Jordan Ishizu is a junior in the food science program at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and is also pursuing a certificate in fermentation. He is a career changer who has a background in Michelin starred dining. During his free time, he likes to play volleyball, spend time with his dog, or read up on classic cocktails.
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Banana Halos
Mallorie Arndt is a third-year undergraduate student at UW Madison studying Food Science. Mallorie has had a passion for all thing’s food and science from a young age, so she couldn’t wait to try her hand at product development. She is excited to be working with her talented PD team this year for the ASB Product Development Competition.
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Banana Halos
Neve Blanz is a Junior studying Food Science at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She has grown up baking with her parents, grandparents, and sister which has led her down the path of pursuing a career in the bakery industry. Throughout college, Neve has participated in numerous award-winning product development competitions focusing on baked goods and dairy products. She has also had the opportunity to work as a food safety and quality assurance intern and is excited to work on the research and development side this upcoming summer.
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Banana Halos
Steven is currently a senior at the University of Minnesota, where he is majoring in Food Science with a minor in Nutrition. When he is not busy with schoolwork, he enjoys spending his free time cooking with his wife and gardening. Upon graduation, his goal is to pair his past chef experience with his new degree, and work in product development creating flavorful options to suit people’s dietary needs.
Product
ReToast
Sonali Raghunath is a 2nd year PhD student at the University of Minnesota – Twin Cities, USA, working on the application of pulsed electric field as a treatment for dairy proteins. She has a Master’s degree in Food Science from the University of Minnesota (2019) and a Bachelor’s degree in Food Technology (2017) from Anna University, India. She has also worked as a researcher during her Bachelor’s at the Indian Institute of Technology, Madras (IIT), India. She concentrates on food chemistry, food engineering, food proteins, food packaging, and dairy chemistry. She has been presenting her work in many national as well as international conferences like ICEF, IFT, CoFE, and ADSA. She has also been the recipient of various outstanding achievement awards and scholarship recipients from multiple organizations, including IFT feeding Tomorrow Graduate Scholarship for her research and product development competitions due to her passion towards finding solutions for real world challenges.
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ReToast
Radhika is a third year Ph.D. student in Food Science, in the Carbohydrate Processing and Cereal Chemistry Lab advised by Dr. George Annor, at the University of Minnesota. She is an international student from India.
Her research is focused on optimizing targeted processing strategies to improve the functionality and end-use characteristics of Kernza flour, the first-ever perennial grain to be commercialized for food use. She is actively involved in product development competitions and has held leadership and volunteer positions with different national organizations. Radhika is very passionate about building sustainable food systems and enjoys applied food science research. Post-grad school, she wishes to work in the area of Food Product Development
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ReToast
Brigitta Yaputri is a food science master’s student at the Plant Protein Innovation Center (PPIC) at the University of Minnesota. She graduated in Spring 2020 with bachelor’s degree in both Food Science and Nutrition. She is an international student from Indonesia, one of the global inspirations for ReToast. Driven by her three core values – sustainability, health, and innovation – her ultimate goal is to have a role in R&D to develop sustainable food products through creative innovations.
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ReToast
Mario Guadalupe-Daqui, is a Food Science PhD candidate at the University of Florida (UF) studying about yeast fermentation and working under Dr. Andrew MacIntosh supervision. Mario is from Ecuador, where got his bachelor’s degree in Food Engineering. His career had been defined by a constant work in the food industry and academia. He is researching on the barometric modification of yeast fermentation and currently, he is advocated to explain the mechanism of vacuum fermentation while fulfilling his duties as the lead Teaching Assistant of food processing and engineering. Mario the team captain of UF at the American Society of Baking Product Development competition 2020 along with other graduate students, getting the second place. He also serves as a student representative of the IFT Education, Extension and Outreach division and the IFT Florida section. Mario will join General Mills as a R&D Scientist II in the Summer of 2021.
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Pokara Wafel
Victor Cedeño was born and raised in Caracas, Venezuela, where he grew up before moving to Colombia to pursue a Bachelor of Science in Chemical Engineering from the Universidad de La Sabana, obtained in 2017. After graduation, Victor worked in chocolate maker and was later awarded a scholarship to pursue a Master’s in Food Science at the University of Florida (UF), graduating in December 2020. Victor worked under Dr. Andrew MacIntosh in the Food Processing laboratory, studying the thermomechanical characteristics of High Oleic Palm Oil (HOPO) and how this can be used as a novel ingredient in food products. Victor has volunteered for the FSHN Department activities and IFT Florida Suppliers Night. Beside this, he has a strong interest in sustainability, participating in the Future of Food Forum at UF, and in food innovation as a member of the team that represented UF in the American Baking Society’s national product development competition in Chicago, IL.
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Pokara Wafel
Vicnie Léandre completed her bachelor’s in food science and Engineering at Tianjin University in China. Upon returning to her country, Haiti, she worked as lead food scientist in aflatoxins decontaminating of peanuts, corn, and sorghum. She recently graduated from the food science master program at University of Florida, where her research focused on the development of a gluten‑free sorghum pasta while improving cooking time, nutrition, and sensory attributes. Inspired by her experience in the U.S, she wants to start a food incubator in her country that will help food entrepreneurs to create and launch successful and healthy products. Vicnie and her teammates placed second in the Product Development Competition at the ASB BakingTech 2020 with their Luwa Cracker product. Vicnie’s passion for baking tarted baking at a young age from watching her mom and enjoys baking in her free time
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Pokara Wafel