Devin Peterson PhD
FFH Faculty Director, CFAES Distinguished Professor of Food Science
Research Focus
Characterizing chemical stimuli that impart flavor to foodstuffs (taste, aroma, somatosensory), investigating multi-flavor interactions on perception, mapping pathways of flavor generation/stability and mechanisms of flavor delivery.
Research Keywords
- Flavor, aroma, Maillard, sensory, bitterness
Dr. Devin Peterson is a CFAES Distinguished Professor of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences and a Professor in the Department of Food Science and Technology at The Ohio State University. He earned a doctoral degree in Flavor Chemistry (2001) at the University of Minnesota. In 2001 he joined the faculty in the Department of Food Science at Penn State University. During his tenure at Penn State, in 2004 he received the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE) that is presented by the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy. In 2009, he returned to the University of Minnesota as an Associate Professor and was promoted to Professor in 2014. He received the Excellence in Flavor Science Award from the Flavor and Extract Manufacturers Association in 2015. In 2016, he relocated his research program to The Ohio State University as part of the Discovery Themes Initiative. His research efforts focus on characterizing chemical stimuli that impart flavor to foodstuffs (taste, aroma, chemesthetic, mouthfeel), investigating multi-flavor interactions on perception, mapping pathways of flavor generation/stability and mechanisms of flavor delivery. 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, a partnership between academic researchers and industry leaders focused on the creation, exchange and application of knowledge to drive innovation in the food marketplace. He was appointed the faculty director of the Foods for Health Discovery Theme Initiative in 2019.