Notice Board

As with any other industry, the food industry has been changing over time. These changes are driven by many factors including changes in consumer behaviour, advice to consumers from health practitioners, government regulations, global economy, transportation, climate change, technology including internet-of-things (IoT), research done by academic institutions and industry itself, and most recently pandemic. The presentation will provide an overview of recent trends in the food industry and factors driving these changes. Using food quality monitoring as an example, this presentation will highlight what role research has played and is continuing to play towards this area.

Born and raised in India, Dr. Digvir Jayas earned a Bachelor of Agricultural Engineering at G.B. Pant University of Agriculture and Technology, and went on to complete a graduate degree and PhD in agricultural engineering at the Universities of Manitoba and Saskatchewan, respectively. He began teaching at the University of Manitoba in 1985, eventually ascending to the position of Vice-President (Research and International), which he held for 12 years.

An internationally renowned researcher, Dr. Jayas studies the drying, handling and storing of grains and oilseeds, and digital image processing for grading and processing operations in the agri-food industry. From 2002 to 2009, he was a Tier I Canada Research Chair in Stored-Grain Ecosystems, and in 2009 was inducted as a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada. In 2018, Dr. Jayas was appointed an Officer of the Order of Canada. He is the 2023 recipient of the Lieutenant Governor’s Award for Excellence in Public Administration in Manitoba.