Meet the winners of the EFFoST2024 Student of the Year Awards

February 05, 2025

The latest edition of the EFFoST Student of the Year Awards took place at the 38th EFFoST International Conference in Bruges, Belgium. We are delighted to congratulate the six exceptional MSc and PhD students who have been honored with the SOYA!

In collaboration with our sponsor, Cargill, EFFoST continues to recognize and celebrate groundbreaking food science research from students across Europe. These talented researchers were acknowledged during EFFoST2024 for their innovation, dedication, and contributions to the advancement of food science and technology. 

The European Federation of Food Science and Technology, along with our partner Cargill, is dedicated to supporting the next generation of food scientists. And as every year, we want to highlight their academic achievements through the EFFoST Student of the Year Awards. 

A panel of international experts from both academia and industry carefully evaluated a strong pool of applications, considering scientific quality, creativity, and the potential commercial impact of each candidate’s research. 

Now, let's introduce the winners of the EFFoST Student of the Year Awards 2024: 

PhD Student of the Year Award 

1st Prize: Dorine Duijsens, KU Leuven, Belgium

Research title: Steering in vitro digestibility of lentil-based foods 

2nd Prize: Ben Kew, University of Leeds, United Kingdom

Research title: Understanding interactions of alternative proteins with fibre in low pH food applications: Towards informing mouthfeel perception 

3rd Prize: Mikkel Lorenzen, University of Copenhagen, Denmark 

Research title: Innovative protein-based dairy cheeses by extrusion 

MSc Student of the Year Award 

1st Prize: Francesca Pompei, Sapienza University of Rome, Italy 

Research title: Water based deep eutectic solvents as green method for the valorisation of spent coffee grounds 

2nd Prize: Khalil Kaddoura, Technical University of Munich, Germany 

Research title: A novel process for the targeted mechanical/ biochemical disintegration of microalgae for optimal protein recovery 

Popular Vote 2024 

Each year, the top finalists in the EFFoST Student of the Year competition have the opportunity to compete for the Popular Vote Award, recognizing the most outstanding student poster presentation. Conference attendees at EFFoST2024 selected this year’s winner: 

Popular vote award 2024: Marianna Giancaterino, BOKU University, Austria 

Research title: Understanding of process-structure-interactions during the processing of plant materials by pulsed electric fields (PEF) 

All winners were recognized with both an award and a cash prize, with their travel expenses and conference registration fees fully covered. As an added opportunity, they will present their research at Cargill’s European R&D Centre in spring 2025, further showcasing their work to industry experts. 

We’ll be back in 2025! Applications open on March 1st, so be sure to spread the word to friends and colleagues who may want to take part in the competition. 

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