IFT NEWS

Call for Nominations for IFT Fellow
The Institute of Food Technologists is now seeking nominations for election as IFT Fellow. “Fellow” is a unique professional distinction conferred on individuals with outstanding and extraordinary qualifications and experience for their contributions in food science and technology.

Nominees must have been an IFT Member for 15 years or more and hold Professional Member status at the time of nomination. If a nominee is an IFT Professional Member from outside the United States, the 15-year Member requirement may be waived by the Awards Committee.

Nomination forms and instructions may be obtained by visiting the IFT Web site at www.ift.org; using the IFT e-XPRESS fax-on-demand service by dialing 800-234-0270 in the U.S. and Canada (650-556-9176 elsewhere) at any time and requesting Document 3510; or writing to Patti Pagliuco at the Institute of Food Technologists, 221 N. La Salle Street, Suite 300, Chicago, IL 60601-1291 (E-mail: [email protected]).

Deadline for receipt of nominations is February 1, 2001.

Snowdon joins IFT as Director of Science and Technology Projects
Jill A. Snowdon, formerly Director of Food Safety Programs with the Egg Nutrition Center, Washington, D.C., will join the IFT staff on October 1, 2000, as Director of Science and Technology Projects. She will be located in the IFT satellite office in Washington. In this new position, Snowdon will expand opportunities for IFT to utilize its scientific experience to address food-related issues.

At the Egg Nutrition Center, Snowdon was responsible for scientific information on food safety as it relates to the production and marketing of eggs and egg products. She served as a technical resource for the egg industry, public health community, and government officials. Recently, she developed research and education programs on eggs and Salmonella enteritidis and provided technical support for the interagency Egg Safety Action Plan developed by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Food and Drug Administration.

Snowdon’s experience also includes eight years as President of SGA Associates, where she served as an advisor to the agricultural and public health communities. Her responsibilities there included support for food safety crisis situations; developing objectives, strategies, and tactics for long-range planning; identifying research needs and supervising research projects; serving as liaison to regulatory agencies; developing materials for industry education; and communicating complex technical information to nontechnical audiences. Prior to that, she was with the United Fruit and Vegetable Association, where she concentrated on applying the principles of food toxicology and microbiology to the needs of the produce industry.

As the 1987–88 Congressional Science Fellow for the American Society of Microbiology, Snowdon analyzed food safety issues as a staff member for the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry, then chaired by Sen. Leahy. She also served as a Visiting Fellow at the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, where she studied foodborne disease epidemiology.

Snowdon received her B.S. degree in biology from Millersville State University, Millersville, Pa., then earned both an M.S. in food chemistry and a Ph.D. in food safety/environmental toxicology from the University of Wisconsin, Madison.

Baird promoted to Senior Editor, Journal of Food Science
Food Technology’s Assistant Editor Betsy Baird has been promoted to Senior Editor, Journal of Food Science, effective August 31, 2000. In her new position, Baird will edit JFS articles and oversee article tracking and peer review, working with the journal’s Editor-in-Chief, Owen R. Fennema, and all Associate Scientific Editors to improve the quality and timeliness of IFT’s prime research journal.

Betsy has been at IFT since 1988 as News Editor, later Assistant Editor, of Food Technology. In these roles, she wrote the ten columns produced under the News Analysis and IFT News sections of Food Technology and assorted feature articles as assigned, including articles for IFT Today. She also edited incoming feature articles and contributing columns; managed such projects as Food Technology reprint orders, mail distribution, record keeping, and the photo library; and served as a department resource for incoming queries telephoned or e-mailed from IFT members. Previously, she acted as staff liaison to the Continuing Education Committee.

Prior to joining IFT, she worked in various industries as an Executive Assistant and also established her own business as secretarial consultant and word processor. She has a B.A. in history from Indiana University, Bloomington; and a Certificate in Technical Communications from the Illinois Institute of Technology, Chicago.

Calls and Guidelines for 2001 IFT Annual Meeting
The Institute of Food Technologists is seeking papers and proposals for next year’s IFT Annual Meeting in New Orleans, La., June 23–27, 2001. Complete instructions and forms for the following papers and other presentations may be obtained through the IFT Web site (www.ift.org) or use the IFT e-XPRESS fax-on-demand service at any time by dialing 1-800-234-0270 (in the U.S. and Canada) or 1-650-556-9176 (elsewhere in the world) and requesting the desired document number. If you wish, you may also write to the Institute of Food Technologists, 221 N. LaSalle Street, Suite 300, Chicago, IL 60601-1291.  

by BETSY BAIRD
Assistant Editor