In memoriam: Joseph E. Marcy, professor and former department head, Department of Food Science and Technology

Joseph E. Marcy, esteemed researcher, professor, mentor to many, and former department head in the Virginia Tech Department of Food Science and Technology, passed away suddenly on Aug. 26 at the age of 72.

Marcy’s storied career at Virginia Tech began in 1988 when he joined the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences’ Department of Food Science and Technology as associate professor. Over the next 35 years, he became a prominent voice in the field of food science, a reliable industry partner, and would oversee the largest period of growth in the department’s history.

“Joe was a colleague and a friend and someone I always really respected,” said Alan Grant, dean of the college since 2009. “The thing that Joe had a knack for was recruiting talent. The food science department has a great reputation in large part because of the exceptional people Joe hired and the great foundation he laid for the department’s future.”

Marcy is survived by his wife of 51 years, Marjorie; his son, Jeremy; his daughter, Joanna; and five grandchildren. 

A celebration of life will be held at Blacksburg United Methodist Church on Saturday, Sept. 28, at 2:30 p.m. In lieu of flowers, his family has requested donations be made to either the Blacksburg United Methodist Church or to the Department of Food Science and Technology. 

Marcy dedicated his life to food science. After earning his Ph.D. in food science in 1980 from North Carolina State University, he worked in citrus extension at the University of Florida before joining Rampart Packaging Inc. as a senior food technologist. He spent four years with the company, gaining the industry experience that he would utilize in his “one foot in academia and one in industry” instructional style.

It didn’t take long for Marcy to establish himself as a passionate educator. One of his first tasks after joining the Department of Food Science and Technology was to improve student ratings of the courses he taught — Food Processing and Food Packaging. Within a few years, his courses were among the highest rated in the college and were sought after by food science and non-food science students alike. Cameron Hackney, who served as head of the department from 1995-2000 — once described Marcy’s teaching style as combining “experience, enthusiasm, and instructional boldness.” In 1996, he was both voted Outstanding Faculty Member by the student-run Food Science Club and inducted into the college’s Academy of Teaching Excellence.

As a result of his endearing style of teaching, Marcy was a mentor to countless students who became colleagues throughout his career. When alumna Julia Adornetto ’18 was having doubts about her major during her sophomore year and thought she might want to switch to food science, it was a conversation with Marcy that solidified her decision.

“He told me all about his experiences and his son’s experiences and about the success and employment rate of the department,” Adornetto said. “It was incredibly inspiring, and I really loved the diversity of opportunity and the fun possibilities he was describing. I could tell that he was very proud of his son and all of his students. He knew all of them by name and just cared.”

Richard Linton M.S. ’91, Ph.D. ’94 credits Marcy with starting him on the path that led him to his current position as president of Kansas State University. 

“He was the one who talked me into going into academia,” Linton said. “And then he and I worked together as colleagues and did, I think, 112 different training programs all around the world. You can’t call a lot of people a mentor, colleague, and friend, and Joe was all three of those.”

Marcy’s research at Virginia Tech focused on food packaging and food chemistry, particularly on food preservation and the interaction between food and its packaging. A trusted voice in the field, he authored more than 100 research papers and books on wide-ranging topics, from extending the shelf life of soymilk with light-blocking packaging to assessing the food safety of using shockwaves to tenderize steak. 

Marcy’s work has been recognized repeatedly by an assortment of national and international professional organizations. He was a member of the Sigma Xi Scientific Honor Society, the Virginia Tech Academy of Teaching Excellence, the Institute of Food Technologists (IFT), and the Institute of Packaging Professionals. He received countless awards for his work, including the IFT Reister-Davis Food Packaging Award, Virginia Tech’s International Faculty Development Award, the Research and Development Associates for Military Food and Packaging’s Chairman’s Award, and many more.

Ever the enthusiastic educator, Marcy passed his passion and expertise on to his students. Many a student’s interest in food processing and chemistry undoubtedly began in his classroom. That was certainly the case for former student and current research chemist at the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) John Koontz ’00, M.S. ’03, Ph.D. ’08.

“My love of food packaging was enkindled by Dr. Marcy's food packaging course, which continued on in my doctoral research with him, and to this day with my work as a chemist at FDA researching food packaging safety,” Koontz said. “I had the honor of having Joe Marcy as my major advisor for my M.S. and doctoral studies and will always treasure his guidance, patience, understanding, and friendship throughout the experience.”

Despite all of his research recognitions, Marcy was most proud of what he achieved in the Department of Food Science and Technology. In 2008, he was appointed department head. During his 12 years at the helm, the department began to grow at a rapid pace. Marcy oversaw the creation of the department’s internationally recognized brewing program. He led a collaboration with Penn State to create a certificate program that teaches food safety systems management to students at the Armenian National Agrarian University. He pushed for the ability to offer licensed food products, beer especially, in an effort that would culminate in Virginia Tech’s partnership with Hardywood Park Craft Brewery, which now brings in scholarship and renovation funding every year for food science students.

The growth of the department quickly necessitated more space and updated facilities, so Marcy set to work on arguably one of his biggest accomplishments during his time as department head — the construction of the Human and Agricultural Biosciences Building 1, completed in 2014. Marcy was instrumental in securing funding and planning for the 93,000-square-foot space, which now houses most of the department’s faculty and labs. It provided new facilities for sensory evaluation research, brewing, and offered a flexible space for industry partner research. 

By the time Marcy retired in 2020, the Department of Food Science and Technology had built a reputation as one of the country's premier institutions for food science research and education. In late 2019, Successful Student ranked the department among the best in the country, with its undergraduate program placing ninth and its master’s degree program placing eighth on its list of the top food science programs in the U.S. 

It’s impossible to quantify the effect Marcy had on the food industry, his department, and the countless students he helped steer to success. The ripples of his impact will be felt amongst generations of students and researchers.

"This is a massive loss for us all,” said Renee Boyer M.S. ’02, Ph.D. ’06, professor and current department head in the Department of Food Science and Technology. “Joe contributed to so much of what the department is now, from our programs and facilities to the familial culture we have. I was proud to take over the role of department head after he retired, and I’m grateful for the department he left us."