2025 Symposium "Food Science and Industry in Mississippi: Adding Value and Feeding the World"
Food Science and Industry in Mississippi: Adding Value and Feeding the World
Colvard Student Union, 2nd Floor Ballrooms
9:00 AM – 10:00 AM | Student Poster Setup
10:00 AM – 11:30 AM | Student Poster Viewing & Networking (Posters will remain up until 5:00)
Location: Union Ballrooms M & S
Main Event (1:00 PM – 5:00 PM) Ballroom U
1:00 PM – 1:10 PM | Welcome & Opening Remarks
Speakers: Dr. Keith Coble, Vice President, Division of Agriculture, Forestry and Veterinary Medicine and Dr. Julie Jordan, Vice President, Office of Research and Economic Development
Introduction of Keynote Speaker: Dr. Scott Willard, Dean, Director and Professor, College of Agriculture and Life Sciences or
1:10 PM – 1:50 PM | Keynote Address
Speaker: Dr. Mindy Brashears, Ph.D., Professor & Director, International Center for Food Industry Excellence, Texas Tech University
Topic: "Adding Value to the Food Industry Through Food Science and Food Research"
1:50 PM - 2:00 PM | Dr. Lorin Harvey, Assistant Professor, Mississippi State University Pontotoc Ridge-Flatwoods Branch Experiment Station – Sweet Potato Opportunities in MS
2:00 PM – 2:40 PM | Industry & Research Insights
Speaker: Dr. Wes Schilling, Professor & Director, Food Science Innovation Hub
Topic: "Current and Future State of Food Science and the Food Industry in MS"
2:40 PM – 2:50 PM | Dr. Josh Herring, Professor, Food Biochemistry, Alabama A&M University
2:50 PM – 3:00 PM | Paige Manning, Marketing Director, Mississippi Department of Agriculture & Commerce
3:00 PM – 4:00 PM | Industry Leaders & MSU Expert Panel
Moderator: Dr. Juan Silva, Professor, Biochemistry, Nutrition and Health Promotion
Panelists: Growth, How to better train students, grow the MS food industry and sustainability
- Justin Larsen – Global Dairy Supplier Quality Assurance Leader, Mars, Inc.
- Dr. Ryn Laster – Director of Food Safety and Animal Welfare, Cal-Maine Foods
- Tony Pierce – Director of Procurement/Purchasing, Peco Foods, Inc.
- Thomas Reynolds – Vice President, Technical Services, Summit Hill Foods
4:00 PM – 4:15 PM | Break and Announcement of poster winners - Dr. Shecoya White, Associate Professor, Biochemistry, Nutrition and Health Promotion
4:20 PM – 4:30 PM | Courtney Crist, Associate Extension Professor, Biochemistry, Nutrition and Health Promotion, Mississippi State University - Food Science Extension & Industry Opportunities
4:30 PM – 4:40 PM | Thu Dinh, Principal Food Scientist, Tyson Foods
4:4 PM – 5:00 PM | Closing Remarks
Speaker: Dr. Wes Schilling, Professor & Director, Food Science Innovation Hub
- Summary of key takeaways
- Recognition of presenters & participants
Keynote Speaker: Dr. Mindy Brashears, Ph.D., Professor & Director, International Center for Food Industry Excellence, Texas Tech University
Topic: "Adding Value to the Food Industry Through Food Science and Food Research"
Mindy Brashears is the former Under Secretary for Food Safety where she served at the United States Department of Agriculture from 2019-2021 as a Presidential Appointee in the Trump administration. She is currently the Director of the International Center for Food Industry Excellence at Texas Tech University and serves as a Paul Whitfield Horn Distinguished Professor and holds the Roth and Letch family Endowed Chair of Food Safety at Texas Tech University. She holds a B.S. in Food Technology from Texas Tech University and M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in Food Science from Oklahoma State University. Growing up on a cotton and cattle farm as a 3rd generation Texan, she has a passion for the agriculture industry and serving the public through her research, teaching and public service. Her research focuses on mitigation strategies in pre-harvest production and post-harvest processing environments to improve food safety and public health. She has extensive international experience in food security and is well funded and published. She was recently inducted into the Meat Industry Hall of Fame in 2024. She is a member of the National Academy of Inventors, and serves on the is on the Board of Directors for the International Stockmen’s Education Foundation. She is a a former member of the Board of Directors for the American Meat Science Association and Currently Serves on the Development Council. She also serves on the Academic Advisory Panel for the Protein Pact. She was recently awarded the Graduate of Distinction Award by Oklahoma State University. She has also received the IAFP Laboratorian Award, The AMSA Research and Industry/Extension Award and was named as a Future Icon in the Meat Industry by the National Provisioner. She writes a monthly blog for MeatingPlace magazine and advises the industry on food safety and regulatory issues. Mindy works closely with her husband who is also a professor at Texas Tech in Agricultural Leadership and enjoys spending time with her three adult daughters.
