Meet IFT’s 2017 Achievement Award Winners

IFT has celebrated the achievements of its members for more than 75 years, beginning with the presentation of the very first Nicolas Appert Award during the 1942 annual meeting. IFT now honors members and organizations in 19 different categories that are collectively known as the IFT Achievement Awards. Though the criteria for the selection of each individual award differs, together the Achievement Awards recognize remarkable contributions in research, applications, and service in food science and technology. IFT has grouped these diverse awards into four groups that reflect the category of work they honor: Excellence in Leadership (Teaching, Service, Leadership), Global Impact, IFT Leadership, and Innovation. Not all awards are presented annually, and several awards are funded through the support of IFT’s foundation, Feeding Tomorrow.

Regardless of the award type, the selection process is the same. A jury of IFT members and volunteers appointed by the IFT Office of the President and led by a jury chair reviews nominations, completes ballots, and notifies IFT of the winner. Award selection would not be possible without the service of the IFT members who volunteer as award jury participants and those who nominate their peers for recognition.

“Winning the Nicolas Appert Award was one of the proudest accomplishments in my career as a food scientist,” says E. Allen Foegeding, the 2016 recipient. “To me, it acknowledges the combined efforts of my students and colleagues and the opportunities presented by the many agencies and organizations that have supported my research and teaching career. I applaud the IFT Achievement Award program for making such an award available and look forward to seeing the new round of awardees each year.”

Another 2016 Achievement Award honoree had this to say about her recognition. Winning the 2016 Trailblazer Award “was such an honor to follow in the footsteps of the two previous winners, Johanna Dwyer and Gil Leveille, both giants in the field,” reflects Connie Weaver. “The award represents recognition for work between foods and nutrition, which is vitally important to the health of consumers.”

This year’s recipients reflect a diverse group of scientists whose work touches all facets of food science. They will be honored at IFT17 during the Awards Celebration on Sunday, June 25, at the Venetian Ballroom in Las Vegas; the ceremony welcomes recipients’ friends and family as well as all IFT17 attendees. Afterward, everyone can continue their celebration at the Welcome Reception.

Congratulations to the 2017 Achievement Award recipients.

Nicolas Appert Award
Jozef Kokini, PhD, Purdue University

Jozef L. Kokini is currently the Scholle Endowed Chair in Food Processing in the Dept. of Food Science at Purdue University. He was the Bingham Professor of Food Engineering and the associate dean of research and director of the Illinois Experiment Station at the University of Illinois. Prior to that, he was the chair of the Dept. of Food Science and director of the Center for Advanced Food Technology and Distinguished Professor of Food Engineering at Rutgers University. His research has focused on rheology, extrusion, materials science, and engineering properties of food materials, including carbohydrates and proteins. He has published more than 240 refereed journal papers and book chapters. He has received numerous awards, including the International Assoc. of Engineering and Food Lifetime Achievement Award in 2011, and was elected Fellow of IFT in 2000.

Babcock-Hart Award
Eric Decker, PhD, University of Massachusetts

Eric Decker has received the 2017 Babcock-Hart Award for his pioneering scientific research on lipids and oxidation and his outstanding work in developing new technologies that stabilize highly unstable nutritionally beneficial lipids, such as omega-3 fatty acids and carotenoids, thus enhancing the nutritive value of foods containing unsaturated lipids.

William V. Cruess Award for Excellence in Teaching
Soo-Yeun Lee, PhD, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Soo-Yeun Lee has received the 2017 William V. Cruess Award for Excellence in Teaching. Lee teaches undergraduate and graduate level sensory science courses at the University of Illinois, and her expertise in sensory science offers her students an exciting, multidimensional approach to learning. Peers and students describe her as an exceptionally effective teacher and mentor who motivates and inspires students, facilitates their learning, and encourages them to be creative when tackling new problems.

Carl R. Fellers Award
Suzanne Nielsen, PhD, Purdue University

Suzanne Nielsen is the recipient of the 2017 Carl R. Fellers Award for her dedication to IFT and Phi Tau Sigma. Her passion for food science and her students has been evident in the classroom and the laboratory. She is an exemplary leader not only at Purdue University but also as an IFT and Phi Tau Sigma volunteer.

Food Technology Industrial Achievement Award
Christopher Doona, PhD, CFS, U.S. Army Natick Soldier Research, Development, and Engineering Center

Christopher Doona was awarded the 2017 IFT Food Technology Industrial Achievement Award for outstanding innovations in nonthermal processing of foods that contributed to a safer food supply and improved human health during the Ebola crisis. His research for the U.S. Army Natick Soldier Research, Development, and Engineering Center in food safety, water recycling, and decontamination includes novel chlorine dioxide technologies that filled critical needs in public health to control the spread of Ebola.

W.K. Kellogg International Food Security Award and Lectureship
Manjeet Chinnan, PhD, University of Georgia

Manjeet Chinnan received the 2017 W.K. Kellogg International Food Security Award and Lectureship for his leadership in successfully developing technologies for the reduction of aflatoxins in peanuts in nonindustrialized countries and coordinating efforts to enhance industrial development of nutrient-fortified peanut-based products in Asia, Eastern Europe, the Caribbean, and Africa over several years.

