Food Entrepreneurship and Manufacturing Institute

What We Do

Our mission is to fuel economic growth in the region and beyond by enabling food and beverage companies to ideate, develop, and commercialize novel improved and sustainable products; to provide learning experiences in innovation and entrepreneurship for students in the College of Agriculture; and to contribute to the land-grand research and Extension missions of Purdue University.
 

WORK WITH US

 

Water activity & pH TEsting

Food or beverage entrepreneur? Your local health department may require the water activity and pH to be tested.  We can help!

What is water activity?  Water activity (Aw) is a measure of the amount of water in a substance that is available for things like microbial growth.  Water activity of a product is between 0 and 1, with pure water having a water activity value of 1.  The lower the number, the less likely for microbial growth.  A value of 0.85 or below indicates the product is not habitable for microbial activity.

What is pH?  pH measures how acidic or basic a solution or substance is.  pH can range from 0 (very acidic) to 14 (very basic) with 7 being neutral.  pH between 0 and 4.6 is not suitable for microbial growth.  

 WATER ACTIVITY & PH TESTING

 

Join us for the next Food Entrepreneurship Workshop on May 16, 2023

Register Here

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Contact Us

Department of Food Science
femi@purdue.edu
745 Agricultural Mall Dr.
West Lafayette, IN 47906
(765) 494-2766

                                         PROGRAMS

FOOD SCIENCE VIRTUAL TOUR

Purdue University's place to fuel economic growth in Indiana and beyond by enabling food and beverage ideation, development, and commercialization of novel improved and sustainable products, supporting farmers, entrepreneurs, small businesses, and large corporations

Facilities & Resources

9,500 square feet of dedicated space

Hub of academic instruction

High level research

Extension workshops

Industry Engagement

Competitive industry and government research grants

FDA facility registration in near future

More Information

Commercial Kitchen

Hourly usage

Skilled support

Center for Food and Agricultural Business Consumer Corner

Purdue Institute for Family Business Strategic Business Planning

Center for Food Demand Analysis & Sustainability Consumer Food Insights

WHAT WE OFFER

Value-Added Product Development

Benchtop Trials

Analytical Testing, including pH and water activity 

Gold Standard Creation

Pilot Plant Processing

Sensory Evaluation

Regulatory Assistance

Validation of Technology

Product Feasibility

Project Management

Student Support

Training Sessions & Short Courses

Business Planning

Aseptic Processing

Fermentation

Size Reduction

Microthermics

Hot-Fill/Acidified Pasteurization

UHT/HTST

Microwave

Milling

High-Shear Mixing

Retort

Extrusion

Freeze Drying

Ultra Filtration

WHO WE ARE

Dharmendra Mishra

Dr. Dharmendra Mishra

Food Science
Director
Kenneth Foster

Dr. Kenneth Foster

Agricultural Economics
Assistant Director
Allison Kingery

Allison Kingery

Managing Director
Kelsey Budreau

Kelsey Budreau

Food Science
Pilot Plant Manager
Amanda Deering

Dr. Amanda Deering

Food Science
Contributor
Brenna Ellison

Dr. Brenna Ellison

Agricultural Economics
Contributor
Jayson Lusk

Dr. Jayson Lusk

Agricultural Economics
Department Head
Maria Marshall

Dr. Maria Marshall

Agricultural Economics
Contributor
Senay Simsek

Dr. Senay Simsek

Food Science
Department Head
Renee Wiatt

Renee Wiatt

Agricultural Economics
Contributor

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Madison Mehringer - Student Lead
Hometown: Brownsburg, IN
Focus area(s): Management of the student contributor team and to organize hiring and project team development; initiation and participation of project exploratory meetings and Scope of Work creation; and promoting FEMI and its resources to FEMI clients and potential clients

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Connor Hough - Technical Lead
Hometown: Indianapolis, IN
Focus area(s): Fermentation, microbial testing, and shelf-life studies

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Kassandra Julian - Technical Lead
Hometown: Martinsville, IN
Focus area(s): Food quality, product ideation, research and development, sensory studies, and shelf-life studies

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Matthew Kittaka - Technical Lead
Hometown: Fort Wayne, IN
Focus area(s): Fermentation, product development, and retort studies

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Meredith Malott - Student Contributor                                                                                                          Hometown: Westfield, IN                                                                                                                                                                                              Focus area(s): Shelf life studies and product development

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Nisa Abalioglu - Student Contributor
Hometown: Izmir, Turkey
Focus area(s): Equipment based manufacturing, sensory evaluation, pathogen control tests, and process engineering

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Jessica Armstrong - Student Contributor
Hometown: Huntsville, AL
Focus area(s): Microbial testing, product development, and retort studies

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Kara Benbow - Student Contributor
Hometown: Cincinnati, OH
Focus area(s): Scale-up, sensory studies, and shelf-life studies

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Zachary (Zach) Hoag - Student Contributor
Hometown: Caldwell, ID
Focus area(s): Retort studies

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Lily Hough - Student Contributor
Hometown: Indianapolis, IN
Focus area(s): Sensory studies and shelf-life studies

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Vicki Kuhaneck - Student Contributor
Hometown: Alliance, OH
Focus area(s): Sensory studies and shelf-life studies

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Isabell Mahin - Student Contributor
Hometown: Franklin, IN
Focus area(s): Functional and nutritional foods

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Isabella (Ella) Martin - Student Contributor
Hometown: Cincinnati, OH
Focus area(s): Process development and shelf-life studies

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Heather Milliron - Student Contributor
Hometown: Springfield, OH
Focus area(s): Product formulation

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Yukina Murata - Student Contributor
Hometown: San Jose, CA
Focus area(s): Food analysis, literary analysis, and microbiological tests

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Anika Murthy - Student Contributor
Hometown: Austin, TX
Focus area(s): Product development and sensory panels

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Alexandra Neikirk - Student Contributor
Hometown: Lusby, MD
Focus area(s): Microbiological topics, scale-up, and shelf-life studies

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Ishani Roychowdhury - Student Contributor
Hometown: Minneapolis, MN
Focus area(s): Research and development

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Doriane-hans Sossou - Student Contributor
Hometown: Benin, West Africa
Focus area(s): Microbiological topics, packaging, and shelf-life studies

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Mary Voigt - Student Contributor
Hometown: Greenfield, IN
Focus area(s): Health-focused foods, packaging, and product development

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Elise Whitley - Student Contributor
Hometown: Columbus, IN
Focus area(s): Recipe formulation and sensory panels

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Irene Zou - Student Contributor
Hometown: Lafayette, IN
Focus area(s): Retort studies

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Carson Clymer - Agricultural Economics Contributor
Hometown: Fort Wayne, IN

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Aubrey Dague - Agricultural Economics Contributor
Hometown: Kewanna, IN

Interested in working together?

FEMI project request