Request Expert

Expert has had over 30 years of experience in food research and food processing technologies. He has engaged in the formulation and preservation of food throughout his professional career. He is familiar with the composition, classification, methods of preservation, nutritional value, and regulatory aspects of food. He is also knowledgeable about the functional properties and application of food ingredients and additives.

Expert describes the universe of food additives as consisting of over 2000 compounds which are intentionally added to food and effective at low levels (from ppm to 1-2%). He has used such compounds to facilitate food processing, extend shelf life, ensure microbial safety, improve nutritional value, and enhance the acceptability (flavor, color, texture, etc.) of processed food. Through his work experience, he has become familiar with available food additives and their functionality, use levels, cost, regulatory aspects, and major suppliers. In 1992, he compiled a report on the world-wide status of food additives. This included their market trend and major suppliers in the U.S., Western Europe, and Japan.


Expert has become familiar with food ingredients. He notes that they are major components of processed foods and intentionally added to their formulas. His experience includes working with sweeteners, starches, fats, oils, protein, salt, meat, and poultry. Expert knows the chemistry, functional properties, typical use levels, major suppliers, and regulatory aspects of food ingredients.

Expert has had experience in the processing and application of fats and oils. He understands the current scientific information on the nutritional aspects of fats and oils. He has published in the area of functional properties and nutritional values of the various edible oils. In 1992, he completed a review assessing the potential of fat substitutes in reduced fat/cholesterol food.

Expert has had working experience with the principles and practice of various food processing and preservation technologies. He is familiar with the unit operations such as peeling, sizing, and blanching which are involved in these technologies. In particular, he has had many years of experience in canning (thermal processing), dehydration, and enzymic food processing. He has also had long experience with the methods of blanching frozen vegetables and the use of chemical processing aids such as sulfur dioxide, antioxidants, and firming agents.

Expert is knowledgeable about a large variety of fruits utilized for processing. This includes the topics of harvesting operations, seasonality, post harvest handling and storage, ingredients and additives for fruit processing, and sorting, peeling, and dicing/slicing in preparation for processing. He has had first hand practical experience in canning and dehydrating fruits. He is the author of textbooks dealing with fruit processing.


Expert has had experience in formulating and processing beverages. These include fruit juice, fruit drink, and carbonated beverage products. He has formulated citrus/pineapple juice blend products for a major food company and is familiar with the technical aspects of carbonated beverage processing. In 1992, he assisted a leading beverage manufacturer to locate reliable sources of tropical juice concentrates in South America. These tropical juices included those of the mango, papaya, passion fruit, and guava. As an independent consultant, Expert developed pineapple/orange and pineapple/grapefruit juice products for Dole which have been successfully marketed for many years. He is familiar with beverage ingredients such as sweeteners, acidulent, flavors, colors, vitamins, gums, and chemical preservatives. He also developed formulations for cranberry juice cocktails for California processors.


Expert is familiar with the suppliers of raw fruit material, food ingredients, food additives, and nutrients. He has access to databases and company information. He keeps up-to-date in new developments through the regular attendance of trade shows and exhibits.

Expert is familiar with the U.S. FDA food regulations and has access to a data base with updated and new regulations. He has had experience in complying with existing food labeling regulations. This has included ingredient listing and nutrition labeling.

Expert is familiar with the leading food service organizations that prepare and serve food away from home. He knows their special requirements for food material, food purchase, and the distribution systems serving these industries. He was associated with one of the leading suppliers of food service establishments. He recently reviewed for a private client the type of food material specifically required by food service operations. He has been identified as one of the key players in the food service supply industries.

Expert has worked with one of the leading tomato processing companies. He has formulated tomato sauce, salsa, spaghetti sauce, and ketchup. He is familiar with tomato juice, puree, and paste processing operations. He understands the quality standards applied to processed tomato products.

Expert has worked with many aspects of glucono-delta-lactone (GDL). He is the author of marketing brochures for this product in the U.S. and has evaluated a GDL production facility in China for the World Bank. He has also worked on its application in food products, mineral supplements, and bottle washing solutions.

Expert compiled reports on the worldwide markets for high-intensity sweeteners that included the history, chemistry, regulatory aspects and applications of acesulphame-potassium. As a chair of a sweetener symposium held in October 2000, he summarized the current trends and opportunities for sweetener blends, and the new opportunities for this compound after its approval for non-alcoholic beverages.

Expert has experience with apple dehydration, the enzymatic clarification of apple juice, and the application of osmotic dehydration to produce apple snacks. Also, he is the editor of a recent fruit processing text that summarizes apple processing technologies.

Expert developed canned fruit products using cyclamates as sweeteners. The products had great initial market success, but the ingredient was banned in the U.S., so these products had to be withdrawn from the market. Also please see his paragraph on "acesulphame-potassium" for general experience related to high-intensity sweeteners.

Expert has experience with the application of anticaking agents, which are essential components of low moisture fruit powders containing substantial amount of sugars.
Also, he determined the exposure data of various anticaking agents for the FDA.

Expert was involved in the application of polydextrose as a low-calorie bulking agent.

Expert prepared multi-client reports describing the flavor and fragrance industry, and the markets for leading flavor compounds.

Expert worked for a dehydrated food company and is familiar with the various drying technologies. He is the author of text book chapters on dehydration technologies, and recently summarized fruit and vegetable dehydration technologies, including spray drying, in the "Encyclopedia of Food Science and Technology" (J. Francis, editor).

Expert is familiar with the food thickener manufacturing indistry. He conducted studies for clients on this industry, and in 1999 presented a lecture on products and markets of thickeners.

Expert conducted post-doctoral research on the shelf life extension of fruits by ionizing radiation and has publications dealing with this technology.

Expert provided evaluation of tropical juice concetrate suppliers in Latin America.For an FDA contract, he conducted a compilation of food additive exposure data for 800 food additives. He researched the market potential for specialty chemicals extracted from sugar beet molasses.For a US-AID program, he conducted a search for market opportunities for the Lebanese food industry.He conducted a search of acquisition candidates in the hydrocolloid business.