AOAC International Recognizes Innovators with 2024 Awards

At the AOAC International 2024 Annual Meeting & Exposition in Baltimore, Maryland, analytical several scientists were recognized for excellence across multiple disciplines, including method development, expert review panels, editorial contributions, and technical service.

Baltimore, Maryland, USA Skyline | Image Credit: © SeanPavonePhoto - stock.adobe.com

Founded in 1884, AOAC International is an independent, non-profit member association of analytical science professionals in government, industry, and academia. Its mission is to advance food safety and product integrity through standards, validated test methods, and laboratory quality programs (1). This Annual Meeting marks the 138th iteration of the conference. The conference aims to help attendees take advantage of emerging methods and trending topics, discover new technologies, and gain professional insights from industry insiders. The conference also includes the AOAC Analytical Solutions Forum, which is an incubator that focuses on regulatory changes and emerging food safety issues. Including one plenary and two breakout sessions, this event is meant to highlight and create ideas to meet analytical needs before they lead to public health emergencies.

Presented during the event, the AOAC awards recognize scientific excellence across multiple disciplines, including method development, expert review panels, editorial contributions to the Journal of AOAC INTERNATIONAL, and technical service. The highest volunteer award that AOAC bestows each year, the William Horvitz Award, which, recognizes extraordinary contributions to the organization. This year, the award was presented to Erik J. M. Konings. A member of AOAC since 1997, Konings holds extensive experience in developing methods of analysis for vitamins in food and food products. Moreover, he is also active in AOAC itself, joining its Board of Directors in 2011 and serving as president in 2014. While a member, he has also served as chair for multiple AOAC expert review panels and working groups.

Every year, AOAC presents the Harvey W. Wiley Award, recognizing a winner’s outstanding contributions to analytical method development in an area relevant to the organization. This year, Michelle Colgrave of Edith Cowan University received the reward. A professor of Food and Agricultural Proteomics, Colgrave is also chief investigator at the Australian Research Council Center of Excellence for Innovations in Peptide and Protein Science. She is being internationally recognized for her work on foodborne proteins that trigger allergy or intolerance or, conversely, those peptides and proteins that can provide health benefits when included in foods.

In addition to the standard awards given out each year, AOAC has added student awards to their lineup in hopes of recognizing current students’ research endeavors. Each student award winner may receive travel and registration to the Annual Meeting, where they will receive a cash reward and a chance to present their research. The AOAC/Eurofins Foundation “Testing for Life” Student Award is presented to student innovators who submit abstracts on basic or applied research in support of analytical or molecular testing for food safety, food security, food defense, food authenticity, or health and environmental protection.

References

(1) About AOAC International. AOAC INTERNATIONAL 2024. https://www.aoac.org/about-aoac-international/ (accessed 2024-10-1)

(2) The AOAC INTERNATIONAL Annual Meeting: A Unique Analytical Science Opportunity. AOAC INTERNATIONAL 2024. https://www.aoac.org/2024-annual-meeting-exposition/ (accessed 2024-10-2)