IFT Research Summit Advisory Panel
The Research Summit is a multi-step initiative intended to create a research “call to action” to help shape funding priorities, identify potential collaborators and outline outcome-based activities that our organization should consider pursuing in the future. It aims to promote and strengthen multidisciplinary research endeavors across our membership, thereby creating greater experiential value for members. This initiative will focus on the following areas: Food, Health & Nutrition; Food Safety & Quality; and Food Processing & Packaging. The Advisory Panel is charged with helping organize the Research Summit (June 2012) and subsequent survey development intended to collect member feedback that will help prioritize research needs and identify potential collaborators.
The idea and need for this summit came from conversations with several of our Divisions who expressed interest in identifying and prioritizing research needed to help grow the field of food science. Additionally, the following divisions helped provide partial funding for the summit: Biotechnology, Carbohydrates, Citrus, Dairy, Food Microbiology and Food Packaging divisions.
Similar views were also expressed at our November 2012 Strategic Retreat as the summit is seen as a way to directly support the following strategic goals:
Research Champion and Innovation Catalyst
Champion emerging sciences and foster technology development, application and transfer to increase funding for food-related research and to support innovation in food science.
Global Citizen and Partner
Proactively contribute to, and be a partner for, the global advancement and application of the science of food.
Research Summit Advisory Panel Roster (PDF)