By Cat Holmes
University of Georgia
The University of Georgia Department of Food Science and
Technology will mark the completion of a $4.2 million building
addition and the $2.4 million renovation of its previous
facilities with an open house and ribbon cutting in Athens
Sept. 5.
“The improvements to the food science building will make UGA
even stronger in the field of food safety,” said UGA president
Michael F. Adams. “The safety of our food supply is critically
important. I’m proud that the University of Georgia is poised
to make a real difference.”
“The addition and renovations will enhance food science
research and extension outreach capabilities,” said Gale
Buchanan, dean and director of the UGA College of Agricultural
and Environmental Sciences.
State-of-the-art labs
The addition houses four state-of-the-art microbiology labs. In
three biocontainment level 2 labs, researchers can work with
foodborne pathogens like Listeria, E coli 0157:H7, Salmonella
and Campylobacter. In the biocontainment level 3 lab,
scientists can work with more restricted foodborne hazards like
botulism.
“This is a new capability for the Athens campus and will
certainly further our ability to do cutting-edge food safety
and food-processing research,” said Rakesh Singh, food science
and technology department head.
“The additional facilities, along with our recently renovated
food-processing pilot plants, greatly improve our ability to
conduct programs designed for economic development,” he said.
Outreach classrooom
A new extension outreach classroom, which can seat 70 people,
serves a variety of needs: short courses, workshops and
certification programs. It has been in use since June and the
first two programs were filled to capacity.
“Many of these programs are designed to help small businesses
get on their feet, while others focus on bringing industry
personnel up-to-date,” Singh said. “But they’re also for anyone
who is interested. We work with a lot of nontraditional
students, small-business folks and industry folks.”
The addition was funded through the Georgia Food Processing
Advisory Council. FoodPAC is a group of Georgia state agencies,
colleges and universities and private food businesses. It
supports Georgia’s food processing and allied industries.
Program
The open house and ribbon-cutting celebration features a 10:30
a.m. program with Adams, Buchanan, Singh, Georgia Poultry
Federation President Abit Massey, Georgia Agribusiness Council
President Gary Black and food sciences graduate student Beth
Bland.
Tours will follow at 11 a.m. Refreshments will be provided. For
more on the event, call (706) 542-2574 or e-mail
marianw@uga.edu.
(Cat Holmes is a news editor with the University of Georgia
College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences.)
