Gravani receives Harris Award; Getting to know Milda Embuscado

Gravani receives Harris Award
The Ohio State University honored Robert Gravani, professor emeritus of food science in the Department of Food Science at Ohio State and director emeritus of the National Good Agricultural Practices Program at Cornell University, with the university’s 2018 Harris Award.

The award celebrates excellence in food science, food technology, or related disciplines and consists of a $3,000 honorarium plus travel expenses to interact with Ohio State faculty, staff, and students. The 2018 Harris Award lecture will take place on November 7 during the university’s Autumn Food Science Seminar Series.

Gravani is a Fellow and past president (2010–2011) of the Institute of Food Technologists and the 2009 recipient of the Carl R. Fellers Award. During his career, he served as science director of the Cereal Institute and as assistant director of the Institute of Food Science and Marketing at Cornell University.

In 1994 and 2007, he received the Cornell Institute of Food Science Teaching Excellence Award and was the 1995 recipient of the International Association for Food Protection Educator Award.

After earning a BS in food science from Rutgers University, Gravani completed MS and PhD degrees from Cornell University. In addition to publishing many scientific and popular articles, he has developed numerous education programs for constituents.

Tools for advocating for the science of food
In response to members expressing a need for more resources to create better awareness about important food science topics, IFT is developing a series of toolkits. The toolkits provide resources to help members advocate for and create a better understanding of food science and its positive impact on our global food supply. The toolkits will contain clearly stated, science-based content to help members convey a scientific perspective on topics or issues as opportunities arise—and to communicate about them in person, or through online channels, especially social media.

The focus of the first toolkit, launched in August, is on the visible issue of date labeling and its impact on food waste. The resources in the Date Labeling Toolkit include key points on the issue itself, along with additional information on how IFT has been involved in addressing the issue, and recent developments. Several images and pre-drafted coordinating text for sharing on social media are available as well.

Toolkit contents may vary, but will typically provide helpful communication resources, including fact sheets, Q&A documents, infographics, sharable media, and pre-drafted posts for sharing on social media channels. Brief guidance on using the resources will also be included. Target audiences for the materials range from general IFT membership to the general public.

Visit ift.org/toolkits to access toolkit resources, and be sure to take advantage of them for your conversations with others and social posting about high-priority topics impacting the science of food.

ELN and CFS programs celebrate fifth anniversary
Emerging Leaders Network (ELN) alumni joined forces with Certified Food Scientists (CFS) in a joint IFT18 celebration that marked five years for both programs. The event drew more than 200 food science professionals.

IFT President Cindy Stewart, CFS, was on hand to give a toast to both programs and congratulate them on their successes. “As stated in our IFT Promises, we are committed to helping with the advancement and development of careers in the science of food around the world while also elevating the profession,” she said. “Both programs play a critical role in helping to accomplish this. They are important milestones for the food science profession because ELN bridges the gap between the participant’s academic experience and their on-the-job training, and CFS establishes the core professional competencies of a food scientist.”

The 2018 ELN Program included 47 participants from seven countries. Participants were organized into groups based on industry segment and were led by eight peer mentors around topics that included career strategy, leading people, collaboration, change management, and emotional intelligence.

Now in its fifth year, the CFS Program formally celebrated a milestone—the 2,000th certification—during the reception. The credential is still the only global food science certification, and credential holders come from 55 countries around the world. All food and beverage consumer goods companies currently listed in the Fortune 500 have Certified Food Scientists on staff. To learn more about the program, visit www.ift.org/certification.

Getting to know Milda Embuscado
Each month, we meet one of IFT’s valued volunteers.

Facing technical challenges and finding ways to solve them are two of the things Milda Embuscado enjoys most about her work as a senior principal scientist in Materials & Processing Technology R&D at McCormick & Co.

“I work on medium and long-term research projects on flavors, flavor encapsulation, emulsion science, and on spices and herbs,” she says. “The primary focus of my current projects is on extraction and encapsulation of flavors, but I am also called upon to find solutions to technical and plant issues.”

Along with Embuscado’s solid base of knowledge, she finds that one of the keys to on-the-job problem solving is being open to the views of others “because you learn from everyone and it should not surprise you when an idea comes from an ‘unlikely’ source.”

Before joining McCormick, Embuscado worked as a research scientist at the Whistler Center for Carbohydrate Research in the Department of Food Science at Purdue University, where she earned her PhD and further developed her passion for research under the tutelage of James BeMiller, a world- renowned carbohydrate chemist and, says Embuscado, “one of the people I admire in our profession.”

The inspiration she received from BeMiller and other mentors—including professors Phil Nelson, Suzanne Nielsen, and Jay Marks from Purdue; Hamed Faridi from McCormick; and Sakharam Patil from Cerestar—taught Embuscado the importance of giving back.

In addition to chairing the Carbohydrate Division, she has twice chaired the Nutraceutical and Functional Foods Division. She has also been a member of the Division Enhancement Committee and the Division Champion Team, and has served on the Annual Meeting Scientific Program Advisory Panel as well as the Leadership Team for Nutraceutical and Functional Foods.

Citing one of her most memorable volunteer experiences, she says, “Being a member of the Division Champion Team has been a very impactful and meaningful experience to me because, as with any organization, the time will come that work needs to be done to make the division become relevant to its goals, to its membership, and to the times—and finding ways to do this is not easy, [but] having that team to interact with has been an exceptional experience; being an active member in a division, one finds fulfillment and friends for life.”

Aside from the sense of accomplishment that comes with volunteering, Embuscado says her work with IFT has benefitted her in other ways. From her fellow members, she has learned “things that otherwise I would not learn in my job because of the diversity of technical expertise of the people one meets at IFT.”

For IFT members who may want to spread their wings and take on a larger role, Embuscado says, “Start by joining a division close to your heart and profession; you don’t have to take on a lot of responsibilities at the start; observe and make friends, and everything falls into place.”

Section Meetings
Bluegrass
Oct. 16: Suppliers’ Night. Louisville, Ky. Click here.

Chicago
Nov. 1: Suppliers’ Night. Rosemont, Ill. Click here.

Dogwood
Oct. 30: Food Industry Expo. Concord, N.C. Click here.

Lewis & Clark
Sept. 18: Suppliers’ Night. Spokane Valley, Wash. Click here.

Sept. 19: Golf Scramble. Liberty Lake, Wash. Click here.

Longhorn
Oct. 18: Suppliers’ Night. Frisco, Texas. Click here.

Minnesota
Oct. 10: Suppliers’ Expo. Minneapolis. Click here.

Philadelphia
Oct. 1: Golf Outing. Avondale, Pa. Click here.

Oct. 23: Suppliers’ Expo. Cinnaminson, N.J. Click here.

Rocky Mountain
Sept. 20: Suppliers’ Night. Denver. Click here.

San Joaquin
Oct. 15: Scholarship Golf Tournament. Fresno, Calif. Click here.

In Memoriam
IFT notes the passing of the following members: Martin Buehler, John R. Norris, and Earl Tveit.

Have some news to share about yourself or another IFT member? Email [email protected].