We are pleased to announce that our Past President, Professor Margaret Patterson OBE, has been elected as one of the seven Members of the IUFoST Governing Council.
IUFoST consists of over 60 adhering bodies, of which IFST is one, and represents more than 150,000 food scientists and technologists throughout the world. It is a non-profit, non-governmental, global scientific organisation for food science and technology. Its mission is to promote international cooperation and information exchange, provide education and training to food scientists and technologists around the world and promote professionalism among food scientists and technologists. IUFoST plays a crucial role by supporting programmes and projects that address worldwide needs specifically in food security, food safety and education.
Margaret has a BSc in Food Science, a Master’s degree in Organisation and Management and a PhD in Food Microbiology. She was a Principal Scientific Officer and Project Leader at the Agri-Food and Biosciences Institute (AFBI) based in Belfast. She led a research team responsible for microbiological aspects of novel food processing technologies. In particular, she was involved in research on high pressure processing of foods and food irradiation.
Margaret has acted as an External Consultant on Food Safety for the International Atomic Energy Agency, the World Health Organisation and the Food and Agricultural Organisation. She was President of the Society for Applied Microbiology in 2005-2008. She served as President of Institute of Food Science and Technology from 2013-2014.
In 2014, Margaret was named by the Science Council as one of the UK’s 100 leading practising scientists and she was also awarded an OBE for services to the agri-food sector, particularly in food safety and quality.
Margaret said: “I feel very honoured to have been elected onto the IUFoST Governing Council. Working together to help ensure a safe and sufficient food supply is a key goal of IUFoST and the organisation aligns well with IFST’s objectives of advancing food science and technology knowledge, encouraging professionalism within its members and cooperating with all organisations and groups that share the same objectives.”