Publisher’s Platform: Hey, what the heck with the Ads?

I started Food Safety News in 2009 to fill a need.  Reporters that covered  food – especially food safety – were disappearing at the same time Congress was focused on if it was going to pass the most significant piece of food safety legislation in several decades – the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA).  

The reporters, three at the time, covered the ins and outs intently.  Many times, in critical hearings the only reporter in attendance was the one and only Helena Bottemiller.  What Dan Flynn (a bit of a curmudgeon but my friend since 1977) has guided – with the help of several great reporters (two with three Pulitzer Prizes) – over the last 15 years has been simply amazing. Food Safety News has been called the “Newspaper of record for food safety” and has grown to have over 55,000 subscribers all over the world and over 2,000,000 views a month.  Food Safety News also has developed quite a social media following:

Facebook – 202K followers

LinkedIn – 37,019 followers

X/Twitter — 42.9K followers

Instagram — 5,878 followers

The present crew, Dan in Colorado, Coral in Kansas, Jonan in West Virginia, Cookson in Washington, Chuck in Michigan and Joe in the UK, do a spectacular job serving up a full dish of news 24/7/365.  And, also a big thanks to all the Op-eds and commentary from food safety thought leaders from around the world.

I am so proud of what has been created and I want to make sure it continues long after I hang up my courtroom attire.  You see, for the last 15 years, I have for the most part been funding this endeavor myself – about 95% of it anyway.  So, over the last year I have been consulting with a smart young man, Peter Gustafson, about how we can make Food Safety News continue long after I disappear.  Thus, you have seen some changes.  We are experimenting with ads like many other newspapers around the world do.  We have also considered some nominal subscription charge.  We are also thinking about donations and even turning Food Safety News into a non-profit.

All the above changes are with one thought in mind; continuing and improving the quality of the product while trying to find a way to sustainability. It is a balance, and one I take very seriously.  I urge everyone to reach out with ideas, comments and constructive criticisms.  I am always just an email away: bmarler@marlerclark.com