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Department of Food Science and Technology

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Food Science and Technology News: February/March 2023 Department Highlights

  • Congratulations to the members of our department who were recognized during the 2023 CFAES Awards program this year: Dr. Melvin Pascall – Distinguished Diversity Enhancement Award, Dr. Osvaldo Campanella – Distinguished International Research and Engagement Award, and Dr. Jiyoung Lee – Innovator of the Year Award. Dr. Luis Rodriguez-Saona was also recognized as a recently named 2022-2023 Distinguished Professor of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences.
  • Congratulations to FST undergraduate students Gabriella Gephart, Celeste Miller, and Cam Rich who have been named 2023 CFAES Distinguished Seniors. They are three of the twenty-five seniors who have received the most prestigious undergraduate award at The Ohio State University College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences (CFAES). The Distinguished Senior Award honors top graduating seniors on the Ohio State Columbus campus who exemplify the CFAES mission in areas such as academics and scholarship, research and innovation, service and involvement, and influence and leadership.
  • Our department was well represented at this year’s Edward F. Hayes Graduate Research Forum. Congratulations to the following students who placed in the oral presentations: 1st place - Abbie Sommer; 2nd place - Hetian Hu (FABE advised by Dr. Balasubramaniam); 3rd place - Samuel Hoffman. Congratulations also to the students who placed in the poster presentations: 1st place - Daniel Do; 3rd place - Veeramani Karuppuchamy.
  • Congratulations to FST student Gabriella Gephart on her 1st place finish at the 2023 Denman Undergraduate Research Forum. Her poster was titled “Isolation of antimicrobial-producing bacteria from artisanal cheeses and characterization of potentially novel antimicrobial agents produced” and was in the ‘Health Under the Microscope’ category. Gabriella was advised by Dr. Ahmed Yousef.
  • Congratulations to the following students who were recognized at the CFAES Annual Research Forum Poster Competition: Undergraduate Food Science category – 1st place Gabriella Gephart; PhD Category – tied for 3rd place Hetian Hu (FABE) and Brianda Gonzalez-Orozco. We also had several other FST students participating - Undergraduates: Joseph Bogdanovitch and Cam Rich; MS students: Jessica Laemont, Lauren Ma, and Lu Xun; PhD Students: Stephanie Almquist, Daniel Do, Xinyue Fan, Jane Fu, Veeramani Karuppuchamy, Manpreet Kaur, Kevin Kim, Yutong Li, Howard Park, Carlos Porras Guardado, Thomas Reis, Silvette Ruiz-Ramirez, and Abigail Sommer.
  • Congratulations to Jessica Lau and Abby Nukuto who have been selected as FST Undergraduate Peer Mentors for the 2023/24 academic year. They will be joining returning mentors, Rachel Barrett, Jenny Cong, Noah Dameron, Dominick Goodman, Talia Katz, and Jack Pettit. Thanks to our FST Peer Mentors for their service throughout the year, and a special thank you to Gabriella Gephart and Cam Rich, who will be graduating during spring semester.
  • Liddie Ainsworth has been selected as a Newcomb Scholar in the College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences (CFAES) for the 2022-23 academic year. This award, among the highest honors presented to undergraduate students in the college, celebrates your outstanding commitment to scholarship.
  • The department recently held their 2nd Annual FoodSURE Undergraduate Research Poster Competition. The event was held in the Parker Food Science and Technology Lobby and showcased the research of undergraduate students who are conducting research in our department and participating in our FoodSURE program. Congratulations to the following students who placed in the competition: Ongoing/Completed category – 1st place was Gabriella Gephart and tied for 2nd was Murphy Carroll and Cam Rich; Proposal category – 1st place was Talia Katz.
  • Post-Doctoral Researcher Dr. Jerish Joyner Janahar and graduate student Siyu Yao have received an FST Graduate Student Research Award. This award recognizes and celebrates graduate student success in publishing high quality research in a timely manner.
  • Dr. Sheryl Barringer talks about fungi in flour, pancakes, and HBO’s “The Last of Us” in an article published in the Conversation. The Conversation also published her article on “The fascinating chemistry of chocolate.”
  • Dr. VM ‘Bala' Balasubramaniam and Dr. Melvin Pascall participated as featured breakout speakers during the 2023 CIFT Ohio Food Industry Summit.
  • Post Doctoral Researcher Dr. Jerish Joyner Janahar was inducted in the Buckeye Chapter of Phi Tau Sigma which is an honor society for Food Science and Technology.
  • FST Interim Chair Dr. Martha Belury has been named to the Ohio State Presidential Search Committee. She will serve on the University Advisory Subcommittee which is made up of faculty, staff and students. That committee will collaborate with the Presidential Selection Subcommittee in identifying a candidate that the Presidential Search Committee will recommend to the board.
  • Popular Science included Dr. Yael Vodovotz in an article about faba beans as a new ingredient of white bread.
  • Dr. Christopher Simons was included in a Consumer Reports article that talked about the best tortilla chips and potato chips for your dip.
  • Food Safety Magazine highlighted a joint project between Dr. ‘VM’ Bala Balasubramaniam and Dr. Abigail Snyder of Cornell University on superheated steam.
  • A number of alumni and faculty were mentioned in an article by the Lantern that talked about food science and social media.
  • The newly released 2022 FDA Food Code includes amendments submitted by Dr. Nicole Arnold to harmonize definitions for mechanically tenderized beef, and to acknowledge new requirements to label mechanically tenderized beef products.
  • Nominations are open for the 2023 FST Hall of Distinction. Established in 2013, the Hall of Distinction seeks to recognize graduates and friends of the Department of Food Science and Technology at The Ohio State University who have made significant contributions to the food science and technology profession. Click here for more information and the nomination form.
  • Know of a great food scientist in industry or academia but they’re NOT from Ohio State? Nominations are being accepted for suitable candidates from all persons or groups in the food science profession for the 2023 OSU Harris Award for Excellence in Food Science & Technology. The purpose of the Harris Award at The Ohio State University is to celebrate excellence in food science, food technology or related disciplines. Click here for more information.
  • The department’s Spring 2023 seminar schedule can be found here and takes place on Wednesday’s from 4:00 pm -5:00 pm in Parker Food Science and Technology room 118 and via Zoom. Please email elisar.1@osu.edu or chatzakis.1@osu.edu if you would like the link to any of the seminars. All are welcome to attend.


Upcoming Events
April 5                    Department Seminar
Student Presentations: Siyu Yao, Jennifer Jordan, and Jeffrey Eiseman


April 12                   Department Seminar
Student Presentations: Megan Booth, Devanshi Tyagi, and visiting scholar Jiyoon Moon

April 13                   OVIFT Poster Competition and Industry Event

April 17 – 18           Food Industries Center Training Course
Introductory HACCP
https://www.go.osu.edu/haccp

April 19                 Department Seminar
Student Presentations: Jessica Laemont, Sherry Bansal, and Dila Donmez

April 19 – 21          Food Industries Center Training Course
FSPCA - Preventive Controls for Human Food Training
https://www.go.osu.edu/fspca

May 5                    FST Spring Semester Graduation Party
2:30 – 3:30 Parker Food Science and Technology Lobby