Alan Snow

I have thirty years experience in the food industry, with ten years of that devoted to the seafood industry.
I have experience in food chemistry and food microbiology and, for ten years, worked as part of the Australian Seafood Extension and Advisory Service (AUSEAS), a service which was funded by the Fisheries Research and Development Corporation (FRDC). Through this service I assisted the Australian seafood industry to increased profitability through providing access to information on innovation and improved processes both internationally and within Australia.

I was then part of the Seafood Services Australia team which delivered a wide range of services to the Australian seafood industry.

In 2003 - 2004 I was Project Leader for a FarmBis funded project which developed a software tool which used a Risk Management approach to assist seafood companies to develop an Environmental Management Plan, a Workplace Health & Safety Plan, a Food Safety Plan, and a Business Improvement Plan in one scan of the operating environment.

I was secretary of the Australian Fish Names Committee, since its formation in 1998, until 2006. This committee was tasked with developing standard names for fish in Australia.

I formed Alan Snow Konsulting in 2005 and was engaged by Seafood Services Australia to undertake a Seafood Supply Chain Innovation project which was funded through the AusIndustry Innovation Access Program which was completed in June 2006.

This project focused on four areas of innovation in the seafood industry, namely:

• Traceability of seafood products from point of catch or harvest to consumer;
• Innovative packing systems for seafood (mainly focusing on MAP and vacuum packaging);
• Improved transport systems (live and fresh chilled seafood by air and road);
• Meeting the biosecurity requirements for domestic consumption and for importing countries.

The key outcomes for this project have been:

• The conduct of a series of nine workshops in regional Australia which linked potential users of the technology with the technology providers;
• The development of a series of four Guides to Innovation (one for each of the four technology areas).

My key areas of expertise are:

• Provision of technical and innovative solutions - especially in the post harvest seafood industry;
• Provision of advise on seafood safety and quality issues;
• Management of small and large projects
• Workplace training, particularly targeting adult learning, including the coordination and the delivery of these sessions;
• Developed syllabus, training materials, and assessment criteria for seafood related modules;
• The retrieval of information from national and international sources and determining its' value for Australian conditions;
• Development of seafood safety, quality, and HACCP systems;
• Development of information technology solutions using both database management systems and Microsoft applications.

I completed an Associate Diploma in Applied Science at QIT in 1974, and completed a course in Seafood Inspection in 1998.
I also have a Certificate IV in Workplace Training and Assessment which I completed through North Point TAFE.
I was a graduate of the Advance in Seafood Leadership Program in 2004, during which I undertook a project to update and improve the Australian Seafood Emergency Plan for the seafood industry.