Assistant​/Associate Professor - Chemistry of Food and Food Ingredients

Assistant/Associate Professor

The Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences is creating an environment that affirms community across all dimensions. This is a 9-month tenure-accruing position that will be 50% research (Florida Agricultural Experiment Station) and 50% teaching (College of Agricultural and Life Sciences) available in the Food Science and Human Nutrition Department, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, at the University of Florida, based in Gainesville, FL.

This assignment may be revised in accordance with the unit's needs. Tenure will accrue in the Food Science and Human Nutrition Department.

The faculty member will seek contract and grant funding actively to support their program. Expected duties include developing a research and teaching program related to the chemistry of food and food ingredients. Appropriate research areas may include sustainable food ingredients, sensory, allergens, toxicology, plant-based food ingredients, chemistry of sustainably sourced food components (flavor, color, nutritive and bioactive compounds) which can promote health while ensuring a palatable food supply, microplastics, engineered nanoparticles, and PFASs in the food chain.

Additionally, developing state-of-the-art physicochemical tools for the characterization of food components, extending shelf-life, and reducing food waste through mechanistic studies of chemical changes during food processing and storage are potential areas of research. Emphasis may be placed on designing next-generation food materials and structuring systems that minimize environmental impact while maintaining desirable functionality and sensory quality. Research may involve AI-augmented discovery and predictive modeling.

The candidate will be expected to develop and teach courses (in-person, hybrid, and/or online) related to food science, as well as at least one additional food chemistry course that benefits our undergraduate and graduate students. These are, but not limited to, Food Chemistry, Toxicology, Instrumental Analysis, and Flavor/Sensory Chemistry. Participation in other related courses is also expected. The candidate will be expected to develop an externally funded research program, advise undergraduate students, and mentor master's and doctoral students.

The candidate will be expected to participate in faculty meetings, committees, graduate seminar and related service work appropriate to faculty members. The successful candidate will actively participate in undergraduate and graduate education by chairing and serving on graduate committees, supervising theses, dissertations, and undergraduate research, and publishing research results alongside students. Faculty are encouraged to participate in professional development activities related to teaching and advising.

The faculty member will engage in Extension activities related to the Land-Grant mission within their program area.

Because of the IFAS land-grant mission, all faculty are expected to be supportive of and engaged in all three mission areas—Research, Teaching and Extension—regardless of the assignment split specified in the position description.

The Food Science and Human Nutrition Department, a large interdisciplinary unit within IFAS, comprises three distinct undergraduate programs:
Food Science, Nutritional Sciences, and Dietetics. The Food Science program is an approved curriculum with the Institute of Food Technologists. Undergraduate student enrollment is approximately 550, including 72 Food Science students. The graduate program enrolls approximately 62 graduate students. Graduate-level programs are competitive and provide the opportunity for graduate student mentorship.

The department's 30 faculty members conduct research, teaching and extension programs in a broad range of areas, including food chemistry and processing, food safety and microbiology, sustainable food systems, phytochemical characterization, aquatic foods, fruit and juice processing, engineering modeling, micro- and macronutrient metabolism, as well as pre- and probiotics, nutritional immunology, and chronic disease prevention. The department has a strong…