NDSU cereal science doctoral students Yang Lan and Minwei Xu were awarded graduate scholarships and travel awards by the Minnesota Section of the Institute of Food Technologists. Honorees were recognized during an awards dinner April 11.

Lan is from China and is advised Jiajia Rao, assistant professor of food chemistry and ingredient technology in the Department of Plant Sciences. Lan’s doctoral research topic is “Fabrication of Pea Protein Isolate-Polysaccharide Complexes for Improving Protein Functionality.” He presented a poster at the awards ceremony titled “Formation of Pea Protein-Sugar Beet Pectin Complex Coacervates for Controlling Food Texture.”

Xu, who is from China, is advised by Bingcan Chen, assistant professor of food and cereal chemistry in the Department of Plant Sciences. Xu’s doctoral research topic is “Improvement of the Attributes and Identification of Antioxidants from Pulse Seeds through Germination.”

The Minnesota Section is a regional section of the Institute of Food Technologists, covering Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota, northern Iowa and northwestern Wisconsin. With more than 1,000 members, it is one of the largest sections of the institute.

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