Food packaging, processing expert joins UA faculty
Jan. 24, 2006Contact Information:
Dr. Ron Buescher, Food Science Department, 479-575-2841 / buescher@uark.edu
Howell Medders, Agricultural Communication Services, 479-575-5647 / hmedders@uark.edu
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — Ruben Morawicki, a senior scientist at Tyson Foods, will join the University of Arkansas faculty February 13 as an assistant professor of food science in the Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences and the U of A System’s statewide Division of Agriculture.
Greg Weidemann, dean of Bumpers College and associate vice president for Division of Agriculture research, said Morawicki will develop a new teaching, research and extension program in food processing and packaging.
Food science department head Ron Buescher said, “Dr. Morawicki has conducted basic and applied research in processing and packaging systems. He will develop a new research program to complement our existing efforts to help the food industry enhance food safety and quality and minimize waste material in the environment.”
Buescher added that Morawicki will teach food processing and packaging courses and provide research opportunities for UA students majoring in food science, which currently includes 50 undergraduates and 40 graduate students. The UA recently announced the donation of state-of-the-art packaging equipment to the food science department by the Sealed Air Corporation.
After receiving a 6-year degree in chemical engineering in 1990 at Universidad Nacional de Misiones in Argentina, Morawicki joined a research group to help food companies improve food-drying capabilities, and he was an instructor at the university.
In 1997, Morawicki began a master’s degree program in industrial engineering at the State University of New York at Buffalo. He received an M.S. degree in 1999 and a Ph.D. degree in food science at The Pennsylvania State University in 2002. He was hired that year as a senior research scientist at Tyson Foods in Springdale.
Morawicki said his research interests include innovative process systems and packaging materials for sustainable industrial methods that minimize the environmental impact of food processing plants, increase profitability, and produce safe products.
He said some areas of new packaging technology he will address include
- biodegradable polymers made from renewable resources,
- packaging materials that contain natural antimicrobials and antioxidants,
- modified atmospheres with antimicrobial gasses to reduce pathogens in food products, and
- use of nanocomposites to produce intelligent film coating materials.
In the food processing area, he said his interests include developing energy-saving industrial processes, new uses for agricultural commodities, and instruments for rapid, inline monitoring to assure food quality and safety.