Author name: John W. Spink, PhD

Dr. John Spink is Director of the Food Fraud Prevention Think Tank, as well as Lead Instructor of the Food Fraud Prevention Academy, which provides free online training. He is also an Assistant Professor in the Department of Supply Chain Management (SCM) in the Eli Broad College of Business at Michigan State University (MSU). His food fraud prevention research focus is on policy and strategy to understand and prevent these supply chain disruptions and to implement procurement best practices. He is widely published in leading academic journals and has helped lead national and global regulatory and standards activity. More recently, his teaching and research have expanded from only food fraud prevention to now include integrated supply chain management and, more broadly, supply chain product fraud and counterfeiting. Dr. Spink is the author of the first textbook on the topic with the 2019 publication “Food Fraud Prevention – Development, Management, and Implementation."

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FLASHBACK: Publication – Selection of Strategic Authentication and Tracing Programs – Now for Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence

FLASHBACK: Publication – Selection of Strategic Authentication and Tracing Programs – Now for Machine Learning and Artificial IntelligenceBy •

From time to time, we share here a flashback to a previous post that remains relevant today. This week, we revisit a journal article on “The Selection of Strategic Authentication and Tracing Programs” in the book “Counterfeit Medicines.” The same questions apply to food authentication and also to […]

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Codex and Food Fraud: Public Comments for the Electronic Working Group, Sixth Draft

Codex and Food Fraud: Public Comments for the Electronic Working Group, Sixth DraftBy •

Attached is our response to the US Codex Delegation request for public comments to the Codex Alimentarius Electronic Work Group on Food Fraud. The most recent draft discussion paper is very close to being completed and hopefully approved. Our detailed comments are below. Reference: for more, see the

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Conference Presentation Schedule: Food Safety Summit, MSU Law School, IAFP, and More

Conference Presentation Schedule: Food Safety Summit, MSU Law School, IAFP, and MoreBy •

The research-education-outreach cycle is sparked by practitioners. Each of my research projects started with someone who identified a real-world problem. Let’s meet: my next public events are the Food Safety LATAM Conference (Cancun), Food Safety Summit (Chicago), MSU Law Conference (East Lansing), and the IAFP Annual Meeting (LA).

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Review of The GFSI Food Fraud Prevention Compliance Development & Requirements: Part 3 – The Next Steps and Path Forward

Review of The GFSI Food Fraud Prevention Compliance Development & Requirements: Part 3 – The Next Steps and Path ForwardBy •

This is the third of three reviews of ‘The GFSI Food Fraud Prevention Compliance Development & Requirements.’ This blog post reviews other prevention initiatives and their application to the food supply chain and GFSI. The foundation is set, we’ve made progress, but there is still a long way

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Review of The GFSI Food Fraud Prevention Compliance Development & Requirements: Part 2 – The Shift to Prevention and VACCP

Review of The GFSI Food Fraud Prevention Compliance Development & Requirements: Part 2 – The Shift to Prevention and VACCPBy •

This is the second of three reviews of ‘The GFSI Food Fraud Prevention Compliance Development & Requirements.’ Expanding on GFSI recognition of food fraud as a problem, this blog reviews the start of food fraud research and the shift to prevention and vulnerability assessments in VACCP. Reference: The

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Review of The GFSI Food Fraud Prevention Compliance Development & Requirements: Part 1 – Creation of the GFSI Food Fraud Think Tank

Review of The GFSI Food Fraud Prevention Compliance Development & Requirements: Part 1 – Creation of the GFSI Food Fraud Think TankBy •

This is the first of three reviews of ‘The GFSI Food Fraud Prevention Compliance Development & Requirements.’ To understand where we need to go, it is helpful to start with why we started the journey and how far we have – or, in many cases, have not –

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NEW EVENT-REMINDER: Live, Scheduled, Online MoocLive “Webinar C” – Advanced Criminology and Food Defense Threat Audit Guide Courses

NEW EVENT-REMINDER: Live, Scheduled, Online MoocLive “Webinar C” – Advanced Criminology and Food Defense Threat Audit Guide CoursesBy •

Our Food Fraud Prevention Advanced Criminology MOOC and our Food Defense Threat Audit Guide MOOC will be combined and offered as a live, scheduled, online webinar – MoocLive. The live lectures will include interactive discussions and a Food Fraud Trends Update summary. Attendees will receive a pre-event survey

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PRESENTATION – Food Fraud Network of Norway – Setting Priorities to Reduce the Fraud Opportunity

PRESENTATION – Food Fraud Network of Norway – Setting Priorities to Reduce the Fraud OpportunityBy •

Last week, I presented to the Food Fraud Network of Norway. My key points were the continuing and constantly evolving supply chain disruptions… but also that current food fraud vulnerability assessments and prevention strategies are flexible enough to still apply. The Food Fraud Network of Norway is a

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