Bor S. Luh International Award
Joseph Jen, PhD, California Polytechnic State University

Joseph Jen was chosen for the Bor S. Luh International Award for his leadership in international food safety through his roles as professor, dean, U.S. Dept. of Agriculture undersecretary, and chair of the advisory council of the Bor S. Luh Food Safety Research Center in China. His advancement of public-private partnerships to facilitate food safety training to small- and medium-size food companies in China and his role as co-editor for China’s leading book on food safety have been instrumental in modernizing food safety procedures in the country. Jen embodies the altruistic spirit of his former colleague and friend Bor S. Luh.

Samuel Cate Prescott Award for Research
Emmanuel Hatzakis, PhD,
The Ohio State University

Emmanuel Hatzakis is the recipient of the 2017 Samuel Cate Prescott Award for his outstanding work in the application of nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy in the field of food science and nutrition. His work is creative, technical, and productive; he is top ranked as he continues to develop new research initiatives.

Research and Development Award
Gustavo V. Barbosa-Cánovas, PhD, Washington State University

Gustavo V. Barbosa-Cánovas received the 2017 Research and Development Award for his vital contributions to the advancement of nonthermal processing of food in the last 24 years and for setting the stage for continued development of this research area. He has influenced the field through his numerous publications and patents, developing product applications, establishing worldwide collaborations, and leading IFT’s Nonthermal Division to provide an appropriate forum for professionals engaged in this area and beyond.

Sensory and Consumer Sciences Achievement Award
Michael O’Mahony, PhD, University of California, Davis

Michael O’Mahony was chosen for the 2017 Sensory and Consumer Sciences Achievement Award for his leadership and contributions in identifying the models that form an underlying theoretical framework for the fields of sensory and consumer science and testing their assumptions, specifically in the area of experimentation and adoption of Thurstonian models to allow researchers to relate methods to each other and decide whether a new methodology will provide accurate and reliable results. His work serves as an influential factor in the development of many future scientists.

Calvert L. Willey Distinguished Service Award
V.M. Balasubramaniam, PhD,
The Ohio State University

V.M. “Bala” Balasubramaniam is being recognized for his exemplary service and leadership to IFT and his outstanding contributions to the field of food science and technology. Balasubramaniam is a founding member and enthusiastic promoter of the IFT Nonthermal Processing Division and has helped to organize 19 international nonthermal processing workshops. Such efforts identified IFT as the global promoter of the science of food. Balasubramaniam and his colleagues contributed to the development of nonthermal technologies, particularly high pressure processing, and disseminated the knowledge via various presentations and webinars. In addition, he helped to train a new generation of food scientists and engineers.

Gerhard Haas Achievement Award
P. Michael Davidson, PhD, CFS, University of Tennessee

P. Michael Davidson is the recipient of the 2017 Gerhard Haas Achievement Award and is being recognized for his creative research in microbial aspects of food safety. Davidson’s research has focused on the evaluation of novel natural antimicrobials to control foodborne pathogens, the applicability of these compounds in foods, delivery systems for sustained release of antimicrobials in foods, and standardization of evaluation methods for food antimicrobials, as well as modes of action for food antimicrobial compounds. His research has allowed the food industry to better apply these compounds in products for improved safety and quality.

Elizabeth Fleming Stier Award
Louise Wicker, PhD, Louisiana State University

Louise Wicker received the 2017 Elizabeth Fleming Stier Award for her outstanding leadership, academic advising, and numerous contributions to IFT and her local community. Her dedication over the years to the academic advising and mentoring of both undergraduate and graduate students has made significant contributions to the field of food science and nutrition.

Myron Solberg Award Francis F. Busta, PhD, CFS,
University of Minnesota

Francis F. (Frank) Busta is the recipient of the 2017 Myron Solberg Award for his leadership in the establishment, successful development, and continuation of the National Center for Food Protection and Defense and its continuation as the Food Protection and Defense Institute at the University of Minnesota. This organization illustrates sustained collaboration among industry, government, and academic parties to develop and disseminate information as appropriate to defend the safety of the food system through research and education.

Gilbert A. Leveille Award and Lectureship
* Award administered by the American Society for Nutrition in odd years
Guy H. Johnson, PhD, Johnson Nutrition Solutions

Guy H. Johnson is principal of Johnson Nutrition Solutions. He is an adjunct associate professor in the Dept. of Food Science and Human Nutrition at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and received the Alumni Award of Merit from the College of Agricultural, Consumer, and Environmental Sciences in 2008. Johnson currently serves as executive director of the McCormick Science Institute, where he chairs a blue-ribbon scientific advisory council dedicated to advancing scientific knowledge on the health benefits of culinary herbs and spices. He is also an IFT Fellow and a fellow of the American Society for Nutrition.

*The Trailblazer Award & Lectureship is given out in odd years by the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. The 2017 recipient was not chosen prior to Food Technology press time.