The only Food Science Department in Tennessee, and the only major at UT that lets you play with food!
Welcome to the Department of Food Science at the University of Tennessee, the only food science program in State of Tennessee. The Department has three major functions that are administered by each of the three units of the University of Tennessee Institute of Agriculture. The College of Agricultural Science and Natural Resources administers the teaching program, the Agricultural Experiment Station the research program and UT Extension, the outreach program.
If you are interested in becoming a student, you’ll find that we have designed programs of instruction to educate scholars capable of productive careers in the food industry and allied industries, regulatory agencies, governmental research laboratories, and academia as well as preparation for professional careers in medicine, pharmacy, and veterinary medicine. We pride ourselves on our personal attention to students both in advising and in the classroom. Our students consistently achieve excellence in the classroom and through Departmental, College and University activities. The Department’s graduate program awards both Master of Science and Ph.D. degrees. Our undergraduate and graduate students have been highly successful and are recruited by the food industry, research laboratories, and top professional schools.
If you are a prospective undergraduate or graduate students or parents of an prospective student and would like to find out more about our curriculum and career possibilities, click here
Our research program has two major emphases, microbiological food safety and food biopolymer chemistry. Allied to these areas are food quality enhancement and sensory evaluation. Our faculty conduct research that has positive economic impact for Tennessee, the United States and globally. The Department is highly productive in terms of research grant dollars and publication of research works. There is excellent opportunity for laboratory research experiences by both graduate students and undergraduate students. If you are interested in finding out about the research programs in the Department, click here.
Outreach is considered by all faculty as an important role of their positions. Examples of outreach include workshops for entrepreneurs wishing to start new food processing businesses, personnel in large food processing plants and food service workers in hospitals, child care facilities, and nursing homes. Our faculty strive to assist small- and medium-size food industries in Tennessee with technical expertise and analytical solutions. If you want information about food industry workshops, publications about starting a food business or general information about the food industry, click here.
Our faculty is not great in number but has outstanding credentials and is highly dedicated. We hope our website gives you an idea of the exciting educational opportunities, research programs and outreach that are associated with our Department.
Thanks for visiting us!
Dr. P. Michael Davidson
Professor of Food Microbiology and Head
[email protected]
