RESEARCH DISCIPLINES
Flavor Chemistry
Research areas include identification and measurement of aroma compounds and their chemical/biochemical formation in foods, and flavor retention and changes during food processing and storage. Additional studies include measurements of flavor interactions with food components and packaging materials, and flavor release in food systems.
Professors: Paul Hughes, Michael Qian, Tom Shellhammer, Elizabeth Tomasino
Food Chemistry/Biochemistry
Areas of emphasis include processing and chemical reactivity, plant cell wall biochemistry, and enzyme technologies.
Professors: Christina DeWitt, Anna Hayes, Paul Hughes, Jooyeoun Jung, Michael Qian
Food and Health
Research areas include impacts of whole foods, food components or supplements on human health, gut microbiome, gustatory detection of nutrients, and sensory mechanisms underlying cephalic phase insulin release.
Professors: David Dallas, Jung Kwon, Si Hong Park
Food Microbiology/Biotechnology
Areas of focus include; ecology of food and beverage production, impact of foods and beverages upon human gut microbiota, evolution of antimicrobial resistance, development of strategies to reduce contamination of foods and beverages with pathogenic or spoilage microbes, development of starter cultures for food and beverage fermentation. Research in these areas leverages expertise in microbial physiology, molecular genetics, whole genome sequencing, metagenomics (metabarcoding and shotgun sequencing), transcriptomics (RNAseq) and bioinformatics.
Professors: Chris Curtin, Jovana Kovacevic, James Osborne, Si Hong Park, Joy Waite-Cusic, Luyao Ma, Qingyang Carly Wang
Sensory Science
Research areas include sensory psychophysics, methodology development, and sensory evaluation of foods.
Professors: Tom Shellhammer, Elizabeth Tomasino
Sustainable Food Manufacturing
Research is aimed to increase the sustainability of food processing and packaging through technology innovations by focusing on 1) creating edible, recyclable, and compostable packaging to eliminate single use plastics; 2) developing innovative food coatings to reduce food loss across food chain; 3) upcycling food processing byproducts for novel food and packaging applications; and 4) studying energy efficiency and eco-friendly food processing techniques.
Professors: Christina DeWitt, Qiao Ding, Paul Hughes, Jooyeoun Jung, Jung Kwon, Luyao Ma, Tom Shellhammer, Qingyang Carly Wang, Yanyun Zhao,
SPECIAL RESEARCH TOPICS
Dairy
Research topics in this area include 1) the composition of raw ingredients and microbial ecology of production environments, 2) sustainable dairy processing systems, 3) the quality, safety, nutritional value of finished products, and 4) consumer behavior towards dairy products.
Professors: Chris Curtin, Younas Dadmohammadi, David Dallas, Si Hong Park, Michael Qian, Joy Waite-Cusic, Luyao Ma
Enology/Brewing/Distilling
Studies focus on processing technologies, biochemistry, microbiology and chemistry of beer, wine, and distilling production. Experimental brewery, winery, and distilled spirits laboratory facilities are used for experimental production and research. The pilot research brewery also focuses on raw materials quality.
Professors: Chris Curtin, Paul Hughes, James Osborne, Tom Shellhammer, Elizabeth Tomasino
Seafood
Research topics includes seafood quality, safety, value-added products, and seafood nutrition and human health. Research is conducted at the Seafood Research & Education Center in Astoria and Linus Pauling Science Center.
Professors: Christina DeWitt, Jung Kwon, Luyao Ma
Fruits & Vegetables
Relevant research topics in this area include fresh produce safety, quality, and shelf life, value-added processing, and waste reduction and diversion.
Professors: Qingyang Carly Wang, Luyao Ma