Matthew Taylor named head of Department of Food Science and Technology
Taylor brings to his new role nearly two decades of experience mentoring students and leading collaborative food safety research totaling more than $52 million in funding.
Matthew Taylor has been named the new head of Virginia Tech’s Department of Food Science and Technology in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. He begins his appointment Aug. 10.
Taylor brings with him nearly two decades of experience in mentoring undergraduate and graduate students, leading collaborative research programs across university departments and delivering food safety outreach training. He has cultivated relationships with numerous professional and academic organizations, sitting on the editorial boards of the Journal of Food Protection and Food Protection Trends and is a guest reviewer for the Journal of Food Science in the field of food microbiology.
“Coming to the Department of Food Science and Technology as its first external department head is a deep honor for me,” Taylor said. “I am beyond grateful for the welcome and the trust shown to me and my family by the department’s faculty, staff, students, and the college’s leadership.”
Taylor brings a distinguished record of leadership and academic achievement to the department as well as extensive expertise in microbial food safety. In his previous role as a professor of food safety applied microbiology at Texas A&M University, his research program collaborated on projects totaling over $52 million in funding with a focus on developing and validating microbiological and mathematical tools for members of the U.S. food industry to facilitate strong food safety protection from foodborne pathogens.
Along with serving on departmental and collegiate food safety committees, Taylor is a member of the Texas Food Protection Task Force Steering Committee, the International Association for Food Protection, and the Produce Safety Alliance-Advanced Produce Safety Workshops.
At Texas A&M University, he taught courses focused on microbiology and the microbial safety of human foods and sustained a competitively funded research laboratory. He also supported Texas A&M’s AgriLife Extension Service through the delivery of food safety-focused teachings to food processing program participants and food industry members.
“We are excited to have Dr. Taylor join us as we continue to build upon an already outstanding food science and technology program,” said Mario Ferruzzi, dean of the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. “His record of leadership and scholarship will be invaluable for taking the program into the future and preparing the next generation of food scientists to tackle the challenges our stakeholders face across food systems in Virginia and across the country.”
In addition to his on-campus teaching, Taylor regularly leads the delivery of Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point courses, an internationally recognized and systematic system for food safety used to identify and control hazards throughout the entire food supply chain.
“I am excited to work to maintain the excellence the department has already achieved and move toward a bright future for Virginia, the U.S., and global food industries,” Taylor said. “The department’s core mission is to ensure a wholesome and safe food supply for the commonwealth and the U.S. To do this, we recommit ourselves to assisting the food industries in solving the needs they encounter by high-quality industry outreach and Extension, impactful research that answers questions the industry brings to us, and training the next generations of food scientists, innovators, and entrepreneurs.”
Taylor earned a doctoral degree in food science and technology from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, in 2006. He received a master’s degree in food science and bachelor’s degrees in both sociology and food science from North Carolina State University in 2003 and 2000, respectively.
