Conference Focuses on Harnessing Analytical Instruments to Improve Food Flavor, Quality

Fred Miller

The Arkansas Flavor Analysis Conference will probe the potential for analytical instruments to advance the knowledge and improvement of flavor in foods and beverages.

Instrumental analysis is an essential tool for quality control and research and development in food and beverage applications, said Scott Lafontaine, assistant professor in food chemistry with the U of A System.

Speakers representing academic research and industry will present a variety of topics on the introduction and application of instrumental analysis in food and beverage systems at the Arkansas Flavor Analysis Conference on Dec. 9.

"A panel of scientists and industry professionals will be coming to Arkansas to highlight how we can harness this technology to optimize the quality of our foods and beverages by directly linking chemistry to flavor," Lafontaine said.

The conference should appeal to a variety of industries, Lafontaine said.

"Anyone working in product development as well as quality management for crops, foods and beverages would find this content very useful and thought-provoking," he said. "This could be pet food suppliers, ingredient suppliers, protein companies, etc."

Lafontaine also has teaching and research appointments in Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences at the U of A. The Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station is the research arm of the U of A System Division of Agriculture.

The conference will begin at 9 a.m. in Waldrip Hall of the Don Tyson Center for Agricultural Sciences, at 1371 W. Altheimer Dr., Fayetteville, Arkansas, at the Milo J. Shult Agricultural Research and Extension Center. Lunch will be served, and the conference will wrap up by 6 p.m. with an open discussion.

More details about the conference schedule and a link to the registration form are available on the event website. Registration deadline is Dec. 2. Conference speakers and topics include:

• Introduction to GCMS, MS/MS and GCO and applications in the food and beverage industry —Erich Leitner, professor, Graz University of Technology 
• Different aroma profiling quantification strategies - the basics of method development — Erich Leitner, professor, Graz University of Technology 
• What can you measure, and what is important to measure? Detection of positive and off flavors — Erich Leitner, professor, Graz University of Technology 
• Analytical applications for flavor analysis — Jonathon Smith, technical support scientist, Shimadzu 
• Hops and rice - Volatile profile and sensory — Bernardo Guimaraes, Ph.D. student, U of A System  
• Identifying chemical and flavor indicators of consumer preference towards nonalcoholic beer flavor — Scott Lafontaine, assistant professor, U of A System 
• Using Comprehensive Chromatography to Better Understand Chocolate Flavor — Aaron M. Wiedemer, Ph.D. student, Ohio State University 
• Volatile and sensory attributes of Muscadine Grapes — Jordan Chenier, Ph.D. student, U of A System  
• Volatile and sensory attributes of Blackberries — Renee Threlfall, research scientist, U of A System  

The conference is sponsored by Shimadzu, the Division of Agriculture and the U of A Department of Food Science.

For more information, contact Lafontaine by email: scottla@uark.edu.

To learn more about Division of Agriculture research, visit the Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station website: aaes.uada.edu. Follow us on Twitter at @ArkAgResearch and on Instagram at @ArkAgResearch. To learn more about the Division of Agriculture, visit uada.edu. Follow us on Twitter at @AgInArk.

About the Division of Agriculture: The University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture's mission is to strengthen agriculture, communities, and families by connecting trusted research to the adoption of best practices. Through the Agricultural Experiment Station and the Cooperative Extension Service, the Division of Agriculture conducts research and extension work within the nation's historic land grant education system. The Division of Agriculture is one of 20 entities within the University of Arkansas System. It has offices in all 75 counties in Arkansas and faculty on five system campuses. The University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture offers all its Extension and Research programs and services without regard to race, color, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, national origin, religion, age, disability, marital or veteran status, genetic information, or any other legally protected status, and is an Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity Employer.