H. Russell Cross, PhD

College Station, Texas

Dr. Cross currently holds the position of Professor in the Department of Animal Science in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences at Texas A&M University. Dr. Cross has held numerous positions including Execitive Vice President for Operations and Chief of Staff to President Elsa Murano, and Deputy Vice Chancellor, Agriculture and Life Sciences. Dr. Cross is holder of the E.M. "Manny" Rosenthal Chair in Animal and Food Science. His service in the government includes the position of Administrator of the USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service under Presidents Bush and Clinton. Dr. Cross pioneered the International HACCP Alliance which represents 24 food associations, 40 universities and the governments of 13 countries. Within the private sector, Dr. Cross was the CEO and Chairman of Future Beef Operations, LLC. Furthermore, he served as Director of Food Safety Net for IDEXX Laboratories, Executive Vice President of Food Safety/Government and Industry Affairs within National Beef Packing Co. Dr. Cross is published extensively, with over 235 published works on meat quality and safety.