Research Fellowship to ITU Department of Food Engineering Faculty Member

ITU Food Engineering faculty member Assoc. Prof. Dr. Derya Kahveci Karıncaoğlu has been awarded “The Kerry Upcycled Food Foundation Fellowship”, which is given to eight researchers worldwide every year to support research on upcycled foods.

Istanbul Technical University (ITU) carries out important studies in the field of sustainability with the vision of transforming the future. Scientific activities undertaken by our faculty members to provide solutions to global problems such as hunger and to highlight social contribution are achieving international success.

ITU Faculty of Chemical-Metallurgical Engineering, Department of Food Engineering faculty member Assoc. Prof. Dr. Derya Kahveci Karıncaoğlu has been awarded “The Kerry Upcycled Food Foundation Fellowship”, which is dedicated to educating consumers about the environmental and social benefits of upcycled foods and developing an evidence-based industry on foods.

Sustainable foods

The Upcycled Food Association (UFA), which was established in 2020 to develop interest in upcycled foods and consumer demand for these products, has selected eight researchers for its second fellowship. Our faculty member Assoc. Prof. Dr. Derya Kahveci Karıncaoğlu will work with other researchers representing diverse research backgrounds and selected from universities in countries such as the USA and Finland.

ITU faculty member Assoc. Prof. Dr. Karıncaoğlu will examine a problem of interest to the upcycled food community including consumer awareness and perception of upcycled products, novel ingredient development, and impact measurement. The results will be announced to the public in the last quarter of 2023.

About upcycled foods

Upcycled foods are defined as “food products that contain ingredients that otherwise would not have gone to human consumption, are procured and produced from verifiable and sustainable supply chains, and have a positive impact on the environment”. Upcycling aims to provide a different function from its original purpose.

An example of upcycled foodstuffs is the coffee plant fruit. After the coffee beans are harvested, the remaining coffee fruit, which is a by-product not normally used as food, is upcycled. The upcycling of the coffee fruit results in a flour that is gluten-free and rich in antioxidants and fiber. By using this flour, food products such as cookies with high nutritional value can be produced.

We congratulate our faculty member and wish her success in her studies.