Honorary Doctorate presented by Purdue University

2014 Willis James "Jim" Harper, retired J.T. Parker Chair in Dairy Foods, Department of Food Science & Technology, Ohio State University

2007 William T. Boehm, Senior Vice President, The Kroger Company

2005 Joseph S. Hatfiled, Founder & CEO, Fieldale Farms Corporation

2000 *Ronald R. Rice, Senior Vice President, The Kroger Company

1996 Elaine R. Wedral, President of Research & Development Centers, Nestle

1993 *Robert L. Sellars, Senior Vice President, CHR. Hansen’s Lab, Inc.

1988 Kenneth N. May,  CEO, Holly Farms

1990 *Robert Carbonell, President & CEO, DelMonte Foods – R.R. Nabisco, Inc

1986 *Arnold E. “Bud” Denton, Senior Vice President, Campbell Soup Company

1985 *Roy L. Whistler, Professor Emeritus, Hillenbrand Distinguished Professor

Distinguished Agricultural Alumni Award presented by Purdue College of Agriculture

2017 George Abide, Founder and Explorer, The Abide Idea Company

2016 Martin Berry, Senior Principal Research Engineer, Ocean Spray Cranberries Inc.

2015 Victoria Finkenstadt, Lead Scientist, United States Department of Agriculture

2014 Nicholas L. Rozzi, Director of Global Commercialization, Godiva Chocolatier, Inc.

2013 D. Scott Lineback, Vice President Process Innovation, ConAgra Foods

2012 Liangli “Lucy” Yu, Professor and Acting Chair, Department of Nutrition & Food Science, University of Maryland

2011 Gary Chenoweth, Vice President – Customer Relationship Leader, Bunge Oils

2010 Mona Baker Wolf, President, The Wolf Group

2009 Glenn Armstrong, Vice President, Corporate and Businness Innovations, Alticor, Inc.

2008 Yonas Gizaw, Principal Scientist, Proctor and Gamble, Co.

2006 Mark E. Kimmel, Senior Vice President of Total Quality and Research and Development, Stanislaus Food Products

2004 Tracy A. Baker, Vice President of Innovation and Beverage Development, PepsiCo Beverages and Foods

2003 Sharrann E. Simmons, Vice President & General Manager, Colloides Naturels

2002 William R. Aimutis, Principal Scientist, Cargill, Inc.

2001 Robert W. Wotzak, Vice President of Research and Development, ConAgra Grocery Products Co.

2000 Marion P. Williams, Senior Vice President of Technology, Welch Foods, Inc.

1996 David Hettinga, Vice President and Chief Technical Officer, Land O'Lakes, Inc.

1994 *Ronald R. Rice, Group Vice President, The Kroger Company

1993 John H. Nelson, Vice President of Science and Technology, McCormick and Company, Inc.

1992 Darrell G. Medcalf, Vice President of Research, Kraft General Foods

1992 Elaine R. Wedral, President and Chair, Westreco, Inc.

This award was created by the faculty in the year 2000 to pay tribute to individuals who have established an outstanding record of achievement in industry, academia, or government thus impacting the field of food science and the Department. An alphabetical list of recipients is also available. 

2017

Robert Culler, Principle, Culler Consulting, LLC

Kurt Villwock, Director of Research and Development, Fiberstar, Inc.

Julia Watterson, Principal Scientist, The Hershey Company

 2016

Milda Embuscado, Senior Principal Scientist, McCormick & Company

John McKeehen, Innovation, Technology and Quality Director of Cereal Technology, General Mills

Kathryn Rippel, Senior Brewmaster, Anheuser Busch​

2015

Rebeca Buckner, Chief Implementation Manager, FDA Food Safety Modernization Act

Jeff Grogg, Managing Director, JPG Resources​

​2014

Christopher Fosse, Vice President of Quality for the Branded and Private Branded Business, ConAgra Foods

Maria Oria, Senior Program Officer, Food and Nutrition Board of the Institute of Medicine, National Academy of Sciences

Nancy Quan, Global Research and Development Officer, Coca Cola Company

2013

Nancie Corum-Oxley, Head Winemaker, St. Julian Winery

Claudia Fajardo-Lira, Professor of Food Science, Department of Family Consumer Sciences, California State University Northridge

Diane Hnat, Senior Technical Manager, DSM Nutritional Products

Mohamed Obanni, Senior Director of Technical Services, Aseptic, and Refrigerated Business, The Hain Celestial Group

Dianne Ripberger, Research & Development Director of Quality Innovation, Information Systems, and Ingredient Quality Assurance, Frito Lay North America division of Pepsico

2012

George Abide, President, The Abide Idea Company

Renée Mellican, Director of Product Development in Research, Quality, and Innovation, ConAgra Foods

Nicholas Rozzi, Director, Global Commercialization, Godiva Chocolatier, Inc.

