It has been a whirlwind since our last newsletter, with multiple sold-out events and news to share.

Last Saturday, we hosted our 12th Annual TASTE Food and Wine Tasting. It was a beautifully cool fall evening filled with camaraderie, great wine, delicious food and lively conversation. We are grateful to every guest who helped raise funds to support public scholarship, highlighting food and beverage innovation and research at UC Davis.

The Robert Mondavi Institute’s sold-out Savor Series event, hosted in partnership with the UC Davis Library, brought together a panel of experts in wine chemistry, cultural history, human medicine, and nutritional metabolism to tackle one of today’s most debated questions: Is wine healthy? What emerged was a fascinating conversation where science, robust culture, and history converged around a single glass.

Nearly 800 food lovers gathered for a special conversation with James Beard Award-winning chef and Emmy-nominated host Pati Jinich. She is the culinary force behind Pati’s Mexican Table, La Frontera, and her newest series, Pati Jinich Explores Panamericana. Throughout the night, Pati captivated the audience with her bright-eyed curiosity, boisterous laugh, and infectious energy, sharing personal anecdotes that had everyone laughing while revealing her lifelong passion for cooking.

Back in high school, I had no doubt that college was the next step. However, the pressure of choosing a major was colossal! It felt like choosing the rest of my life when asked to select a major. I knew I wanted to do something creative, but I didn’t want to throw away all of my hard-earned A’s in physics, chemistry, and biology. After switching the major option about a hundred times, I finally registered under Undecided - Fine Arts for UC Davis.

From the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences

For every juicy tomato or crunchy almond California grows, there’s a pile of pulp, hulls or scraps that often goes to waste. A new online tool, created by University of California, Davis researchers, tracks those agricultural byproducts aiming to find innovative ways to put them to use.

Students have returned to campus and today marks the start of the fall quarter. It feels like we have hit the ground running as the weather cools and the leaves start to change color.

The food science and technology major offered at UC Davis is a well-rounded mix of theory and practice, with a hands-on learning approach being both effective and expected at California’s No. 1 agricultural school.  This program is internationally recognized and is one of only 88 IFT HERB approved programs , but how did this niche major come to be?

I am pleased to share the 2024 Robert Mondavi Institute Year in Review. I hope you will read about last year's RMI highlights and accomplishments with a focus on student engagement and partnerships. You can find all of our reports on the RMI website.

Whether you are a future food scientist or a regular foodie, the Food Tech Club at UC Davis is a great opportunity for students to grow and connect with others. For over 50 years, the Food Tech Club has served as a student chapter of the Institute of Food Technologists (IFT) to connect students, faculty, professionals, and community members to something we all love: food!

The Department of Food Science and Technology’s senior product showcase has become a celebratory event among community members, students, and faculty. The Senior class of 2025 presented their ideas during a 10-week period this spring. With the guidance of Dr. Andrew Gravelle, Dr. Jean-Xavier Guinard, and Matthew Ford, eight teams crafted healthy, sustainable, and delicious food, all while considering affordability, safety, and profitability.