Industry & Research Insights
Thu Dinh, Principal Food Scientist, Tyson Foods
Elizabeth Canales, Associate Professor, Agricultural Economics, Mississippi State University – Food Business Opportunities
Courtney Crist, Associate Extension Professor, Biochemistry, Nutrition and Health Promotion, Mississippi State University – Food Science Extension & Industry Opportunities
Dr. Lorin Harvey, Assistant Professor, Mississippi State University Pontotoc Ridge-Flatwoods Branch Experiment Station – Sweet Potato Opportunities in MS
Dr. Josh Herring, Professor, Food Biochemistry, Alabama A&M University
Paige Manning, Marketing Director, Mississippi Department of Agriculture & Commerce
Dr. Wes Schilling, Professor & Director, Food Science Innovation Hub - "Current and Future State of Food Science and the Food Industry in MS"
Industry Leaders & Expert Panel
Justin Larsen, Global Dairy Supplier Quality Assurance Leader, Mars, Inc.
Justin Larsen is a 2005 MSU Graduate with a Batchelor of Science in Food Science and Technology. In his current role he is the Global Dairy Supplier Quality Assurance Leader for Mars Wrigley/Mars Snacking.
Mr. Larsen has a combined 23 years of Plant and Corporate Dairy Quality Assurance and Food Safety Leadership, with several organizations, in the USA including building 4 new dairy plants. Justin is a Dairy Sensory Expert, judging for the past 14 years at both the World Dairy Expo and the Collegiate Dairy Products Evaluation Contest. In 2004, he was ranked the #1 milk taster in the USA!
Justin will also soon become a book author with "Hygienic Design for Food Safely in Manufacturing Plants". He lives with his wife and his white labrador in Chattanooga, TN
Dr. Ryn Laster, Director of Food Safety and Animal Welfare, Cal-Maine Foods
Dr. Ryn Laster is a four-time graduate of Mississippi State University and is currently the director of food safety and animal welfare at Cal-Maine Foods, Inc. She has been with Cal-Maine for over 27 years.
After earning a bachelor's degree in English from MSU in 1991, Laster entered law school and quickly decided it was not her calling. She found her passion in MSU's Department of Poultry Science and stayed to earn a bachelor's and a master's degree (Food Science) in 1993 and 1997, respectively. After living and working in Nashville, Tennessee, and Hattiesburg, Mississippi, Laster moved back to her hometown of Raymond, Mississippi, and began her career at Cal-Maine Foods, Inc. While there, she began work on her doctoral degree, earning a Ph.D. in poultry science in 2008.
Laster regularly attends on-campus events, serving on the advisory board of the Department of Poultry Science. She is a three-time past chair of the Mississippi Poultry Association and serves as president of the Mississippi Egg Marketing Board. Her passion is working to fight food insecurity, serving on the board of the Mississippi Food Network for 6 years and being involved with Extra Table as well.
Tony Pierce, Director of Procurement/Purchasing, Peco Foods, Inc.
Thomas Reynolds, Vice President, Technical Services, Summit Hill Foods
The MSU Office of Research & Economic Development, the Mississippi Agricultural, Forestry, and Experiment Station and the Food Science Innovation Hub invites students to submit abstracts for presentation at the upcoming Spring Symposium - Food Science and Industry in Mississippi: Adding Value and Feeding the World.
Students will showcase original research in all areas of research pertaining to food. Abstracts should highlight the study's objective, methodology, key findings, and implications for the food and agricultural industries. Abstracts are limited to 250 words and must be submitted by 11:59 pm on April 10, 2025, to be considered for evaluation and the change to win monetary prizes for 1st, 2nd and 3rd place in both undergraduate and graduate student classifications.
Poster presentation setup is from 9:00 am - 10:00 am on Tuesday, April 22, 2025. Poster presentations will be from 10:00 am - 5:00 pm. Winners of the poster competition will be announced at 4:00 pm. Foam boards, easels, thumbtacks and binder clips will be provided.
For questions concerning the poster competition, please email LeLe Kirkpatrick at lele@ord.msstate.edu.
To register for the student poster competition, please click HERE
Work in progress
Work in progress
Join us for an afternoon filled with MSU experts and guest speakers as they discuss Food and Industry in Mississippi.