Speakers

Ali Badarneh is a Palestinian Citizen and a graduate of Birmingham University, UK. He started his career in 1997 as a food safety and quality consultant for a regional consulting firm in the Middle East and then moved in 2001 to work as freelance international expert for many international companies and organizations (UNIDO, LRQA, ISO, ACDI-VOCA and USAID). He holds international accreditations in areas related to the quality and food safety auditing and training. In 2008 moved to UNIDO Headquarters as a staff member working for the Trade Capacity Building Department before moving to the Agri-Business Department in 2016, was responsible for the design and management of technical cooperation projects in different developing countries. Lead the formulation of the UNIDO’s Approach to food safety capacity building and helped position UNIDO globally as key partner in this thematic area. Currently the Chief of the Food Security and Food Systems Unit leading a team of professionals and experts for the design and management of a portfolio in areas related to Value Chain Development, Food Safety, Fisheries, Agro-parks, Biodiversity and Market systems development. Awarded the UNIDO Role Model Award in 2019 with a scholarship to Harvard Business School on leadership skills training program. Awarded 4 Merit awards (Individual and Team) during his time at UNIDO.

Dr. Christina Vlachou is head of the Food Safety and Control Laboratory of the Joint FAO/IAEA Centre of Nuclear Techniques in Food and Agriculture. Christina has a background in Chemistry, Toxicology, and Quality Assurance, along with longstanding experience in food control acquired previously at the General Chemical State Laboratory of Greece. She had fellowships in food toxicology and risk assessment from EFSA and EUROTOX. Her laboratory within the Joint FAO/IAEA Centre assists countries to improve analytical and regulatory practices and methodologies in food safety, authenticity, and traceability, safeguarding consumer health, enhancing food security, and facilitating trade. This is achieved through applied research and method development, technology transfer, and the provision of data and expertise to support the establishment of international standards and guidelines. Christina is leading research and capacity building projects supporting the adoption of robust isotopic and nuclear techniques within official food control programmes.

Maura Di Martino is a food safety specialist at the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). Her work focuses on emerging issues that require foresight, with a particular interest in their implications for food safety. Prior to joining FAO, she worked as a food regulatory consultant, advising companies in the food and supplement industry on regulatory and scientific issues. Maura holds a PhD in Molecular Biology from the University of Warwick in the UK and an MSc in Food Safety and Quality from the University of Tuscia in Italy.

Dr. Lei Zhang is the Director of the Assessment Office at the National Center for Food Safety Risk Assessment, Deputy Secretary-General of the National Expert Committee for Food Safety Risk Assessment. He is an expert in the Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives (JECFA), and Deputy Director of the Food and Medicine Homology Industry Development Branch of the Chinese Nutrition Society. He has been engaged in the risk assessment of food chemicals and food-medicine substance, leading multiple national projects and risk assessment programs in the field of food and traditional Chinese medicine, and is responsible for scientific support for the dynamic management on the Catalogue of substances traditionally recognized as both food and Chinese medicinal materials.

Engaged in research on medicinal and edible materials like Ophiopogon and Dendrobium, and published over 20 papers related to medicinal and edible materials.

Ms. Vicky Tse is the Head of Life and Health Technology in Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corporation (HKSTP)

Vicky is a well-versed executive in the Life-Science industry.  She served as the General Manager at Sanofi Greater China in Shanghai, where she spearheaded successful launches and market expansion, forged key partnerships, enhancing the patient journey through innovative ecosystem collaborations.   Prior to Sanofi, she spent over 13 years in progressive leadership roles at Novartis, most recently as Commercial Director for the Asia Pacific, Middle East, and Africa regions, where she led strategic initiatives that accelerated the launch of innovative portfolio across diverse markets.  Her impactful journey at Novartis also included pivotal positions as General Manager and President of Taiwan, as well as senior Head roles across Greater China and Hong Kong, where she excelled in steering strategic portfolio growth and building robust commercial foundations.  Vicky’s earlier roles included strategy development at various managerial levels within Schering-Plough, Roche, and MSD, where she consistently achieved strong performance, built purposed driven team and clear strategy with good execution and collaboration.

Vicky holds a Bachelor of Science from The University of Hong Kong and a Master of Business Administration from the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology.

Prior to joining Invest Hong Kong, Dr. Cathy Lui co-founded and served as Chief Executive Officer of OPER Technology Limited. She earned her PhD in neuroscience from Hong Kong Baptist University, where she also obtained her biology undergraduate degree. With a prestigious post-doctoral fellowship from the American Parkinson Disease Association, Dr. Lui furthered her nanomaterials research at Northwestern University in the United States. She also held a visiting scholarship at the University of Oxford. Additionally, Dr. Lui received an MBA from Imperial College London. Driven by her dedication to translational research, Dr. Lui has garnered widespread recognition. She was named one of the top ten innovators under 35 in the Asia Pacific region by MIT Technology Review for her scientific achievements. Additionally, Dr. Lui received awards as the Greater Bay Area Outstanding Young Women Entrepreneur and Young Achiever of the Year from the American Chamber of Commerce in Hong Kong, celebrating her success as a serial entrepreneur translating research into solutions.

