EDUCATION NEWS
Georgia food microbiologists honored by CDC
University of Georgia food microbiologists Larry Beuchat and Michael Doyle have been awarded the Partners in Public Health Award by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Beuchat and Doyle are researchers with the UGA College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences’ Center for Food Safety in Griffin, Ga. They were nominated for the award by administrators at the National Center for Infectious Diseases.
Beuchat was selected for the CDC honor based on his work on several outbreaks of salmonellosis that were associated with raw tomatoes. Before his research, tomatoes were not viewed as potential vehicles for transmission of Salmonella. His research showed that the pathogen can grow and multiply on raw tomatoes at room temperature.
Doyle, director of the Center for Food Safety, was selected for his participation in several investigations of large foodborne disease outbreaks. These investigations included a 1985 midwestern U.S. outbreak of salmonellosis which affected 250,000 people and the 1993 hamburger-associated E. coli O157:H7 outbreak in western U.S. states.
Working with CDC, Beuchat and Doyle conducted research to see whether Shigella multiplies in parsley under restaurant conditions and, if so, how this can be prevented. Their studies revealed that Shigella multiply much faster when parsley is chopped and kept at room temperature, a common practice in the restaurant business.
Beuchat has worked on joint projects with CDC for the past seven years and Doyle for the past 15 years.
Foegeding receives Reynolds Professorship
North Carolina State University food science professor E. Allen Foegeding has been appointed the William Neal Reynolds Professor of Agriculture. The professorship is the highest honor open to faculty members in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. William Neal Reynolds established the endowment creating the professorships in 1950. Foegeding is the 5th Food Science Dept. professor to be named to this exclusive group of 20.
Foegeding came to NCSU in 1982. His areas of research include food protein functionality, applied rheology of food systems, and protein–hydrocolloid interactions. He teaches graduate and undergraduate courses and serves as a First Year College Fellow. Foegeding also holds membership on the Committee of Food Chemicals Codex of the Food and Nutrition Board and is a Fellow of the American Chemical Society.
University of Wisconsin elects Wendorff as Chair
Bill Wendorff was recently elected Chair of the Dept. of Food Science at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He received his BS and MS in Dairy and Food Industries and PhD in Food Science from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He joined the faculty as the Extension Dairy Manufacturing Specialist in the Food Science Dept. after 20 years of employment in the food industry.
Wendorff is best known for his development and coordination of continuing education short courses for dairy industry personnel. Although the majority of his appointment is with Extension, Wendorff also conducts an applied research program dealing with physical and sensory problems in cheese, regulatory and environmental problems of the dairy industry, and processing of sheep milk. He is a member of the Institute of Food Technologists, American Dairy Science Association, International Association of Food Protection, and Wisconsin Association of Milk and Food Sanitarians. Wendorff will replace James Steele as chair, who has stepped down to resume a more active program in research on genetics of lactic cultures.
Rankin joins Wisconsin faculty
University of Wisconsin has announced the addition of Scott A. Rankin to the Food Science Dept. as Assistant Professor of Food Science and Extension Food Processing Specialist. He plans to develop and provide outreach programs to the dairy and food processing industry, plus perform applied research to support those processors.
Rankin was formerly an Assistant Professor at the University of Maryland, where he established a major extension program in dairy, fruits and vegetables, and meat processing. He received his BS and MS in food science and nutrition at Brigham Young University and his PhD in food science and technology from Oregon State University. He is a member of the American Dairy Science Association and the Institute of Food Technologists. He serves on the Executive Committee of the IFT Dairy Foods Division.
University of Nebraska launches biotech safety Web site
The University of Nebraska has launched a new Web site designed to help consumers and students understand agricultural biotechnology. AgBiosafety (www.agbiosafety.unl.edu) features a comprehensive database of safety information on each of the biotech crops currently on the market. The Web site also contains lesson plans for teachers, basic biotechnology information for consumers, and summaries on various biotechnology issues.
In partnership with Canada-based Agriculture & Biotechnology Strategies Inc. (AGBIOS), the site was developed with the support of a competitive grant from the Council for Biotechnology Information. Content for the site is provided by a variety of independent biotech academics, scientists, and professors at the university, who maintain editorial control over the site.