The Alliance for Food and Farming (AFF) announced the appointment of dietitian and nutrition communicators Dr. Sylvia Klinger, DBA, MS, RD, and Elizabeth Shaw, MS RD, CPT, as at-large members of the Management Board.
Klinger and Shaw will serve in an advisory capacity to the Board and staff to provide counsel and input on outreach and communications to consumers about the safety of all produce and the importance of increased consumption of fruits and vegetables for better health.
“Sylvia and Liz have become invaluable advisors to the AFF since they were part of our first-ever Produce Safety Media Tour in 2017,” says Teresa Thorne, AFF Executive Director. “This appointment formalizes that relationship and communicates how important dietitians and nutritionists are to AFF efforts to reassure consumers about produce safety, to encourage increased consumption and support consumer choice to purchase the fruits and vegetables they enjoy and are affordable and accessible to them.”
“On behalf of the Board, we thank Sylvia and Liz for their service,” says Ian LeMay, AFF Vice-Chair and President of the California Fresh Fruit Association. “We look forward to their guidance as both dietitians and working parents as we strive to remove fear as a barrier to produce consumption and provide consumers with more information about these nutrient-dense foods.”
Klinger is the founder of Hispanic Food Communications, a nutrition communications and culinary consulting company. A Hispanic native, she is a leading expert in cross-cultural Hispanic nutrition and health issues. Sylvia has an impressive knowledge of Hispanic foods and culture, enhanced by continued education in current nutritional research and frequent immersion in Hispanic communities.
Her published works include the “Little Book of Simple Eating” in both English and Spanish, the award-winning, “Hispanic Family Nutrition Counseling Kit” and “A Systematic Review of the Relationship between Acculturation and Diet among Latinos in the United States: Implications for Future Research.”
Shaw is a nationally known nutrition expert and owns a nutrition communications business and private practice in California. She has been a dietitian for over 10 years, an adjunct professor for over seven years and is a certified personal trainer. She is a four-time author, with titles including the Instant Pot Cookbook For Dummies, Fertility Foods Cookbook, and the Stress-Free IVF Nutrition Guide.
What she loves most about her profession is that she gets to connect with consumers and help dispel nutrition myths daily. Shaw believes all foods can fit in a balanced lifestyle and shares these tips via her blog, Shaw Simple Swaps, and in her work as a national spokesperson for health and food organizations.
“I am relentlessly passionate about eating more fruits and vegetables and sharing my nutrition knowledge with our diverse population,” Klinger says. “This position with the AFF will give me the opportunity to elevate my platform to motivate consumers to eat an abundance of fruits and vegetables.”
“In 2017 when I had the privilege to attend the Alliance for Food and Farming tour in Monterey, I saw firsthand the commitment farmers had to provide America with safe foods,” Shaw says. “It was an honor then to be chosen to help share this message, and a true privilege now to have the opportunity to further the science using my expertise as a registered dietitian nutritionist on the Board.”
The goal of the AFF is to provide science-based food safety information about organic and conventional produce so that facts, not fear, can guide consumers’ shopping choices. The cornerstone of the AFF’s outreach efforts is the safefruitsandveggies.com website as well as the AFF social media channels, which provide information about farming, nutrition, health, toxicology and risk analysis for consumers, media and dietitians. The AFF consistently conducts in-depth research to enhance understanding and address the needs and safety concerns of consumers. The AFF also works to build and expand outreach efforts with our network of influencers through tours, one-on-one outreach and regular dissemination of new information specific to food safety and farming.
About the The Alliance for Food and Farming
The Alliance for Food and Farming is a non-profit organization formed in 1989 which represents organic and conventional farmers and farms of all sizes. Alliance contributors are limited to farmers of fruits and vegetables, companies that sell, market or ship fruits and vegetables or organizations that represent produce farmers. Our mission is to deliver credible information about the safety of fruits and vegetables.
