Experience

Son Chu-Ky is a Senior Lecturer at the Department of Food Engineering and Dean of the School of Chemistry and Life Sciences (SCLS), Hanoi University of Science and Technology (HUST), Vietnam. He has more than 20 years of experience in microbial biodiversity, food biotechnology and innovation. His research interests are focused on exploring the vegetal and microbial diversity for improvement of food quality and safety and developing energy-saving processes for ethanol production, valorization of co-products and plant-based protein. He has published more than 90 papers and communication including 40 ISI papers, 5 book chapters and 2 patents.
Son Chu-Ky has been involved in various national and international cooperation networks and projects such as Hoa-Sen Lotus, PER, PCSI, BioAsia (France and Agency of French Speaking University), FoodSeg, Gratitude (EU-FP7), AsiFood, NutriSea (EU-Erasmus+), Global Challenges Research Fund, Network Strengthening Grant (UK). He has close relationship and network with biotech- and food-related enterprises in Vietnam and in the region regarding R&D projects, development of new products, biotech and food innovation, technology transfer and on-demand training.

Education

PhD (Food science): University of Burgundy Europe (formerly known as University of Dijon), France, 2006.
Master (Food science): University of Burgundy Europe (formerly known as University of Dijon), France, 2000.
Engineer (Food technology): Hanoi University of Science and Technology, Vietnam, 1999

Experience

Dr Parag Acharya with 14 years of industrial food R&D experience, is leading alternative protein-based food research and innovation at the Natural Resources Institute (NRI). Since joining NRI in 2020, he has taken the helm of the research group focusing on food processing and innovation as well as led the establishment of the Medway Food Innovation Centre equipped with cutting-edge facilities to foster sustainable food technologies. Led by Parag, MFIC has already positioned itself as a key player in the UK for alternative protein research and innovation. It is also playing a key role in $30m Bezos Centre for Sustainable Protein led by Imperial College, London where Parag is co-leading the Plant Pillar platform.

Besides, Parag is also the innovation growth manager for Growing Kent and Medway (GKM) agri-food cluster (http://www.growingkentandmedway.com) funded by £17.8 million UKRI Strength in Places grant. As part of the GKM team, he co-authored UKRI report (2022) Alternative Proteins: Identifying UK Priorities (Alternative Proteins Roadmap: identifying UK priorities – UKRI) and is also leading the GKM Alternative Protein Research Network.

Parag is highly skilled in building multi-disciplinary collaborations. He has initiated contacts with StartLife in Wageningen, GROW in Singapore, and Swiss Food Valley to leverage their experiences in setting up a framework for the plant-based food accelerator programme in the Medway campus. This accelerator programme has, so far, brought a significant knowledge exchange impact by delivering business mentoring and technical support to 100+ regional food companies, facilitated 18 new product launches, and helped 12 businesses to successfully apply for further R&D funding.

Since 2021, Parag has also brought a significant research funding (see below) to deliver the scientific unlock on how to innovate climate-smart food utilising sustainable protein sources (e.g. currently leading projects on alternative proteins from under-utilized legumes, algae, agri-food side-streams like spent grain etc.) by connecting domains of ingredient research, novel processing, clean label formulation (e.g. how to replace additives with natural alternatives), and taste & flavour technologies. He is also co-supervisor for a collaborative PhD project (with University of Aberystwyth) on RuBisCO protein funded by the UKRI Food system CDT.

Parag has been appointed as steering committee member of BBSRC Diet and Health Open Innovation Research Club (OIRC), selected as member of BBSRC Pool of Experts (2023-2026) and was part of Algae-UK organizing committee for developing the Roadmap for Algae in UK diets. He is the steering committee member of the UK-Kenya Alternative Proteins Network (2024). Parag had also featured in Good Food Institute (GFI) website (Meet the researcher: Parag Acharya on building a one stop shop for sustainable proteins - GFI Europe) and was mentioned in the GFI Europe report among top UK researchers in the field of alternative protein (Sustainable proteins in the UK – an ecosystem report (gfieurope.org))

Before joining NRI, Parag had been working for Unilever Food R&D in Netherlands (2011-2020) with a proven track record of successfully delivering patented technologies (lead inventor of 4 patents: WO 2020099180, WO 2017140439 A1, WO 2017001154 A1 and WO 2013189709 A1). He led strategic open innovation partnerships as well as championed several industry-academia collaborations funded by EU FP-7 ITN, TKI-Agri Food, BBSRC-CTPs etc. His pioneering research at Unilever also delivered scientific insights on the causative chemistry of culinary flavour generation by unravelling how aroma generation can be controlled by the optimal processing of plant-based food.

