In this episode of Food Tech Talk: Supply Chain Insights from Farm to Fork, host Lydia Adams is joined by Lora Stone, a food safety and quality leader with more than 15 years of experience. Lora shares how her grounding in mindfulness practices—shaped through formal training and inspired by influential books such as The Power of Now by Eckhart Tolle and Wherever You Go, There You Are by Jon Kabat-Zinn—supports her approach to leadership, communication, and decision-making in high-pressure regulatory environments.

Lora explains how connecting teams to the “why” behind food safety regulations builds genuine buy-in and helps employees understand that every rule exists because something once happened to protect consumers. She walks through her model for managing multiple certifications—including GFSI, FSMA, Kosher, Organic, and Halal—by integrating requirements into existing programs instead of creating separate systems. She also discusses the power of slowing down, using intentional pauses, and approaching challenges with clarity to improve problem-solving during operational or regulatory pressure.

The conversation highlights how leaders can balance accountability and morale by staying engaged with their teams, supporting them through challenges, and using open communication to understand individual perspectives. Lora also explores the increasing emphasis on management commitment and food safety culture in upcoming GFSI audit schemes, as well as the importance of early planning, cross-functional collaboration, and transparent communication to stay ahead of regulatory change rather than reacting to it.

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Connect with the team:
👉 Lydia Adams on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lydiaadams/
👉 Trustwell: https://www.trustwell.com/
👉 Lora Stone on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lora-stone/

Helpful Links & References
👉 The Power of Now – Eckhart Tolle
👉 Wherever You Go, There You Are  – Jon Kabat‑Zinn

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