Professor Jian-Kang Zhu is a world-renowned molecular geneticist and plant biologist, a member of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences, and President of Macau University of Science and Technology. He received his Ph.D. from Purdue University in 1993, and has held distinguished professorships at the University of Arizona, UC Riverside, KAUST, and Purdue. Since 2022, he has been Director of the Institute for Advanced Biotechnology at Southern University of Science and Technology. His research focuses on plant stress biology, epigenetics, and gene editing, revealing the SOS salt‑tolerance pathway and the DNA demethylation mechanism, and developing efficient editing tools. He has published hundreds of papers, with over 185,000 citations and an h‑index of 204, and has been a global Highly Cited Researcher for many years, with significant international impact.

Researcher, former deputy director of the National Resource Centre for Chinese Medica, China Academy of Chinese Medical Science; chairman China Association of Traditional Chinese Medicine of Medicine Food Homology Evaluation and Utilization Committee. Focus on the development of new resources of Chinese medicinal materials and health food, the research and formulation of quality standards for Chinese medicinal materials seeds and seedlings, and the revision of the catalogue of medicine food homology etc.

Prof. Dr. Mark Buecking is food chemist by training and has been working in applied research in Germany and the Netherlands for more than 25 years. He has been heading the Department of Trace Analysis and Environmental Monitoring at Fraunhofer IME since 2004. His work focuses on the trace analysis of volatile compounds, residues and contaminants, he has authored more than 80 scientific papers and holds teaching positions at three universities. Also he heads the office of the Fraunhofer Agriculture and Food Industry Alliance, a cluster of 14 Fraunhofer institutes. He is Chairman of the Food-Processing Initiative, member of BfR (German Federal Institute for Risk Assessment) Committee for Contaminants in the Food Chain and board member of the European Federation of Food Science and Technology.

As the head of the laboratory at the Guangdong Institute of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Mr. Chen has been engaged in food and drug testing, quality research, and the development of Homology of Medicine and Food products for nearly two decades. Mr. Chen has served as a part-time professor at the Guangdong Medical University and Zhongkai University of Agriculture and Engineering, and also hold a number of social positions, including Vice Chairperson of the Guangzhou Panyu District Branch Committee of Jiusan Society in Guangzhou,member of the Mass Spectrometry Special Committee of the Guangdong Provincial Association for Analysis and Testing, and director of the Guangdong Provincial Rural Professional Association.

Prof. Wong holds a Bachelor of Science (BSc) from the University of Hong Kong. He pursued a PhD in Biochemistry at the Department of Biochemistry, University of Hong Kong.

Prof. Wong serves as a principal investigator at the School of Chinese Medicine, Hong Kong Baptist University, leading a team with expertise in biology, neuroscience, and microbiome research. In collaboration with clinicians and bioinformaticians, the pioneering work from his laboratory has led to multiple groundbreaking findings published in top-tier journals, including seven papers in Nature Communications, two papers in Cell Host & Microbe, one article in Nature Metabolism, and one paper in Developmental Cell, in the capacity of first/corresponding author. In recognition of his research accomplishments, he was awarded the School Performance Award as Young Researcher in 2021, the President’s Award for Outstanding Performance as an Early Career Researcher in 2022, and the National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC) Excellent Young Scientist Fund (Hong Kong and Macau) in 2023. As the principal investigator, he has also secured over HK$20 million in research funding from competitive grant schemes in Hong Kong, Europe, and the Mainland to support his multidisciplinary translational research.

After completing her PhD, Andrea held postdoctoral roles at Griffith University and the University of Queensland, researching protein trafficking in viral infections and Parkinson’s disease. As a lecturer at UQ, she developed and evaluated biomedical science curricula while building a profile in educational research. In 2015, she moved into educational leadership and joined National Centre for Naturopathic Medicine where she currently holds Deputy Director (Education) position. Andrea’s research interests focus on evidence acquisition and transferability into education and practice. As a scientist, Andrea’s research focuses on herbal molecular research in basic mechanism pathways involved in biofilms, cancer to Parkinson’s disease. Here, she brings together scientific approaches, traditional herbal knowledge and contemporary naturopathic practice to understand cellular and molecular impact of herbal constituents. As educational scientist, Andrea primary research is focused on evidence in health professions, with specific interest in traditional and contemporary evidence nexus applied in clinical practice. Andrea presented at various conferences and published widely across both fields.

Dr. Tetsuhiro Yoshino is a Project Senior Assistant Professor at the Center for Kampo Medicine, Keio University School of Medicine. He earned his MD in 2008 and his PhD in 2016 from Keio University. Dr. Yoshino specializes in Kampo medicine (traditional Japanese medicine) and internal medicine. His research focuses on the clinical evidence of Kampo medicine, digital innovation in Kampo diagnosis, and the mechanisms of herbal adverse effects like licorice-induced pseudoaldosteronism. He is a board-certified Kampo specialist and actively serves in leadership roles in multiple societies, including the Japan Society for Oriental Medicine. He has received numerous awards, including the ACP Global Physician Scholar (2025).