Experience

Graduated with a PhD from Okayama University, Japan, in 2005.
Teaching Subjects:
Production Management;
Service Operations Management
Research Areas:
Operation Management
Human Resource Management
Green Supply Chain Management
Smart Factory Management

Experience

Dr. Zand is an internationally acclaimed expert in the field of infant nutrition she is the author of several peer reviewed publications and is frequently invited to deliver plenary and other invited lectures at major symposia and at international conferences on food and nutrition. She is regularly engaged with the media, including the BBC, Channel 4, and Channel 5 as an expert in food science and nutrition. Her recent commentary on Food Poverty in the Evening Standard as part of their Food Hunger December 2020 campaign was very well received.

As well as a member of the Institute of Leadership and Management (Inst.LM) Dr Zand is also a Fellow of the Institute of Food Science & Technology (FIFST) providing food and nutrition advice to both the public and private sector such as Kent, Lewisham and Greenwich councils. She is frequently invited to contribute to food related projects including Good Food in Greenwich (GFIG), promotion of healthy nutrition in relation to early life development such as “Eating Well: first year of life Practical guide” published by the Caroline Walker Trust and “Baby food in the UK” First Step Nutrition. Dr Zand's research has also been referenced in Public Health England (2019) rapid scoping review examining the role and impact of commercial baby foods and drinks on the diets of children aged 4 months.

Dr Zand has on-going engagements with large multi-national companies through to small regional SMEs developing new protocols for analytical based optimizations of the nutritional quality of new food products. She has also worked on health claims, labelling and legislation, the application of modified atmosphere packaging in prolonging post-harvest shelf-life and waste reduction of perishable food. Dr Zand also has expertise the analysis of food and the effective implementation of appropriate Total Management Quality Systems /HACCP. She is the badge holder of Global Standard for Food Safety Issue 8 Lead Auditor and is currently responsible for the accreditation of the ASL laboratory services at the university against ISO 17025:2017.

Dr Zand is member of Kent and Medway NHS Trust Joint Research Collaboration group, All Party Parliamentary Food and Health Forum, and has recently been invited to talk on infant feeding in the UK. She is currently a member of the Research award board of Coeliac UK and is also a Food Standard Agency registered specialist, joining the board of reviewers of the Journal of Foods (JFOOD) (2020). This is in addition to previously serving as a Guest Editor for a Special issue on Infant and Child Nutrition (2015) for JFOOD, Associate Editor (2016) for Food Processing and Technology (MOJFPD), and as an Editorial Board Member for Journal of Pharmacy and Nutrition (JPANS).

Experience

Dr. Anil Kumar Anal is the Professor of the Food Engineering and Bioprocess Technology and Food Innovation, Nutrition, and Health program at the Department of Food Agriculture and Bioresources in the Asian Institute of Technology (AIT), Thailand. Prof. Anil completed his Master’s and Doctoral degrees in Food and Bioprocess Technology at the Asian Institute of Technology, Thailand. He has also experiences working as a researcher and academician at Otago University and the Massey University of New Zealand. His expertise lies in the field of Food Safety, Food and Nutrition Security, Food- and Bioprocessing and Preservation, and Bioeconomy.
Prof Anil specializes in the valorization of food waste and agro- residues for High Value, AMR studies, and delivery systems for bioavailability and bioaccessibility. He has authored 6 patents (US, World Patents, EU, Canadian and Indian); more than 130 referred international journal articles, 37 book chapters, one authored book, 7 edited books, and several in International conference proceedings. Upcoming book include probiotics for industrial application (Wiley- Mar 2022) and Valorization of Agro-industrial waste (CRC- 2022). He has been invited as Keynote Speakers and Experts in various Food, Biotechnology, Agro-Industrial Processing, and Veterinary as well as Life Sciences based conferences and workshops organized by national, regional and international agencies.