George Sadler, Chief Technical Officer, Prove It, LLC

Liangli “Lucy” Yu, Professor and Acting Chair, Department of Nutrition & Food Science, University of Maryland

2010

Dane Bernard, Vice President of Food Safety and Quality Assurance, Keystone Foods, LLC

Anita Colglazier, Director of Quality, Butterball, LLC

*James Kincaid, Principal Scientist, Kellogg Company

David Lesley, Principal Scientist, Ball Corporation

D. Scott Lineback, Vice President of Process Innovation, ConAgra Foods

2009

Gloria Cagampang, Research Fellow, Department of Research, Quality, and Technology, Kellogg Company

Delva “Kay” Cooksey, Professor, Department of Packaging Science, Clemson University

Athlula Ekanayake, Principal Scientist, Procter & Gamble

Bruce Pearson, Senior Director of Operations, King Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

*George Somkuti, Lead Scientist and Research Chemist, USDA Eastern Regional Research Center

Norihisi Takada, Director of Research & Development, Del Monte Company

2008

Kathleen Berry, Global Marketing Manager, Pall Corporation

Martin Berry, Senior Principal Research Engineer, Ocean Spray Cranberries, Inc.

Gary Chenoweth, Vice President of Food Processor Sales, Bunge Oils

Mona Baker Wolf, President, The Wolf Group

2007

Yonas Gizaw, Principal Scientist, Fabric and Home Care Technology Division, Proctor and Gamble

James S. Jones, Vice President of Research and Development, Rich Products Corporation

David K. Park, President, Food Defense

Oscar A. Pike, Head of the Department of Nutrition, Dietetics, and Food Science, Brigham Young University

2006

Glenn S. Armstrong, Senior Director for Science and Technology, Wm. Wrigley Jr. Company

William P. Mickelberry, former Manager of Product Development, Oregon Freeze Dry Foods, Inc.

Willis James Harper, Parker Chair in Dairy Foods, Department of Food Science and Technology, Ohio State University

2005

William R. Aimutis, Research Fellow and Group Manager of Food Technology Development Center, t Cargill, Inc

*Fred Babel (Posthumous) Former Professor of Dairy Bacteriology, Purdue University

Tracy A. Baker, Vice President of Non-Carbonated Beverages for PepsiCo, Inc

Glenna Matthews, Process Technology Manager, FMC Technologies, Inc.

Keith Neer, retired Vice President of Corporate Food Technology and Regulatory Compliance, The Kroger Company

Robert W. Wotzak, Vice President of Global Research and Development, Griffith Laboratories

2004

J. Richard Heron, Senior Process Engineer, Del Monte Foods

Alan R. Kimbell, Chairman of the Board, Distribution Management Associates

Mark E. Kimmel, Senior Vice President, Stanislaus Food Products

John S. Morgan, Owner, Morgan Foods

Marshall J. Myers, former Corporate Vice President of Research and Development, McCormick and Company

Gary W. Naab, Director of Operations / Engineering Supply Chain, General Mills, Inc.

Brian L. Reichart, CEO, Red Gold, Inc.

Richard A. Roop, Vice President of Food Safety and Quality Assurance for the Food Service and International Divisions, Tyson Foods

Sharrann E. Simmons, Vice President and General Manager, Colloides Naturels, Inc.

James Swi-Bea Wu, Head of the Department of Food Science and Technology, National Taiwan University

2003

Alfred A. Bushway, Professor and former Chair of the Department of Food Science, University of Maine

John N. Butts, Vice President of Research, Land O’Frost

*S. John Davies (Posthumous), Chairman of the Board, Enerfab, Inc.

Theodore E. Hartung, Associate Vice Chancellor Emeritus, University of Nebraska-Lincoln

Clayton S. Huber, Professor and former Dean of the College of Biology and Agriculture, Brigham Young University

*Peter W. Mauger (Posthumous), former President, Naas Foods

Kenneth N. May, President and CEO, Holly Farms Poultry Industries, Inc.

Darrell G. Medcalf, former President, HealthComm, Inc.

Gale Shemwell Rudolph, Senior Scientist and Director of Food Product Development, USANA Health Services, Inc.

Marion P. Williams, Senior Vice President of Technology, Welch’s

2002

Fredrick W. Billerbeck, former Director of Administration and Services, Gerber Products’ Research Division

William A. Gorman, former Vice President and Director, Kraft, Inc.

David H. Hettinga, Chief Technical Officer and Vice President of Corporate Research, Technology, and Engineering, Ag Research and Technology and Fleet, Land O’Lakes

David R. Lineback, Director of the Joint Institute for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition, University of Maryland

*John V. Luck, former Senior Vice President and Technical Director, General Mills

John H. Nelson, former Vice President of Science and Technology, McCormick and Company

Paul A. Seib, Professor, Department of Grain Science and Industry, Kansas State University

*Robert L. Sellars, former Senior Vice President of Techology and Quality Assurance, Chr. Hansen’s Laboratory, Inc.

Vernon L. Singleton, Professor Emeritus, Department of Viticulture and Enology, University of California

Elaine R. Wedral, President of Research and Development Centers, Nestle

2001

*Gale A. Ammerman, Professor Emeritus and former Department Head of Food Science and Technology, Mississsippi State University

*Robert J. Carbonell, former Vice Chairman of RJR Nabisco, Inc.

*Arnold E. “Bud” Denton, former Senior Vice President of the Campbell Soup Company

*Bernard J. “Bernie” Liska, Professor Emeritus and former Dean of Agriculture, Purdue University

Thomas A. Ravencroft, Senior Vice President of Mergers and Acquisitions, Dean Foods

*Frances L. Reichart, former President, Red Gold, Inc.

*Ronald R. Rice, Senior Vice President, Kroger Company

*William R. Scholle (Posthumous), former President, Scholle Corporation

*William J. Stadelman, Professor Emeritus, Department of Food Science, Purdue University

*Roy L. Whistler, Professor Emeritus, Department of Food Science, Purdue University

*deceased