RISE hires senior director of regulatory affairs

Kristen Spotz (Photo courtesy of RISE)

Responsible Industry for a Sound Environment (RISE) welcomes Kristen Spotz as its senior director of regulatory affairs. She joins the association with a strong regulatory and technical background, along with manufacturing experience of various Food and Drug Administration (FDA) products, where she specialized in quality control and quality engineering.

In her new position, Spotz will be responsible for RISE’s regulatory work, which includes providing strategic oversight for the development, implementation and management of effective policy strategies and tactics, and serving as the staff lead for the association’s Regulatory Affairs Committee.

“Kristen’s nearly 16 years’ experience in regulatory affairs makes her a great addition to our staff,” says Megan Provost, RISE president. “She’ll enable our association to proactively and productively engage with federal- and state-level regulatory agencies and our member volunteers on regulatory priorities in the specialty pesticides and fertilizer industry.”

Prior to joining RISE, Spotz worked as the manager of regulatory affairs at the Consumer Brands Association (CBA), formerly known as the Grocery Manufacturers Association, which represents food, beverage and consumer packaged goods companies.

She served as the staff liaison for CBA’s Regulatory Inspection Compliance Committee and the Food Allergen Committee. Spotz was part of a team that managed numerous member-driven working groups that developed comments to the FDA on the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA), the largest food safety regulation in more than 70 years.

Spotz grew up along the Florida coastline and earned a Bachelor of Science in chemistry from the University of Central Florida. She’s a member of the Herndon Rotary Club and serves as treasurer of her homeowners’ association.

Spotz is based in the new RISE headquarters in Arlington, Va.