Prof. Anil is an Editor of Scientific Reports, a reputed international journal in the science field. He has been serving as Advisory members, Associate Editor, Members of Editorial Board of various Regional and International peer-reviewed Journal publications. He has experience on conducting various innovative research and product developments funded by various donor agencies, including Newton Fund, ADB, European Union, FAO, Various Government Agencies, CTCN, USAID, and various food and biotech industries.

Experience

Professor Ben Bennett has been with the Natural Resources Institute for 30 years, much of it spent overseas as an agriculture and trade policy advisor in Namibia and the Philippines. His work has been largely in the field of trade and market economics for tropical commodities in developing countries with a particular focus on aspects of agricultural value chains for novel products. He has undertaken consultancy and research in over 40 countries working on cereals, legumes, horticulture, fisheries, fibres, non-timber forestry products, livestock, oilseeds and industrial crops. Professor Bennett is known for his value chain analysis work on many different commodities as well as market research for primary and secondary products. He has long experience in leading research and consultancy teams including complex evaluations and reviews for major multi-national bodies and donors. He has an interest in the marketing of wild harvested natural products and the relationship between markets and conservation of natural resources. He has supported a number of trade negotiations including SADC, COMESA and SACU and led an international effort to improve Trade Capacity Building, particularly in the area of standards.

Experience

Caroline Troy is NRI's Senior Strategy Support Manager. She has worked with NRI since October 1990 and in her role she is responsible for supporting the implementation of NRI's strategic plan with particular focus on income generation through knowledge exchange and postgraduate teaching and learning. Caroline is responsible for planning and coordinating NRI's comprehensive events programme including project conferences, symposia, and visitor hosting, while also driving NRI's marketing strategy and social media communications to build the institute's reputation. She covers development and delivery of marketing materials, postgraduate programme promotion, alumni engagement, and strategic stakeholder relationship building. She also oversees NRI's travel procedures and logistics, manages financial planning and budget tracking for events and activities, and maintains KE Framework data for reporting. Caroline has managed events and travel arrangements across multiple continents supporting NRI's international project portfolio and has travelled and managed events in Ghana, Kenya, Tanzania, Malawi, Benin, Uganda, Spain, Rwanda, Colombia, India, Vietnam, and the UK.

Experience

Dr. Walsh is an interdisciplinary environmental scientist, having joined the university in 2017. He does not consider himself a subject specialist in the strictest sense, having worked in areas as diverse as sports science and naval architecture. Ostensibly he works within the areas of resource (and carbon) accounting and lifecycle assessment (LCA) and techno-economics. Prior to joining the university, he served as a research associate/fellow in the Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research, based in the University of Manchester. During this period, he worked on diverse projects on issues relating to low grade heat in industry, the emissions of the UK and Global shipping sector, and comparing marine fuel cycles. He took part in a consortium project involving several universities such as UCL and University of Strathclyde, and was involved in diverse activities including economic modelling, shipping system modelling and lifecycle assessment. During this period he sat on the special emissions working group of the IMarEST (Institute of Marine Engineering, Science & Technology). He led the development of detailed trade scenario for climate changes futures which integrated econometric, material flow analyses and the outputs of integrated assessment models. This work demonstrating the trade-offs of decarbonisation of the global economy and shipping amid increased bio-energy trade. During this time, he was also involved in numerous teaching and outreach activities, mostly at MSc level, teaching on the operationalisation of the sustainability concept.
Shortly after arriving at the university He has led the MSc ‘Global Environmental Change’ which is framed around the land water energy and food nexus, as well as leading modules at both undergraduate and postgraduate level, on subjects such as use of indicator species and carbon accounting. Since arriving at the University, His research work has shift to agricultural systems, which is fitting as he undertook PhD research, in on the Ecological Footprint, a well-established, land-based indicator of sustainability. (This was done as part of a research agenda setting processing involving practitioners around world, including the concepts founder).
As a member of the Natural Resources Institute (NRI) He been involved in diverse research activities with an agronomic focus, including the EU funded value chain analysis for analysis (VCA4D) programme as well other projects examining the impact of coffee cultivation (collaborating with colleagues in Costa Rica and Guatemala) and the development of climate smart agriculture (CSA) decision tool in collaboration with Syngenta foundation. Specifically, he has led a Defa funded LCA project involving Rothamsted research, University of Surrey and London Southbank University. This project involves undertaking a lifecycle assessment of a ‘foodbasket’ of a range of different commodities. This world demonstrates important trade-offs in terms of competing interests such as reducing the environmental burden and increasing the animal welfare of specific livestock systems. In a mentoring capacity, he routinely advises colleagues as thy work towards obtaining teaching qualifications. He is frequently involved in media appearing having spoken on BBC radio on issues relating to climate change and has been quoted in The Times on issues relating to climate change education. He is supervising PhD projects across such varied topics as value chain shocks, building design and evolving climate activism

