Principle Investigator 

Dr. Minliang Yang is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Food, Bioprocessing, and Nutrition Sciences, an Associate Faculty in the Department of Biological and Agricultural Engineering at NC State University, and an affiliate of Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. Yang’s research focuses on applying technoeconomic analysis (TEA) and life-cycle assessment (LCA) in food, bioprocessing, and agricultural systems to explore strategies to mitigate life-cycle environmental impacts and improve the sustainability of the food system from both costs and environmental perspectives. Yang has published peer-reviewed papers in journals including Nature Food, PNAS, ES&T, JCLP, and ACS Sustain. Chem. Eng. Before joining NC State, Yang received her postdoc training in sustainability analysis of biofuel and value-added bioproducts at Lawrence Berkeley National Lab and Joint BioEnergy Institute (JBEI). She earned both her Ph.D. and M.S. in Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering at Iowa State University.

 

Graduate Student

Millena Cruz (Ph.D., Food Science)

B.S. Biotechnology, Federal University of Pará, Brazil, 2019
M.S. Food Science and Technology, Federal University of Pará, Brazil, 2024
Millena has expertise in regulatory affairs, quality assurance, and R&D within the tropical fruit pulp, beverage, and sorbet food industry.

 

Robert Wine (M.S., Food Science)

B.S. Food Science, magna cum laude, N.C. State University, 2022.
Robert’s undergraduate senior project focused on reducing waste within the food system by improving the physical properties of upcycled food products.

 

Ajinkya Atkare (M.S., Food Science)

B.Tech. Food Engineering & Technology, Institute of Chemical Technology, India, 2016.
M.B.A. Food & Agribusiness Management, Indian Institute of Management, India, 2019.
Ajinkya has 5 years of industry experience in food product development, Direct-to-Consumer (D2C) business, and consulting.

 

Seung Hyun Yoo (M.S., Food Science)

B.S. Food Science & Biotechnology of Animal Resources, Konkuk University, Republic of Korea, 2021.
Seung Hyun has working experience in both the food industry: CJ CheilJedang and HY Korea Yakult, and international organizations: the World Bank and the International Vaccine Institute.

 

Graduate researcher 

Khushi Modi, master in FBNS (2024)

Maria Kangala, master in FBNS (2023)

Saniya Gapchup, master in FBNS (2023)

Yashasya Shah, master in Computer Science (2023)

Undergraduate researcher

Tyler Hill, Food Engineering (2023 -2024)

Matt Sexton, Nutrition Science (2023)