CFSAN Director Michael Landa to Keynote CRN’s October Symposium

Source: The Council for Responsible Nutrition

WASHINGTON, D.C., June 26, 2012-The Council for Responsible Nutrition (CRN) announced today that Michael Landa,director, Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition (CFSAN), Food and Drug Administration (FDA), will be a featured speaker at The Conference, CRN’s annual symposium for the dietary supplement industry. The Conference takes place October 3-6 at the Montage Laguna Beach in Laguna Beach, Calif.

As a featured speaker at The Conference, Mr. Landa will provide attendees with FDA’s perspective on the most critical regulatory topics affecting the dietary supplement industry today including tainted products, the NDI Draft Guidance, GMP compliance, Adverse Event Reporting and other “hot topics.”  

“We very much appreciate that Mr. Landa has agreed to provide the opening keynote on the first day of The Conference,” said Steve Mister, president and CEO, CRN. “We’ve been fortunate to have high level speakers from FDA address our attendees year after year.  Last year, we heard from FDA’s Dr. Dan Fabricant; this will be Mr. Landa’s first presentation to The Conference attendees.  It’s vitally important that the industry pay close attention to what regulators have to say and that we develop constructive relationships with these officials.  In particular, we know the agency is rightly calling on all companies to bolster compliance with GMPs-and that’s something that we need to do for the sake of our consumers.  Second, we share FDA’s concerns about unapproved drugs masquerading as supplements.  We’re looking forward to hearing his thoughts on these critical issues.”

Mr. Landa’s FDA career dates back to 1978. He has held positions as deputy director for regulatory affairs in CFSAN (2004–2010), FDA’s acting chief counsel (2001; 2009–2010), FDA’s deputy chief counsel (2000–2004), and, for various periods, assistant and then associate chief counsel for enforcement, medical devices, and veterinary medicine (1978–1993). From 1998 to 1999, Mr. Landa was a shareholder with the international law firm Heller Ehrman. From 1993 to 1998, he was of counsel and then a partner with the national law firm Fenwick & West.

The Conferencehas a strong reputation for bringing together industry executives with many of the nation’s leading regulators to discuss the most current regulatory environment for dietary supplements.  Some recent high-profile speakers have included Daniel Fabricant, Ph.D., currently the director, Division of Dietary Supplement Programs, FDA; andJoshua Sharfstein, M.D., when he was the deputy commissioner at FDA.  The Conference is open to CRN members and non-members.

The Montage Laguna Beach is located on 30 spectacular, beachfront acres in the heart of Laguna Beach, approximately 18 miles from Orange County's John Wayne International Airport. There are several flexible registration options for The Conference and those interested are encouraged to visit http://www.crnusa.org/2012events/ for more information.