IDF is pleased to announce the establishment of an award and prize for early-career scientists and/or technologists to recognize their work in the Dairy Science and Technology field – The IDF Professor Pavel Jelen Early Career Scientist Prize. The award has been named in honor of Professor Pavel (Paul) Jelen, a Czech-born scientist who has spent his career based in Canada and the US. He developed academic work on Dairy Food Science and Technology, encouraging, mentoring and educating students and early-career scientists and technologists. The importance of communication was recognized in his work.
Purpose of the award
The award and prize will provide an opportunity for awardees to showcase their work at the annual IDF World Dairy Summit (WDS), and thus provide opportunities for further education and mentoring, and to enhance employment opportunities and options. It will also allow awardees to observe the business and operational workings of IDF.
IDF encouraged qualifying early-career scientists/technologists (students or those < 3 years since graduation for the highest earned degree attained) to submit for this Award and Prize. Submissions had to address scientific and/or technological aspects in which IDF has an interest and a remit.
Past entries
Winners of the Pavel Jelen prize since its inception are listed here. They have written technical papers with the aim of supplementing the information available from the IDF and providing dairy professionals with information and insight on topics related to their area of expertise.
2024 Winners
First Prize: Maria Frizzarin (Teagasc Animal and Grassland Research Centre, Ireland) for her work on the use of mid-infrared spectroscopy to quantify the cow environmental footprint.
Second Prize: Natalie Ahlborn (Sustainable Nutrition Initiative – Riddet Institute, New Zealand) for her work on processing treatments of milk and their effects on digestion and nutrient absorption.
Equal Third Prize: Riccardo Cocuzzi (Agroscope and the University of Fribourg, Switzerland) for his work on lactate metabolism in Propionibacterium freudenreichii, an important microorganism in the manufacture of Swiss-type cheeses.
Equal Third Prize: Mark Timlin (University College Dublin and Teagasc Food Research Centre, Ireland) for his work on the impacts of a ‘typical’ Irish pasture-based system on the composition and quality of milk and dairy products.
2023 Winners
First Prize: Davor Daniloski (Teagasc Food Research Centre, Ireland and Advanced Food Systems Research Unit, University of Queensland, Australia) for his work on the potential impact of β-casein phenotype on the structure-function relationship of milk and milk products.
- Daniloski D., (2024). Evolving dairy: The A2 shift and its industry impact. https://fil-idf.org/daniloski/
Second Prize: Grace Lewis (University of Wisconsin–River Falls, United States of America) for her work in optimizing the formation of casein micelle nanoparticles using high-pressure homogenization and processing aids.
- Lewis G., (2024). High pressure technologies in dairy processing. https://fil-idf.org/lewis/
Third Prize: Gunvantsinh Rathod (Idaho Milk Products, United States of America) for his work introducing a novel approach using fibrillated whey proteins to enhance the functionality of milk protein concentrate and non-fat dry milk.
- Rathod G., (2024). Milk protein concentrates and isolates, recent developments focusing on improving solubility. https://fil-idf.org/rathod/
2022 Winners
First Place: Angela Costa (Department of Veterinary Medical Sciences, University of Bologna, Italy) for her work utilising mid-IR spectroscopy for an accurate prediction of IgG concentration in bovine colostrum.
Equal Second Place: Debashree Roy (Sustainable Nutrition Initiative – Riddet Institute, New Zealand) for her work in studying the composition, structure, and dynamic digestion behaviour of milk from different species.
Equal Second Place: Prabin Lamichhane (Teagasc Food Research Centre, Ireland) for her work titled ‘Structure-function relationships: new insights into controlling split and crack defects in cheese’.
Third Place: Nick Smith (Sustainable Nutrition Initiative – Riddet Institute, New Zealand) for playing a part in understanding dairy’s contribution to a sustainable food system.
“We firmly believe that this prize will inspire and incentivize candidates to dedicate their careers to addressing dairy-related issues, empowering a new generation of scientists and technologists committed to advancing dairy science and technology. Through their efforts, we aim to enhance the quality, safety, and nutritional value of milk and dairy products,” stated Dr. Geoffrey Smithers, a member of the IDF Standing Committees on Dairy Science and Technology and Nutrition and Health, and Chair of the Prize judging panel.
IDF extends its gratitude to all the participants and extends heartfelt congratulations to the winners for their outstanding performance.
