Thanh Vu

I am a lipid science PhD candidate at the University of Massachusetts Amherst with background in food engineering. My goal is to promote healthiness of food and remain its palatability at the same time. I have experiences working on oil encapsulation, lipid oxidation in bulk oil, and trans fat free alternatives. My dedication to food science and technology has been recognized by over 10 honors and awards from different professional organizations worldwide: Institute of Food Technologists, American Oil Chemists' Society, American Association of Cereal Chemists International, Vietnam Education Foundation, and Siam Cement Group Foundation. In 2017, I am selected as United Nations Talent in Sustainable Development Goals working with other talents to promote food sustainability in global scale.

I love cooking and have learnt how to cook since I was a little child. When I was in grade 12, I won an award in Vietnam Chemistry Olympiad. It inspired me to look at food from a scientific point of view, to know how molecules build up food and how they are being changed during processing and storage. Bachelor program did not satisfy my curiosity about food science, so I decided to take a master degree at Sirinhorn International Institute of Technology, Thailand with a full financial support from Siam Cement Group Foundation, and a doctoral program at University of Massachusetts Amherst with a financial support from Vietnam Education Foundation and University of Massachusetts Amherst. I enjoy doing research and applying science and technology to solve practical problems.