CHICAGO – May 28, 2024 – The Institute of Food Technologists (IFT), a nonprofit scientific organization with global members spanning academia, government, and industry, is pleased to announce that Mary Ann Lila, PhD, Professor of Food, Bioprocessing, and Nutrition Sciences and Director of the Plants for Human Health Institute at North Carolina State University, has been selected as a 2024 IFT Fellow, one of the highest honors bestowed upon a member of the science of food community. Being recognized as an IFT Fellow is a unique professional distinction given to an IFT member who has achieved career excellence in addition to providing significant service and leadership to both IFT and the science of food profession.
Specifically, all nominees must demonstrate professional leadership through leading conferences, presentations, and other training and development programs; service and leadership to external advisory committees or boards; ongoing volunteer service to IFT; honors, awards, and other recognition within the science of food profession, as well as advancements to the science of food in industry, academia, government, or related organizations.
This year’s IFT Fellows will be celebrated at the Fellows Recognition Forum at IFT FIRST: Annual Event and Expo, which is being held July 14-17, 2024, at McCormick Place in Chicago. Only 10 IFT members out of more 11,000 received this prestigious recognition this year.
“Receiving an IFT Fellows designation is an unexpected honor. I have watched throughout my career some of the most prestigious scientists in food science and human nutrition become IFT Fellows,” said Lila. “They are my role models, my mentors. I never expected to one day be included in their ranks.”
Lila joined North Carolina State University as a professor and the Director of its Plants for Human Health Institute in 2008, where she researches the bioactive compounds found in fruits and vegetables. Just two years into her time at NCSU, she was named as the inaugural recipient of the David H. Murdock Distinguished Professorship, receiving part of a $3 million endowment initiated by Murdock, the former CEO of Dole Foods. She is also an affiliate faculty member at the University of Alaska Fairbanks. Previously, she served as a professor at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign for almost 24 years where she was Director of ACES Global Connect and Associate Director of the Functional Foods for Health Program. Her work has spanned across the globe, with her research projects taking her to locales such as Central Asia, Africa, and New Zealand. She is also a past recipient of IFT’s Babcock Hart Award and the Copernico Bronze Medal for Food Science & Nutrition.
Lila received her bachelor's degree in Horticultural Sciences as well as her master’s degree in Plant Pathology from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. She then received her PhD in Plant Biology from the University of Madison-Wisconsin. She is a member of the Dogwood Section of IFT and currently resides in Kannapolis, North Carolina.
View the 2024 IFT Fellows.
The Institute of Food Technologists (IFT) is a global organization of over 11,000 individual members from more than 100 countries committed to advancing the science of food. Since 1939, IFT has brought together the brightest minds in food science, technology and related professions from academia, government, and industry to solve the world’s greatest food challenges. IFT works to ensure that its members have the resources they need to learn, grow, and innovate to advance the science of food as the population and the world evolve. IFT believes that science and innovation is essential to ensuring a global food supply that is sustainable, safe, nutritious, and accessible to all. For more information, please visit ift.org.
Dennis Van Milligen
Director, Public and Media Relations
Institute of Food Technologists
630-853-3022
[email protected]
The Institute of Food Technologists (IFT) is proud to announce that IFT President, Christopher Daubert, PhD, will present the Binsted Lecture on “The Future of Food Science Education” at the Food and Drink Federation’s London office on January 30, 2025.
The Institute of Food Technologists (IFT) is proud to announce that it has partnered with global venture capital firm PeakBridge on the Startup Pavilion at IFT FIRST 2025, being held July 13-16, 2025, at McCormick Place in Chicago.
The Florida Section of the Institute of Food Technologists (IFT) is hosting its annual Suppliers Night Expo on January 23, 2025, at the Rosen Shingle Creek Resort in Orlando.
The Institute of Food Technologists (IFT) announced today that applications are now open for more than 95 undergraduate and graduate scholarships totaling over $200,000.
The 2023 Seeding The Future Global Food System Challenge, funded and initiated by the Seeding The Future Foundation and hosted by the Institute of Food Technologists, attracted over 900 submissions from 78 countries as teams showcased their groundbreaking innovations addressing critical food system challenges.
Americans consumed a record number of dairy products in 2023, signaling that there’s room for both traditional products and innovative offerings within the sector.
News about ingredient companies and other food industry suppliers
In this article, readers will discover the seven packaging innovations—four associated with format and design achievements and three material science discoveries—that have risen to the top in the past half century in terms of positive impact on the food system and consumers worldwide.
The author explores the history and current state of synthetic color and food dye regulations in the United States and suggests the top considerations for product developers when reformulating food and beverage products.
News and trends about the food system.
Get the latest insights from the food science and technology community in the February 2025 episodes of the Omnivore podcast.
Get the latest insights from the food science and technology community in the January 2025 episodes of the Omnivore podcast.
Get the latest insights from the food science and technology community in the January 2025 episodes of the Omnivore podcast.
In this “Best of 2024” episode of Omnivore, Food Technology revisits the top food science and thought leader interview segments of the year.
In this “Best of 2024” episode of Omnivore, Food Technology revisits the top food science and thought leader interviews of the year.