Fellows' Activities

Contributions to IUFoST/WHO INFOSAN collaboration

Fellows have been invited to contribute to the “horizon scanning” for possible adverse events.

Papers/articles for The World of Food Science

Fellows have been invited to contribute papers or articles to the re-launched The World of Food Science.

Involvement in other IUFoST Activities

Individual Fellows have played active parts in progressing the project on Distance Food Education in Sub-Saharan Africa; the IUFoST/FAO Database on research projects relevant to the food needs of developing countries; and as speakers in various IUFoST-sponsored events.

Fellows in the News

International Academy Fellow, Dr Philip E. Nelson is the winner of this year's World Food Prize. Dr. Nelson was announced as the 2007 Laureate by Ambassador Kenneth M. Quinn, President of the World Food Prize Foundation. In making the announcement, Ambassador Quinn stated that Dr. Nelson’s food science research has significantly reduced post-harvest waste and spoilage and greatly increased the availability and accessibility of nutritious food worldwide, particularly in emergency situations. "Dr. Nelson’s pioneering work, which began with tomatoes and later included a variety of seasonal crops, has made it possible to produce ultra-large scale quantities of high quality food" Ambassador Quinn said. "This food can then be stored for long periods of time and transported to all corners of the world without losing nutritional value or taste." Dr. Nelson’s research led to the discovery of methods and equipment to preserve perishable food at ambient temperatures in very large carbon steel tanks (beginning with 100 gallon tanks and increasing in capacity to 8 million gallons). By coating the tanks with epoxy resin and sterilizing the valves and filters, food products were able to be stored and removed without reintroducing contaminants. As a result, enormous quantities of pathogen-free food could be distributed to plants around the world for final processing and packaging. Later partnering with the Scholle Corporation, Dr. Nelson developed a low-cost aseptic "bag-in-box" system for preserving and shipping foods. By the 1980’s, this technology had spread throughout the global food industry. Working with another company, Fran Rica Manufacturing (now part of FMC), Dr. Nelson engineered a variation of the bag sealing fitment as a membrane, which ruptures during the fill and then reseals with a sterilized foil cap. This is now the standard technology used for processing and packaging of aseptically processed foods worldwide. In the developing world, these technologies have made it affordable and convenient to transport and deliver a variety of safe food products without the need for refrigeration, averting loss due to spoilage. Citrosuco, a leading orange juice producer based in Brazil, has used the technology developed by Dr. Nelson to ship up to eight million gallons of orange juice to the United States and Europe. The technology has also been applied to bring potable water and emergency food aid to survivors of the 2004 tsunami in Southeast Asia and the victims of Hurricane Katrina in 2005, as well as to other crisis situations worldwide, and is used in school nutrition programs in developing countries. Significantly, this is the first time that the World Food Prize has been won by a food scientist.

Dr Joseph H. Hulse, Academy Fellow and Past President, IUFoST, has been appointed Foreign Fellow of the Year in the National Academy of Sciences of India. He received this honour for "For his contributions in Industrial Biochemistry" Dr Hulse has had 40 years of involvement in industrial biotechnologies, food and agriculture in India, which began when he raised the funds [some $350,000 in the early 1960s] in Canada, funds which created the International Food Technology Training Centre at Mysore which, since it started in 1964, has trained close to 5000 men and women from 47 developing countries. Dr. Hulse is currently leader of the IUFoST Task Force on Integrated Food Systems for Food Security and Rural Agroindustries.

International Academy Fellows honoured as AIFST celebrates 40 years

The Australian Institute of Food Science and Technology was formed just over 40 years ago, in May 1967, during a Convention in Shepparton, Victoria. Celebrations culminated this year in the 40th Anniversary Convention held in Melbourne, Australia from 24–27 June, 2007.

AIFST Presidents honoured

AIFST’s second and third Presidents, Dr Keith Farrer and Jack Kefford, both now in their 10th decades are still contributing to the Institute and profession. Dr Farrer has been recently recognised by the Institute renaming its prestigious Award of Merit in his honour and Mr Kefford has an award for the best paper published in food Australia each year named in his honour. This reflects his more than 40 years (and ongoing) contribution to the journal. The 13th President Alan Mortimer was the first Australian to be President of the International Union of Food Science and Technology (IUFoST), of which Jack Kefford was also Secretary General for 10 years. Dr Vickery, AIFST’s first President, the sixth President Professor Ron Edwards and 15th President Professor Ken Buckle have also played major roles in IUFoST.