Graduate Student Profile - Matthew Kittaka

Matthew Kittaka successfully defended his M.S. thesis on July 25, 2025. Matthew is originally from Fort Wayne, Indiana. He obtained his bachelor's degree in food science from Purdue University.  

Matthew's thesis was entitled, "The novel in-can hydration of dry beans for retort thermal processing and agitation's impact on process time and quality." His research investigated the feasibility of a novel method of canned bean manufacturing where the beans are hydrated in the can during the thermal processing. Matthew's first study provided data that supported that beans can be safely hydrated in-can during thermal processing. His second study investigated the impact of agitation on the process time and quality for in-can hydrated dry beans for retort thermal processing. Agitation improved process time and quality.

Matthew was advised by Dharmendra Mishra . Other members of his graduate committee included Deandrae Smith, M. Fernanda San-Martin and Patnarin Benyathiar. 

Matthew elected to continue his academic career in the Purdue Food Science department because of the positive experiences he had as an undergraduate. He was also excited to conduct research in the "impressive pilot-scale facility" in the department.

Matthew was recognized for his paper, "Novel in-can hydration of dry beans for retort thermal processing", which received honorable mention in the Charles Stumbo paper competition at the IFTPS 2025 convention.

Congratulations, Matthew! We wish you all the best!