Professor Zhang Jin is Chief Physician and Doctoral Supervisor, Director of the Center for Preventive Medicine and Health Examination at Xiyuan Hospital, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences. She holds the titles of Famous TCM Practitioner in Beijing and National Excellent Clinical Talent (4th Batch). She chairs the Preventive Medicine Specialty Committee of Beijing Association of TCM and serves as Vice Chairman of the Preventive Medicine Branch of China Association of Chinese Medicine. She trained under masters Shi Dianbang, Chen Keji, and Zhou Wenquan. Her clinical interests include metabolic syndrome, chronic fatigue, and hyperhidrosis. She is a regular health expert on CCTV and Beijing Television programs.

• Ph.D. in Chemistry, Peking University, majoring in Physical Chemistry, with research focus on the preparation and application of inorganic nano-oxides.
• With years of work experience in the USA and the UK, and extensive R&D management experience in overseas multinational enterprises.
• Engaged in technology and product R&D at Procter & Gamble (P&G), USA for 16 years, his role covered all departments related to daily chemical R&D, including Technology, Formulation, Process, Regulatory Affairs, Quality, and Consumer Insights.
• Engaged in the R&D of herbal health products and business segment management at Yiling Pharmaceutical, Shijiazhuang for 6 years, serving as Dean of the Health Research Institute, and concurrently holding the positions of Deputy General Manager and General Manager of business segments.
• 25 years of scientific research experience in FMCG (Fast-Moving Consumer Goods), having led the team to develop and launch over 100 products, covering fields such as daily chemicals, Chinese herbal health foods, Chinese herbal functional foods, and medical devices.
• Over 50 invention patents and utility model patents granted in the USA, Canada, Europe, Mexico, and China.

Prof. Han Quanbin currently serves as the Associate Dean of School of Chinese Medicine, Director of the Research Center for Herb Polysaccharides and Intestinal Immunity at Hong Kong Baptist University, Editor-in-Chief of Phytochemical Analysis, Chairman of International Society of Natural Products, Member of Biology and Medicine Panel of the Hong Kong Research Grants Council, and founder of the Hong Kong Authentication Centre of Valuable Chinese Medicines. His main research interests focus on the chemistry, quality control, and biological activity of herb polysaccharides. He has published 200+ SCI papers (40 as the first author), with more than 9,000 citations, a Google Scholar H-index of 59, and holds over 20 national and international patents, with 18 technology transfers. He has been ranked among the top 2% of scientists globally for several consecutive years.

Jon is Professor of Public Health and Foundation Director of the National Centre for Naturopathic Medicine at Southern Cross University. Jon also oversees the University’s Northern Rivers Natural Products Research and Development Hub, which supports regional economic development through linking the primary production and biotechnology sectors. In addition to clinical qualifications, Jon has postgraduate qualifications in public health, law and health economics. Jon has published over 200 research publications, has leadership positions in the Public Health Association of Australia and American Public Health Association, is a fellow of the Australasian Society for Lifestyle Medicine, and leads several World Federation of Public Health Associations and World Health Organization initiatives in primary health care, health policy, traditional, complementary and integrative medicine, and developing health research capacity in developing countries. Jon works on traditional and Indigenous medicine, public health and primary health care policy with numerous governments, non-government organisations and international bodies.

Philip has been working in the community pharmacy sector for over 20 years. Over the years, he has been actively involved in the development of primary healthcare and community pharmacy in Hong Kong. He was the President of the Pharmaceutical Society of Hong Kong from 2015-2017 and he served as member of the Steering Committee on Primary Healthcare Development from 2017-2024. He is currently chairman of the College of Pharmacy Practice.

Kingson Kwan is a Hong Kong entrepreneur. In 2018, he founded Ergon, an end-to-end HR solutions group spanning recruitment, corporate training, employer branding, remote technology talent recruitment, and a verifiable employment records platform. The group was acquired by PERSOL in 2023. Today, Kingson leads three companies: Mylo, a Hong Kong pet nutrition brand offering fresh meals and supplements formulated by a board-certified veterinary nutritionist; Pixoul, a Taiwan-based property visualization company; and Kairos, a transformation consultancy and venture studio offering venture investment, venture building, talent acquisition, business operations reinvention, and M&A advisory services. 

Fred Li brings over 15 years of experience across private markets, management operations, and business turnaround. Fred holds a Bachelor of Business Administration in Accounting and Finance from the University of Hong Kong and a Master of Science in Biotechnology from the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology. He is a certified HKICPA CPA and Certified ESG Analyst (CESGA). Fred’s experience bridges technology and business operations, spanning university spin-offs, Healthcare & Biotechnology, GreenTech, and AI. He actively contributes to Hong Kong/ GBA’s innovation ecosystem as a lecturer, vetting panelist, and mentor with institutions such as HKSTP, Cyberport, and major Hong Kong universities.