Student’s research improves nutrition and food safety

Story by Chad Campbell

January 13, 2022

More than 1,500 miles separate Purdue University and Enrique Velasco’s Honduras-based alma mater, Zamorano. Despite the distance, Velasco formed a new connection to Zamorano when he began his research in West Lafayette. Velasco studied agribusiness management in Honduras and sought a horticulture internship to balance his studies. There, he learned about research done by Purdue associate professor of horticulture and agricultural economics Arianna Torres, who also studied at Zamorano.

“I asked my internship mentor if I could apply to Purdue to see if there was a chance to work with Dr. Torres. She was looking for an intern, so everything aligned for me,” Velasco recalled.

Velasco completed his internship and returned home in 2019. Velasco earned his bachelor’s degree and returned to Purdue in 2020 to work toward a master’s degree under Torres’s guidance.

“Grad school has a big learning curve,” said Velasco. “Dr. Torres has helped push me into being a better researcher.”

Velasco’s studies focused on consumer perceptions of food safety, specifically fresh vegetables. To understand consumer preferences, he clustered variables related to nutrition, environment, food labeling and government regulations and procedures. After studying consumer behavior and qualitative methods, he developed a national survey.

“I like to think my research helps to achieve food security by improving nutrition and having safe food for everyone.”

Velasco also said combining horticulture, agricultural economics and his agribusiness background have strengthened his communication abilities. He wrote three Extension articles for the landscape industry based on his internship work on plant regulators.

“Extension has been the best way for me to learn how to jump from academia to the real world – to translate what we have done to something reachable for farmers and consumers,” Velasco explained.

Velasco is yet to solidify his future plans but will explore Ph.D. programs and opportunities in industry.

Featured Stories

Grain entrapment is the leading the cause of agricultural confined space-related injuries and fatalities; researchers emphasize safety

Purdue University’s Agricultural Safety and Health Program has released the 2023 Summary of...

FNR Extension Specialist Lenny Farlee speaks to a crowd

Purdue FNR Extension specialist receives national recognition for work in forestry

Lenny Farlee, sustaining hardwood Extension specialist for Purdue’s Department of Forestry...

Siddhartho Paul and his students use a RTK GPS in a soybean field to get precise location information

Satellites and soils: NIFA and AgSEED grants fund remote sensing data collection and machine-learning models to predict soil properties at farm-to-landscape scales

The few inches of soil you pick up on the tip of your shovel are part of a much bigger picture....

Photos from Hardwood University: timber sales 101 course with Lenny Farlee and a marketing hardwood veneer, stave and sawlogs course in Edinburgh, Indiana.

Hardwood University Offers Cutting-Edge Information, Training to Industry Professionals

The 2024-25 edition of Hardwood University’s industry curriculum is available now with the...

Fetch, kitty! New research shows that cats are more eager to retrieve than you might think

Mikel Delgado, a senior research scientist in Purdue University’s College of Veterinary...

close up of fruit fly with red eyes climbing up the side of a tube

Gene expression research brings hope to the delay and prevention of Alzheimer’s disease

Dementia, Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s diseases slowly curtail the full, exciting...