Experience

Dr. NGUYEN Tien Cuong received his PhD in Enzymatic and Microbial Engineering from the National Institute of Applied Sciences (INSA) Toulouse, France, in 2014. His main research directions include: (i) Microbial contamination in foods and biocontrol; (ii) Applications of enzymes and microorganisms in the processing of carbohydrate-rich foods; and (iii) Development of physical analytical methods (rheological properties, particle size, etc.) in complex systems (hydrolysis, fermentation).

Dr. Nguyen Tien Cuong has served as the principal investigator of several NAFOSTED-funded projects and ministerial-level projects. He is the author/co-author of more than 35 scientific publications (including 12 papers in Q1–Q2 journals), two book chapters and three patents.

Experience

Hoang Thi Thu Huong is an Associate Professor and the Head of the Department of Environmental Science and Technology at the School of Chemistry and Life Sciences, Hanoi University of Science and Technology (HUST) . With extensive expertise in environmental engineering, she focuses her research on sustainable waste management, circular economy practices, and environmental impact assessments. Within the 3PUKSEA network, she plays a vital role in evaluating the environmental sustainability of plant protein production, specifically through lifecycle assessment (LCA) studies and the development of eco-innovative extraction methods for rice-based proteins. Her work is instrumental in ensuring that the transition to alternative proteins contributes to climate-smart agriculture and reduced carbon footprints in South-East Asia.

Education

Dr. Huong holds a Doctorate in Environmental Engineering and has dedicated her career to academic excellence and research at Hanoi University of Science and Technology. She has undergone advanced training in environmental management and continues to lead multidisciplinary projects that bridge the gap between industrial chemistry and ecological preservation.

Experience

Irfan Dwidya Prijambada currently works at the Department of Agricultural Microbiology, Gadjah Mada University. He is also appointed as a collaborative professor at Osaka University until now. He does research in Biochemistry, Chemical Biology and Environmental Science.

Experience

Dr. Marcos Paradelo Pérez joined University of Greenwich in 2020, moving from Rothamsted Research where he was working on the strategic programme ‘Soil to Nutrition’ focus on understanding microorganisms’ interactions with the soil structure under different soil managements.
After graduating with a BSc in Agricultural engineering and a MSc in Agriculture and Food Science and Technology from University of Vigo, Spain, Marcos obtained his PhD degree in 2012 at the same university. He used for the first time the colloid filtration theory to describe the transport and fate of colloidal pesticide formulations through soil that were widely used in Galician (NW Spain) vineyards.

From 2013 to 2018 he carried his postdoctoral research at the Department of Agroecology, Aarhus University, Denmark. He investigated how soil structure controls soil ecosystem functions, using X-ray CT scanning techniques to predict the movement of water, solutes and colloids through soil. He also studied the changes in soil microbial communities under different soil physical environments and anthropogenic factors. He found that the changes in bacterial communities after herbicide applications is mitigated in soils with higher soil organic matter.

