Spotlight

Bovell-Benjamin Named an IFT 2026 Fellow

Tuskegee University professor receives the Institute of Food Technologists’ highest honor

Adelia Bovell-Benjamin, PhD, CFS, a Professor of Food and Nutritional Sciences at Tuskegee University, has been named a 2026 Institute of Food Technologists (IFT) Fellow.

Bovell-Benjamin received this honor at the prestigious IFT FIRST Annual Event and Expo. As a premier global gathering, IFT FIRST—Food Improved by Research, Science, and Technology—brings together prominent food, health, and nutrition professionals across industry, academia, and government to collaborate, innovate, and educate.

The IFT Fellows and Achievement Awards Reception and Ceremony took place in Chicago on July 12.

Becoming an IFT Fellow is the highest honor bestowed by the Institute. A new class is elected every year to recognize members for their significant and sustained contributions to both the field and the organization.

Bovell-Benjamin was nominated for her professional leadership, ongoing volunteer service to IFT, career advancements in the science of food, and previous honors.

“We are honored to recognize this year’s IFT Fellows and Achievement Award recipients—leaders whose contributions have had a lasting impact on the science of food and the global food system,” said IFT CEO Christie Tarantino-Dean.

“IFT FIRST provides an opportunity for the food science community to come together to celebrate the influence of these visionaries, as well as their lifelong commitment to helping tackle some of the world’s biggest food challenges.”

IFT is a nonprofit scientific organization committed to advancing the science of food and its application across the global food system. The IFT FIRST event gives the food science community a rare opportunity to join their peers in celebrating the leaders, innovators, and visionaries shaping the industry.

To maintain its exclusivity, no more than 10 Fellows are selected each year. Since the program’s launch in 1970, more than 700 Fellows have been inducted.

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