IFT NEWS
Call for Abstracts for 2003 Annual Meeting
December 3 is the deadline for receipt of abstracts for the 2003 IFT Annual Meeting, to be held in Chicago, Ill., July 12-16.
IFT’s Technical Presentation Subcommittee (TPS) asks those submitting Volunteered Technical Paper abstracts for oral and poster presentations to send in their abstracts prior to December 1 to avoid delays that have been experienced in earlier years (when more than 90% of abstracts were submitted on the final day). Abstracts may only be submitted online. Go to www.ift.org and follow the links to the Abstract Submission page for details.
All abstracts must be offered in one of two categories: “Poster Only” or “Oral or Poster.” This allows Division TPS reviewers the flexibility necessary to schedule sessions. Abstracts be designated to only one IFT Division of your choice for acceptance or rejection. If you are also entering your paper in a Division Student Competition, your abstract must be reviewed by the Division sponsoring the competition.
Abstracts are limited to 300 words or less, and must be organized under the following five subheadings: Justification, Objectives, Methods, Results, and Significance.
These are the key criteria reviewers will address for acceptance of abstracts. A sample abstract is available online. Slide presentations will not be allowed this year, but PowerPoint presentations are acceptable.
• George F. Stewart International Research Paper Competition
This award is designed to recognize food science and technology research conducted in countries other than the United States. The International Division encourages professionals and students entering the competition to consider global food science and technology issues and the needs of all people worldwide.
The Stewart competition is open only to research conducted outside the U.S. and submitted by a primary author who is not a U.S. citizen. At least one author must be a member in good standing of IFT or an IFT Allied Organization. The paper may also be entered in any other IFT Annual Meeting competition. Details are available online.
Those without Internet access should contact the IFT Professional Development Dept., 525 W. Van Buren St., Suite 1000, Chicago, IL 60607 (phone 312-782-8424, fax 312-782-0045).
• Other Deadlines to Note:
Symposium Proposals–September 3 (see July 2002 issue of Food Technology for details)
New Products & Technologies Papers–January 18 (see October 2002 issue)
Forums–March 1 for publication; May 1 is final deadline (see November 2002 issue)
All guidelines and application forms are available on IFT’s Web site at www.ift.org.
Executive Committee Representatives start terms
On September 1, Michele H. Perchonok and Robert B. Gravani began three-year terms as Membership Representatives to the IFT Executive Committee and Bruce M. Chassy and Robert J. Price began three-year terms as Councilor Representatives to the Executive Committee.
Michele Perchonok, an Advanced Food Scientist at the National Space Biomedical Research Institute, Johnson Space Center/NASA, earned a B.S. in chemistry from Brown University and M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in food science from Cornell University. She served as Senior Food Scientist at Quaker Oats Co. from 1983 to 1985 and as Food Scientist at Lockheed Engineering and Management Co. from 1985 to 1986, later as Consultant from 1986 to 87. She also served as Technical Manager at Riviana Foods from 1986 to 2000, before moving to her current position with NASA.
Perchonok has served on a number of IFT committees, including the Committee on Nominations and Elections (Chair 2000-01); Continuing Education Committee (Chair 1999-00); ad hoc Education Coordinating Committee (Chair 1999-00); Annual Meeting Committee; Basic Symposia Committee; Technical Presentation Subcommittee; and Southern Councilor’s Caucus Breakfast (Chair 2000).
An active member of the Product Development Division, Perchonok has served on the Graduate Student Poster Competition Committee (Chair 1998-99) and the Program Committee (Chair 1997-98, Secretary 1995-97). She is also active in the Texas Section, where she has served as Councilor (1995-01), Alternate Councilor (1989-90), Chair (1987-88), Program Chair (1986-87).
Perchonok is also a member of the American Association of Cereal Chemists.
Robert Gravani earned a B.S. in food science from Rutgers University and M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in food science from Cornell University.
He served as Assistant Director of the Institute of Food Science and Marketing at Cornell University from 1973 to 1975. He later served as Science Director at the Cereal Institute, Inc. He returned to Cornell in 1978, where he still serves as a Professor of Food Science. He has served as Visiting Professor in the Dept. of Food Science & Nutrition at the University of Minnesota and as Visiting Scholar in the Dept. of Food Science at the University of Nebraska. He also served as Director of the Empire State Food and Agricultural Leadership Institute (L.E.A.D.) from 1987 to 1989.