Marcos is always looking for the newest techniques applied to soil science. Together with other colleagues, he has used medical and industrial scanners and other visualization techniques to describe soil architecture, vis-NIR spectroscopy and multivariate models to estimate the partition coefficient of different chemicals in soil and he has got some experienced analysing metagenomic data to describe soil microbial communities. He has helped to developed fast response tensiometers to measure pressure jumps in structured soil during drainage to link pore-scale fluctuations to macropore/core scale fluctuations. Being inspired by frugal technology, he has used inexpensive colloidal tracers (sepia ink) to study colloidal transport in soil. Marcos is also very interested in crowdsourced / citizen science, being involved in testing a litter decomposition method using commercial tea bags.

In 2019 Marcos has been leading a project to create a new farmer-centric platform to monitor soil conditions and benchmark soil health. This project has been selected by ConceptionX, a programme for building deep tech startups from leading research labs and PhD programmes around the UK.
Marcos is a member of NRI's Agriculture, Health & Environment Department, mainly working under the Sustainable Agricultural Intensification Programme within the NRI’s Food and Nutrition Security Initiative, FaNSI

Experience

Dr. Pham Ngoc Hung is an expert in food engineering and biotechnology with over 10 years of academic and leadership experience. As Head of the Administrative Office at the School of Chemistry and Life Sciences (SCLS), HUST, he plays a key role in strategic management and institutional digital transformation.

His research primarily focuses on food processing equipment, advanced drying technologies, and dynamic process simulation. He is widely recognized for integrating Artificial Intelligence (AI) and data analytics into food technology to optimize processing efficiency and enhance research outcomes.

Dr. Hung coordinates numerous high-level research projects, including national programs on agricultural by-product valorization and functional foods. Furthermore, he actively engages in international, multi-disciplinary networks, such as the 3PUKSEA project.

Education

He holds a PhD in Food Chemistry and Biotechnology from BOKU University (Austria, 2015), a Master’s in Industrial Management (Daegu University, South Korea), and an Engineering degree in Automatic Control (HUST). This diverse educational background effectively bridges engineering principles with biological applications..

Experience

NRI Commercial Manager and invertebrate pathologist. Twenty-eight years’ experience working in sustainable development, comprising: 16 years' experience of project management; twelve years’ experience of research and development on insect diseases as crop protection tools in the tropics.
Key expertise: Project financial management (pre and post-award); grant application processes; project management; client liaison; biopesticide development.
In-country experience: Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Malawi, Benin, India, Ghana, Thailand and Bolivia.

Experience

Nguyen Ngoc Minh is a Professor at the Faculty of Environmental Sciences, VNU University of Science, Vietnam National University, Hanoi (VNU-HNS) . With over 20 years of dedicated research in soil science, fertilizers, and agricultural product quality, he has established himself as a leading expert in his field. Dr. Minh is the head of the Soil Resources and Environment Department and leads the SoilTechLab research group, focusing on practical solutions to enhance agricultural productivity and food safety. He has published over 30 international ISI research papers, including high-impact studies on arsenic (As) toxicity in rice, contributing significantly to global food security and public health. Within the 3PUKSEA network, his expertise is vital for investigating soil decontamination technologies and ensuring the safety of rice-based protein value chains in Vietnam.

Education

Dr. Minh holds a Professorship and a Doctorate in Environmental Sciences from Vietnam National University, Hanoi. His academic journey is marked by a deep commitment to soil science, transitioning from a passionate young researcher to a prominent figure in Vietnam’s academic community, dedicated to simplifying agriculture through scientific innovation.

Experience

Quyet-Tien Phi is an Associate Professor and Director at the Institute of Biology (IB), Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology (VAST), Vietnam. He is also Director of the VAST Culture Collection of Microorganisms (VCCM) and Deputy Head of the Faculty of Biology at the Graduate University of Science and Technology (GUST), VAST. He has more than 25 years of experience in microbiology, microbial genetics, biotechnology, and fermentation technology.
Quyet-Tien Phi’s research interests focus on the exploitation and application of microorganisms in agriculture, industry, and environmental treatment; fermentation technology for the production of enzymes, antibiotics, and bioactive compounds; as well as biochemistry and molecular biology, particularly recombinant protein expression and metabolic pathways for biosynthesis of bioactive compounds. He has published over 100 scientific publications, including approximately 40 papers in international peer-reviewed journals, covering topics such as microbial genomics, natural products, and bioactive compounds. He is also actively involved in scientific communities, serving as an Executive Board Member of the ASEAN Microbial Utilization (ANMICRO) and a member of the Council of Life Sciences of VAST.

