Highly regarded, food safety industry leader, Dr. Mark Flanagan (pictured above), founder of Safe to Trade – the holistic food safety standard, gave a headline presentation at this year’s Vienna Food Safety Forum 2025.

Mark shared valued insight on how Safe to Trade is harnessing real-time industry data, powered by AI and predictive analytics, to help regulators, food businesses, and consumers make smarter, faster decisions, thereby reducing foodborne risks and making our world a safer place to eat. 

The Vienna Food Safety Forum is a leading global food safety forum that supports the transformation of agri-food systems through knowledge sharing, innovation and collaboration. The most recent forum explored the latest data-driven innovations and solutions that improve public health for a more ‘food-secure’ future.

Safe to Trade leads the sector by working collaboratively with regulators and industry experts to ensure full compliance with food hygiene legislation. 

Safe to Trade works alongside the current Food Hygiene Rating Scheme but with several key differences; it requires businesses to be checked annually, and to be assessed across every aspect of food safety, hygiene and health and safety. 

Designed with public trust at its core, the standard offers peace of mind by supporting safe, transparent, and accountable food business practices.

Dr. Mark Flanagan states: “I feel extremely honoured to be invited to speak at this highly esteemed international industry event. I was able to share with attendees how Safe to Trade is drawing upon real-time industry data, supported by effective use of AI as well as predictive analytics, to assist regulators, food businesses, and consumers in making more informed decisions, and at a quicker pace. 

This approach is highly instrumental in helping us to reduce foodborne risks, ultimately making our world a safer place to eat. We are extremely grateful for the overwhelmingly positive feedback that we received in Vienna, and would like to thank the organisers and all who attended for their kind hospitality.”

Safe to Trade is the voluntary, third-party assurance scheme for the hospitality industry that puts people’s health first. A standard that leads and directs the sector, devised in collaboration with industry experts and regulators, and implemented by highly-trained, competent and impartial Environmental Health Practitioners.

The standard is holistic; assuring all required legislation is met for food hygiene of the venue. The standard is aligned with the latest food safety regulations, incorporating best practices and going beyond the Food Hygiene Rating Scheme to include additional criteria such as allergen information and front-of-house cleanliness.

Industry-leading brands including Hoburne, YO! Sushi and Joe and the Juice are ensuring they meet the comprehensive requirements to become certified, supporting them in achieving a Food Hygiene Rating of 5, while building consumer confidence and commercial success.