The Institute of Food Technologists (IFT), a nonprofit scientific affiliation devoted to advancing food science and its software throughout the worldwide food system, is internet hosting a webinar series moderated by IFT Chief Science and Technology Officer Brendan Niemira. The series will preview a few of the particular person scientific sessions on the upcoming IFT FIRST Annual Event and Expo, which is being held July 12-15, 2026, at McCormick Place in Chicago.
Free and open to the general public, the webinar series Talking Science with the Chief Science and Technology Officer will function 4 digital sessions dedicated to the next matters:
- Science Meets Circularity: Ingredients, Packaging, and the New Rules of Sustainability
- What’s New in Plant Protein?
- Next-Generation Processing: Nonthermal Technologies Shaping Food Safety and Quality
- Hot Concepts in Food Science
“Each scientific presentation at IFT FIRST delivers more than research—it provides actionable science that professionals can take back to their labs, plants, and classrooms to drive real-world impact across the food system. From breakthrough research to emerging technologies, the individual scientific presentations at IFT FIRST showcase the breadth and depth of food science, sparking new ideas and accelerating progress toward creating a healthier future for food,” mentioned Niemira.
“These intimate Q&A sessions will not only provide a rare preview of these invaluable discussions taking place at IFT FIRST but allow the global food community to connect with some of our leaders who are improving food through research, science, and technology,” Niemira
continued.
Science Meets Circularity: Ingredients, Packaging, and the New Rules of Sustainability
The session titled Science Meets Circularity: Ingredients, Packaging, and the New Rules of Sustainability is ready for May 26 at 12 p.m. Central and will function audio system Nandika Bandara, affiliate professor on the University of Manitoba, Kevin E. Mis Solval, affiliate professor on the University of Georgia, and co-founder and chief scientific officer for JellyCoUSA, and Colin Preston, managing guide for Ramboll Management Consulting.
Bandara’s session, titled, How Do Circular Economy Principles Reduce Food Loss While Strengthening Supply Chain Stability?, will focus on his analysis on the entire upcycling of oilseed meals (canola, hemp and sunflower), and pulse processing byproducts (hulls, stems and starch) into practical protein elements, lignin, cellulose and hemicellulose to supply food elements, biopolymer-based supplies akin to food packaging supplies and wooden adhesives, and platform chemical compounds and components akin to cellulose nanocrystals and lignin nanoparticles.
Mis Solval will host a person presentation titled Developing Next Generation Marine Collagen from Seafood Waste for Functional Ingredients, which can spotlight present analysis on the extraction, digestion, characterization and commercialization of marine collagen-based food elements.
Preston will tackle the Impact of Extended Producer Responsibility on Food Science and Food Packaging, which can discover how packaging builders and food scientists should converge to develop protected and sustainable options that meet these new regulatory necessities.
“The expansion and evolution of Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) laws across North America and Europe is transforming how food and beverage packaging must be designed, manufactured, and validated,” mentioned Niemira. “These policies place new obligations on producers to meet recyclability criteria, minimize packaging, and incorporate post-consumer recycled content for primary, secondary, and tertiary packaging. While these requirements are typically viewed through a sustainability lens, they also have profound implications for food safety, food quality, and packaging performance—areas central to food science.”
What’s New in Plant Protein?
The session titled What’s New in Plant Protein? is ready for June 3 at 10 a.m. Central and will function José Bonilla, assistant professor on the University of Copenhagen, Samira Feyzi, assistant professor on the University of Arkansas, and Renske Janssen, senior challenge supervisor for NIZO.
In his presentation titled Machine-Learning Based Quantitative Characterization of Plant Protein Hydrogel Microstructure, Bonilla will discover how machine learning-based picture evaluation of microscopic plant protein hydrogels can reveal the connection between microstructural and macroscopic properties of sustainable meals.
Feyzi’s particular person presentation is titled Moving Towards Clean Label Plant Protein Ingredients, which can focus on leveraging pure deep eutectic solvents (NADES) to supply clean-label plant protein elements.
“With the growing global population and increasing consumer demand for healthy, clean label, sustainable, and functional plant protein ingredients, it is essential to develop processing strategies that enable food scientists to incorporate or upcycle underutilized plant protein sources and agricultural by-products,” mentioned Niemira.
Next-Generation Processing: Nonthermal Technologies Shaping Food Safety and Quality
The third webinar, titled Next-Generation Processing: Nonthermal Technologies Shaping Food Safety and Quality, is ready for June 9 at 12 p.m. Central and will function audio system Mario Gonzalez Angulo, HPP functions supervisor at Hiperbaric, Deepti Salvi, affiliate division head at North Carolina State University, and Anubhav Pratap-Singh, affiliate professor for food, vitamin and well being (food processing) at The University of British Columbia.
Angulo’s presentation, titled High-Pressure Thermal Processing (HPTP): Overcoming Technical Barriers to Industrial Application, will showcase how HPTP combines stress and warmth to attain spore inactivation with decreased thermal load in contrast with typical retorting. Attendees and they may be capable to establish product classes the place HPTP can unlock new shelf-stable or refrigerated meals with prolonged shelf life whereas preserving sensory and dietary high quality.
“To reduce chemical contaminants and preserve nutritional and sensory quality, the food industry seeks processes that achieve microbial safety with reduced thermal load compared to traditional heat treatments,” mentioned Niemira. “High-Pressure Thermal Processing offers this potential, and recent engineering advances now enable its industrial-scale implementation.”
Salvi’s presentation, The Current State of Cold Plasma Technology in Food Processing, will focus on the present state of chilly plasma expertise for varied functions in food processing. The speak will even cowl challenges and future instructions for this novel expertise.
Pratap-Singh’s matter is Unlocking Red Seaweed Phenolics With Cold Plasma-Treated Water and Enhancing Antioxidant Activity.
Hot Concepts in Food Science
The fourth and closing webinar main as much as IFT First is titled Hot Concepts in Food Science and is ready for June 30 at 12 p.m. Central and will function audio system Chico Qike Li, Ph.D. pupil at Cornell University, and Dilek Uzunalioglu, founding father of Agora Food Solutions LLC.
In collaboration with Cornell University Associate Professor Alireza Abbaspourrad, Li will tackle “Structurally Tuning Phycocyanin: From Blue Chromoprotein to Natural Emulsifier” at IFT FIRST, which presents a molecularly resolved framework exhibiting how managed dissociation and denaturation tune phycocyanin’s coloration, antioxidant exercise, and emulsifying efficiency. By integrating the urea-shifting technique with protein modeling, it was revealed how structural transitions straight improve the interfacial conduct of phycocyanin as a pure blue emulsifier.
Meanwhile, Uzunalioglu will focus on “Fermentation Enabled Ingredients: From Technical Performance to Metabolic Potential,” which can spotlight how precision, biomass, and solid-state fermentation might be leveraged to develop elements with completely different functionalities together with elements with technofunctional advantages, elements with enhanced protein fiber content material and improved digestibility, and elements with intestine and metabolic advantages.
Source: Institute of Food Technologists