The North Carolina Restaurant and Lodging Association (NCRLA), the voice of North Carolina’s $20.2 billion restaurant, foodservice and lodging industry, today announced that it will join the National Restaurant Association (NRA) in recognizing National Food Safety Month this September and encourages restaurants, industry vendors and consumers across North Carolina to contribute to the effort. National Food Safety Month was created in 1994 to heighten awareness and education of food safety, and while it is a top priority for restaurant owners 365 days a year, this is a month dedicated to telling the story behind the scenes in a busy kitchen.

“From restaurant owners to consumers, food safety is a major priority and it is in all of our interests to uphold the highest standards of training, education, certification and information sharing,” said Lynn Minges, president and CEO, NCRLA. “Restaurants are constantly keeping up with food safety best practices, so we would like to take this month to celebrate their hard work. NCRLA is proud to support our members year-round by providing convenient access to ServSafe® training and certifications at a discount, and in addition, we’re thrilled to provide excellent educational programs and seminars as part our first-ever North Carolina Restaurant & Lodging Expo.”

The inaugural North Carolina Restaurant & Lodging Expo, being held this September 21-22 at the Raleigh Convention Center, will offer a broad range of educational topics designed to equip restaurant owners, general managers, executive chefs, hotel managers, purchasing managers, event planners and food and beverage directors with the best tools to grow and improve their businesses. As part of the expo sessions, NCRLA is offering two noteworthy keynote discussions moderated by Jimmy Crippen, founder and host of Got to Be NC Competition Dining. The Chef Roundtable Keynote Panel on Monday, September 21, features some of the best figures in Southern cuisine, including Steven D. Greene of The Umstead Hotel and Spa, Beth LittleJohn of The Players' Retreat, Jim Noble of Noble Food & Pursuits, Walter Royal of The Angus Barn and Scott Wallen of Upstream/Harper’s Restaurant Group. These culinary trailblazers will discuss the future of the Southern restaurant scene, from the brilliant simplicity of locally sourced products to emerging trends and innovative techniques.

The Restaurant Confidential Keynote Panel on Tuesday, September 22, unites well-established and highly regarded industry luminaries to share their wisdom and lessons learned along the way to becoming highly successful restaurant owners and operators, including Phil Friedman of Salsarita's Fresh Cantina, William M. "Marty" Kotis III of Kotis Holdings, Kenney Moore of Hwy 55 Burgers, Shakes & Fries, Gaurav “G" Patel of Eschelon Experiences and Frank Scibelli of FS Food Group.

To spotlight the restaurant industry's ongoing commitment to food safety, this year’s National Food Safety Month theme “Let It Flow” focuses on the flow of food through restaurants. The NRA offers free resources for foodservice industry professionals and this year will highlight tips for a number of food safety topics such as receiving, storage, thawing and holding, preparation and service. New training tools and resources are available for National Food Safety Month, including activities, posters, infographics and videos. To join the conversation, follow @ServSafe on Twitter and use the hashtag #FoodSafetyMonth. For more information and resources on National Food Safety Month, visit: http://www.foodsafetymonth.com.

To learn more about NCRLA’s ServSafe member discount, visit www.ncrla.org/servsafe. The registration fee for the North Carolina Restaurant & Lodging Expo is $25 in advance and $50 at the door. To register, go to http://bit.ly/NCRLAExpoRegistration. For more information about NCRLA, visit www.ncrla.org.