Al Baroudi, vice president of food safety and quality assurance at The Cheesecake Factory, and Avery Barrett, manager of risk and safety at On the Border Mexican Grill and Cantina, share a moment at the Food Safety Symposium.

Taking a symposium selfie are, from left, Mandy Sedlak of Ecolab, and Kathryn Lewis, quality assurance and food safety manager for Brinker International Inc.

Food safety professional take a break from a song-writing exercise at the Sound Kitchen in Franklin, Tenn.

Attendees at the 15^th annual Food Safety Symposium take a break from a song-writing exercise at the Sound Kitchen in Franklin, Tenn.

Steven Mandernach, executive director of the Association of Food and Drug Officials, delivers a keynote address focused on the future of food safety.

Elaine Black, Ecolab’s director of food safety and public health, shares insights on how food-safety professionals can prepare for the onset of the winter season.

Kathryn Lewis, quality assurance and food safety manager for Brinker International Inc., at the Food Safety Symposium in Nashville, Tenn.

Eric Martin, director of food Safety for Texas Roadhouse Inc., poses a question during a Food Safety Symposium presentation

Mandy Sedlak, senior manager of food safety and public health for the EcoSure division of Ecolab, provides a Trends in Off-Premises Food Safety Best Practices presentation.

Attendees at the Food Safety Symposium break into smaller groups at the Table Talk Roundtable sessions.

Ron Ruggless, senior editor of Nation’s Restaurant News, and Danielle Cooke, senior manager of operations procedures at Panera Bread, share a discussion during the 404 Kitchen dinner during the Food Safety Symposium

Discussing operational excellent in food safety are panelists, from left: Bridget Sweet, executive director of food safety in the College of Food Innovation and Technology at Johnson & Wales; Bill Moore, Eat ‘n’ Park director of safety and security; Dennis Price, Red Lobster Inc.’s director of total quality and food safety; Red Lobster; Jorge Hernandez, vice president of quality assurance at The Wendy’s Co.; and moderator Lisa Robinson, Ecolab’s vice president of global food safety and public health.

Douglas Davis, senior director of global food safety for Marriott International, shares insights into culinary trends that impact food safety.