An active member of IFT, Gravani has served on a number of national committees, including the Expert Panel on Food Safety & Nutrition; Task Force on Communicating Advocacy; ad hoc Committee on HACCP Activities; Continuing Education Committee (Past Chair 1993-94 and 1985-86, Chair 1992-93 and 1984-85, and Chair-Elect 1991-92 and 1983-84); Public Information Advisory Committee; Food Science & Technology Information Resource; Task Force on IFT Consumer Enhancement & Communications; Bernard L. Oser Award Jury; and Teleconference on Food Safety Considerations in New Product Development (Director 1998).
Gravani’s activities with the Chicago Section include serving on the Program Committee and co-chairing the Suppliers’ Night Symposium. His activities with the Central New York Section include serving on the Board of Directors of the Eastern Food Science & Technology Conference Committee. He is also active in the Foodservice, Extension, Food Microbiology, and Quality Assurance Divisions, where he has served in a number of elected positions and on a number of committees.
Gravani was elected an IFT Fellow in 2000 and received the Quality Assurance Division’s Distinguished Service Award in 2001. He has also received a number of awards outside IFT, including the International Association for Food Protection (IAFP) Citation Award and Educator Award; USDA Certificate of Appreciation for Outstanding Contributions to the National Advisory Committee on Microbiological Criteria for Foods; and Cornell Institute of Food Science Teaching Excellence Award.
Gravani has also served as President of IAFP and is a member of the American Society for Microbiology, New York State Association for Food Protection, Association of Food and Drug Officials, Council for Agricultural Science and Technology, and National Restaurant Association.
Bruce Chassy is currently with the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign as Executive Associate Director, Biotechnology Center, and Assistant Dean, Office of Research, College of Agricultural, Consumer, and Environmental Sciences. He holds a Ph.D. in biochemistry from Cornell University.
An active member of IFT, Chassy has served on the Expert Panel on Food Safety and Nutrition (Chair 2000-01); Technical Presentation Subcommittee; Awards Committee (Chair 2001-02); Committee on Nominations and Elections; Midwest Breakfast Caucus (Chair 2001); and Council Issues & Agenda Committee.
Chassy has also served as Chair and as an Executive Committee Member of the Biotechnology Division, as well as Career Guidance Committee Chair and as a Councilor of the Chicago Section.
Chassy received the U.S. Public Health Service Special Distinction Award in 1985 and the Society for Industrial Microbiology Distinguished Service Award in 1984. He is active in the American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, the American Society for Microbiology, and the American Society for the Advancement of Science.
Robert Price is currently Extension Specialist in Seafood Products at the University of California, Davis. He earned a B.A. from the University of Minnesota and M.S. and Ph.D. degrees from Oregon State University. Prior to his current position, he served as a Food Technologist with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
Price has served on a number of IFT committees, including the Annual Meeting Organizing Committee; Annual Meeting Sessions Committee (Chair 1981-82); Committee on Membership and Professional Affairs (Chair 1984-86); Continuing Education Committee; ad hoc Committee on Expanding Continuing Education Programs; ad hoc Committee on HACCP Programs; Information Systems Committee; and Task Force on Professional Membership Criteria (Chair 2000-01).
An active member of the Seafood Technology Division, Price has served as Division Steering Committee Chair, Executive Committee Member, Student Award Committee Chair, Technical Presentations Subcommittee Representative, and Councilor. Price is also active in the Northern California Section, where he has served on the Executive Committee and the Member of the Year Committee and as Councilor, Program Chair, Chair, and Past-Chair.
Price was elected an IFT Fellow in 1988. He has also received the Northern California Section of the International Association of Milk, Food and Environmental Sanitarians Best Food Paper Award (1993); 50th Anniversary Commemorative Award for Outstanding Teaching of Food Science and Technology (1989), Outstanding Member of the Year Award (1995); and Outstanding Leadership Award, USDA, Cooperative State Research, Education and Extension Service (1999).
He is also a member of the International Association for Food Protection and Pacific Fisheries Technologists.
IFT Initiates Series of Summit Conferences
IFT is initiating a series of Summit Conferences to define research needs in particular areas. The first two conferences will be held in Orlando, Fla., in January 2003 and will focus on rapid measurement of bacterial spores and kinetics of inactivation of microbial populations.
The conference series are the result of recommendations by the IFT Frontiers in Food Science ad hoc Committee chaired by Daryl Lund, Executive Director of the North Central Regional Association of State Agricultural Experiment Station Directors and Professor of Food Engineering, Food Science Dept., University of Wisconsin, Madison.
The conferences are designed to facilitate effective interchange of information among scientists conducting basic research with those conducting applied research. They will feature in-depth coverage of a narrowly focused topic; use world-class researchers as speakers, discussants, and other resource persons; and limit attendance to facilitate effective discussions. The speakers will be world-renowned in their respective areas of research, some of whom will be from nonfood basic research areas. The programs will not only cover university research, but will also actively encourage inputs from industry and government sources.
