Devin G Peterson, PhD

Devin Peterson is a Professor in the Department of Food Science and Technology at The Ohio State University. In 2001, he earned a doctoral degree in Flavor Chemistry at the University of Minnesota before joining the faculty in the Department of Food Science at Penn State University the same year. In 2009, he returned to the University of Minnesota as an Associate Professor and was promoted to Professor in 2014. He relocated his research program in 2016 to The Ohio State University as part of the Discovery Themes Initiative. His research focuses on identifying and analyzing the chemical stimuli that contribute to the flavor of food, including gustation (taste), olfaction (smell), and somatosensation (pungency, irritation, tactile). His program is based on a utility inspired fundamental research platform with an overarching goal to get more from nature, guided by science, to support the development of sustainable, nutritious, and healthy foods with higher product acceptability. He initiated and directs the Flavor Research and Education Center (http://frec.osu.edu), a partnership between academic researchers and industry leaders focused on the creation, exchange, and application of knowledge to drive innovation in the food marketplace.  In 2019 he was appointed the faculty director of the Foods for Health Discovery Theme Initiative, a key University organizational structure and driving force to promote optimal health for individuals and communities through scientific discovery across the food-nutrition-health continuum.

Publications

A list of publications is available here.

Awards