with others in the industry," said Hernandez. "Collaboration and collective learning in the food safety realm is paramount to its success. Food safety is not the responsibility of one organization, but the duty of every link in the food chain."

Hernandez, who is also the chairperson of the Storage and Distribution Working Group for the GFSI, also contributed to a seminar titled, "Fresh, Healthy and Natural -- Consequences of Food Safety." This seminar focused on the food safety challenges the foodservice industry faces to provide fresh and natural food to customers.

"Fresh and healthy are not always synonymous with safe," said Hernandez. "We must do a better job to educate consumers on seeking products that are fresh, healthy and safe, and ensure that in the foodservice industry, the products are grown, stored, distributed, handled and prepared safely."

In January 2012, US Foods announced that it expects to be the first national foodservice distributor in the country to be certified in food safety and quality to the International Featured Standard (IFS), a globally recognized standard for safety and quality.

About US Foods
With nearly $19 billion in annual revenue, US Foods is the 10th largest private company in America, and a leading foodservice distributor. Many of the entities that make up US Foods were founded in the 19th century, including one that sold provisions to travelers heading west during the 1850s gold rush. US Foods offers more than 350,000 national brand products and its own high-quality "exclusive brand" items, ranging from fresh meats and produce to prepared and frozen foods. The company proudly employs approximately 25,000 people in more than 60 locations nationwide, and provides the finest quality food and related products to more than 250,000 customers, including independent and multi-unit restaurants, healthcare and hospitality entities, government and educational institutions. The company is headquartered in Rosemont, Ill., and jointly owned by funds managed by Clayton, Dubilier & Rice Inc. and Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. Discover more at www.usfoods.com.

About Jorge Hernandez
Jorge Hernandez is senior vice president of food safety and quality assurance, US Foods. He is a sanitarian, a certified food safety instructor, a past FDA standardization officer and serves as a board member of the Produce Marketing Association (PMA), GLOBALGAP, Food Safety System Certification 2200, and Advocate Healthcare's Advocate Charitable Foundation. He is also a member of the NRA's Quality Assurance Executives Study Group, the Global Food Safety Initiative's (GFSI) Technical Committee, the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) Accreditation Committee and the Conference for Food Protection (CFP). Jorge also served as a scientific member of the National Egg Board's Food Safety Advisory Panel and the International HACCP Alliance Board.