Education

PhD (Microbiology): Kyungpook National University, Korea, 2008.
Master (Microbiology): Hanoi University of Science and Technology (formerly known as Hanoi University of Technology), Vietnam, 2004.
Engineer (Food technology): Hanoi University of Science and Technology (formerly known as Hanoi University of Technology), Vietnam, 1999.

Experience

Tien-Thanh Nguyen is a Senior Lecturer and the Deputy Head of the Department of Bioengineering at the School of Chemistry and Life Sciences, Hanoi University of Science and Technology (HUST). With a career spanning over two decades since 2003, he specializes in biochemistry, molecular biology, and biotechnology. Dr. Thanh has extensive experience in research and development, particularly in the recovery of microalgae for biofuels and the application of enzymes in functional food production. Within the 3PUKSEA network, he serves as a core partner, contributing his expertise in bioengineering to drive innovations in plant-based protein technologies and sustainable food systems. He has also been involved in numerous international research collaborations, including projects with partners from Austria, Norway, and Romania.

Education

Dr. Thanh earned his Ph.D. in Biotechnology from BOKU University, Vienna, Austria, in 2011. He holds a Master’s degree (2006) and an Engineering degree (2003) in Food Technology from Hanoi University of Science and Technology. Additionally, he completed a scientific internship in molecular biology at the Norwegian University of Life Sciences (NMBU) in 2010.

Experience

Vu Thu Trang is an Associate Professor and the Deputy Head of the Food Engineering Department at the School of Chemistry and Life Sciences, Hanoi University of Science and Technology (HUST). With over 20 years of dedication to teaching and scientific research since 2003, she has established herself as an expert in Food Technology, with a focus on dairy production, plant-based product development, and the antimicrobial properties of essential oils. Dr. Trang has led numerous high-impact projects, including the industrial-scale production of protein-rich rice milk and the development of specialized yogurt products. She is a prominent figure in the academic community, frequently contributing to international research collaborations and publishing in prestigious scientific journals.

Education

Dr. Trang earned her Ph.D. from Ehime University, Japan, in 2010, following the completion of her Master’s degree at Kochi University, Japan, in 2007. She holds an Engineering degree in Food Technology from Hanoi University of Science and Technology, where she also received specialized training through the UNESCO post-graduate program in Biotechnology and Microbiology.

Experience

Valerie worked closely with the Greenwich Research and Enterprise team as part of a regional consortium before joining Greenwich University full-time 10 years ago. Her role was to help start-up and more established businesses to develop and launch innovative products or services in the UK and abroad. As an innovation and growth specialist for Innovate UK Edge, she helped businesses develop and manage their innovation, developed sustainable and profitable business model and in many cases access finance to support their growth. The support package includes; identifying suitable sources of public or private funding; bringing new and existing products and services to market successfully; managing innovation processes; establishing market and understanding market potential; and connecting to the wider innovation ecosystem.

Experience

Dr Xi He is a Flavour and Volatiles Scientist at the Natural Resources Institute (NRI), University of Greenwich. She specialises in advanced flavour chemistry, volatilomics, and hyphenated chromatographic techniques including GC×GC TOFMS.

Dr Xi He completed her PhD under Professor Henryk Jeleń at Poznań University of Life Sciences, focusing on Baijiu aroma, authenticity and chromatographic method development. Her work has received significant global impact, with her 2021 Food Chemistry article ranked in the top 2% globally and her 2025 Food Chemistry study in the top 4% globally (Scopus citation benchmarking, 2026).

She contributes to alternative protein research, wine ageing technologies, authenticity testing and broader innovative flavour analysis. She is also active in developing non /low alcohol wine without compromising flavour quality and is particularly interested in integrating human sensory evaluation with analytical instrumental data to generate robust insights for product quality control and innovation. She was invited as a reviewer for the Journal of Food Science in 2026 and has recently submitted a major Gates Foundation proposal (decision pending).

Dr Xi He also supports industry through Growing Kent & Medway and supervises MSc researchers.