Yvon Bemelman is a specialist in food safety, quality assurance and legislation and regulations for the food sector. She combines in-depth knowledge of Dutch and European regulations with many years of practical experience in the meat, fish, bakery and fresh food retail sectors.
Her strength lies in translating complex rules into workable systems. No thick manuals that end up gathering dust on a shelf, but practical quality systems that are tailored to the day-to-day reality of businesses. She supports entrepreneurs, management teams and trade associations with certification, system maintenance, food safety, animal welfare, labelling, hygiene codes and continuous improvement.
Yvon studied Educational Science at the Vrije Universiteit and graduated in 1993. Since then, she has been working at the intersection of knowledge, practice and regulation. She develops training programmes, writes protocols and professional articles, assists companies with audits and regularly acts as a liaison between the government, trade associations and the business community.
From 1994 to 1999, Yvon worked for SVO Vocational Training for the Meat Sector. There, she wrote accountability reports for subsidised courses and delivered training sessions on quality assurance for manufacturing companies. During this period, she also drew up various HACCP systems for meat-processing companies.
In 1995, she set up the quality system for the Association of Quality Butchers This system was implemented at around 600 certified butcher’s shops. Until 2016, she was responsible for quality assurance within this organisation. In this role, from 1996 onwards, she participated in the Regular Commodities Act Consultation and in expert consultations on hygiene and labelling at the Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport. In 2008, under her leadership, the Association of Certified Butchers became the first chain of butchers to be awarded ‘green status’ by the NVWA. As a result, member businesses were subject to reduced supervision, as the government had sufficient confidence in the guaranteed food safety standards.
From 2006 to 2011, Yvon headed the Technology Department of the Royal Dutch Butchers’ Organisation. There, she was involved in collective and individual advocacy, policy development, quality assurance, meat technology issues and the practical application of national and European regulations to the day-to-day operations of butchers, self-slaughtering butchers and meat-processing companies. During this period, her work included the 2010 version of the Hygiene Code for the Butchery Sector, the slaughter module, the Sustainable Butcher Barometer and the Young Butchers’ Competition. She also established national and international lobbying structures. Among other things, this led to amendments to national regulations governing small abattoirs and to the possibility of including unchilled display in the hygiene code.
Since 2011, Yvon has been writing specialist articles for Meat Magazine and also spent some time working for Vismagazine. In 2013 and 2014, she worked for the Dutch Bakery Centre she was involved in the development of the first industrial module under the Hygiene Code for the Bakery Sector. She also served as a Commodities Act adviser there.
In 2014, she founded The Dutch Fresh Produce Quality Foundation The foundation aims to make legislation and regulations understandable, practical and applicable for artisanal businesses and short supply chains. As part of her work for the foundation, she developed, amongst other things, an allergens module, a white paper on labelling for the fresh food retail sector, and various training courses and presentations. She also advised a working group of abattoirs on legislation and regulations, consultation structures and protocols. During the same period, she developed the Animal Welfare Process Management System for Abattoirs, which was well received by the NVWA.
In 2018 and 2019, Yvon completed the in-house FSSC 22000 lead assessor training course at Lloyd’s Register. Since then, she has been helping companies to set up, improve and maintain practical food safety systems, including FSSC 22000, IFS, BRC, ISO 22000 and animal welfare systems.
In 2023, she set up the Short Supply Chain working group through the Verskwaliteit Nederland Foundation. Her aim is to reconnect artisanal links in the food supply chain and strengthen cooperation between producers, processors, fresh produce specialists and consumers.
Yvon has been working as a consultant at Condor Consultancy since 2016. She supports companies by providing advice, guidance, training and practical system development.
Her responsibilities include, amongst other things:
– Advice on Dutch and European food legislation
– Development and maintenance of quality management systems, including FSSC 22000, IFS, BRC, ISO 22000 and animal welfare
– Support with certification, audits and system improvement
– Translating legislation and regulations into practical procedures
– Coaching for management and quality staff
– Training courses on food safety, regulations, labelling and continuous improvement
– Drafting protocols, work instructions, specialist articles and substantive justifications
– Supporting businesses and collective organisations in their dealings with the government and regulatory bodies
Yvon enjoys working at the intersection of regulation and practice. It is precisely at this point that tensions often arise: what does the law require, what does the auditor ask for, and what is actually feasible within the company? Her approach is critical, down-to-earth and practical. She always keeps food safety, professional expertise and the people who have to work with these issues on a daily basis firmly in mind.