The first conference, “Rapid Measurement of Bacterial Spores and Other Dormant Difficult-to-Measure Microorganisms—Emphasizing Quantitative Methods and Nanotechnology,” will be held on January 12–14, 2003. Organized by Frank F. Busta, Professor Emeritus and Emeritus Head, Dept. of Food Science and Nutrition, University of Minnesota, the conference will provide a forum for discussion of the present knowledge of the physiology of bacterial spores and other dormant, difficult-to-enumerate microbial groups; the rapid and/or quantitative methods that are used to measure these microbial populations; the current state of advanced techniques such as nanotechnology that are or may be used to accomplish effective evaluation of the viability of these cells; and the identification of research needs on this topic.
The second conference, “Kinetics of Inactivation of Microbial Populations—Emphasizing Models for Non-Log-Linear Microbial Curves,” will be held on January 14–16, 2003. Organized by Dennis Heldman, Professor of Food Engineering, Dept. of Food Science, Rutgers University, the conference will provide a forum for discussion of the appropriate kinetic models to be used for description of survivor curves for microbial populations during preservation processes for foods and identification of research needs on this topic.
Each conference is limited to 150 participants to facilitate effective discussion. Participation is by invitation only in order to attract the most distinguished cutting-edge researchers. If you would like to participate or suggest other notable scientists as participants, contact IFT’s Washington, D.C., office by e-mail at [email protected].
World Food Summit focuses on hunger reduction
The Food & Agriculture Organization of the United Nations held a conference entitled “World Food Summit: Five Years Later” in Rome, Italy, on June 10-13, 2002 and invited world leaders to consider ways to accelerate the progress toward the goal of the 1996 summit to reduce world hunger by 50% by the year 2015. FAO Director-General Jacques Diouf said that the summit was held to marshal the political will to reduce world hunger because the goal would not be reached by “business as usual.”
Representatives of 182 countries attended the summit. IFT was represented by Kenneth S. Marsh, President of Kenneth S. Marsh & Associates, Ltd. and Executive Director of the Woodstock Institute for Science in Service to Humanity (WIS2H), Central, S.C.
The summit—specifically the United States delegation headed by Secretary of Agriculture Ann Veneman—endorsed biotechnology as one of the opportunities to increase agricultural production. Genetic modification technology was also embraced by many leaders of developing countries who recognized increases in yields and disease resistance of GMO crops.
In discussions during a seminar entitled “Expanding Global Food Supplies without Increasing Production?” Marsh promoted postharvest technologies. Although the emphasis of the summit is increasing agricultural production, he said, delivering that production is a vital component of the system. Therefore, technologies which extend the usable life of foods, such as controlled-atmosphere storage, irradiation, processing, packaging, and efficient transportation, are vital to the success of the summit goals, he concluded.
IFT Develops New Online IFT FOOD EXPO® Buyer’s Guide
The Institute of Food Technologists has developed a comprehensive online resource for food technologists, food manufacturers, and others looking for food ingredient information.
The new online IFT Food Expo Highlights and Buyer’s Guide contains all the information on food ingredients, food laboratories, food processing and packaging, and food services that appeared in the 2002 IFT Annual Meeting & Food Expo Program and Exhibit Directory, plus all the editorial coverage that appeared in the pre-show and post-show issues of Food Technology magazine.
Suppliers may be searched using keywords or categories, and the results can then be sorted alphabetically or by location. This will help food technologists locate an ingredient supplier locally. The editorial coverage is divided by ingredient, laboratory, processing, and packaging subject areas and is completely searchable as well.
According to James H. Giese, IFT’s Internet Editor, “This is a project we have envisioned for a while. It will help us to answer the many member queries concerning suppliers of a particular food ingredient or testing equipment.”
The online Buyer’s Guide may be found at: www.ift.org/buyersguide.
December issue to feature Nutraceutical & Functional Food Buyer’s Guide
Acknowledging the growing interest in nutraceuticals and functional foods, IFT is launching Food Technology’s Nutraceutical & Functional Food Buyer’s Guide. The first annual buyer’s guide will appear in the December 2002 issue of Food Technology and will also be available on IFT’s Web site, www.ift.org, which averages more than 100,000 visits per month.
Suppliers of ingredients for nutraceuticals and functional foods who want to be included, free of charge, in the buyer’s guide should contact Linda Ohr at [email protected] or 630-204-6957, or Denise Bayers at 800-438-3663 ext. 269.
Reminder to Councilors:
Ballots for President-Elect, Council Representatives to the Executive Committee, Membership Representatives to the Executive Committee, and Committee on Nominations and Elections Representatives are due November 1.
Assistant Editor