Future Projects (2023 Cohort)
Our FoodBioSystems DTP 2023 cohort of researchers will work on projects that span the food system from farm to fork. Find out more about the projects in the table below.
| Research area | Project title | Lead Supervisor | Co-Supervisor / University | |
| Aberystwyth University | ||||
| Food security / Plant & Crop Systems | GrainQuest – using Artifical Intelligence and high resolution multimodal imaging to dissect the developmental and genetic basis of seed composition | John Doonan | Simon Cameron, Queen’s University Belfast | FBS2023-14-Doonan-aq |
| Food security / Gut microbiota | Feed for Net Zero: Understanding the structure function relationships in forages driving rumen feed degradation | Alison Kingston-Smith | Chris Creevey , Queen’s University Belfast | FBS2023-29-Kingston-Smith-aq |
| Food security / Plant & Crop systems | Unpicking the causes of infertility in wheat triggered by temperature stress | Dylan Phillips | Jake Bishop, University of Reading | FBS2023-45-Phillips-ar |
| Data-intensive bioscience / Animal health and livestock agricultural systems | Comparative and functional genomics to unveil liver fluke sexual development. | Gabriel Rinaldi | Aaron Maule, Queen’s University Belfast | FBS2023-48-Rinaldi-aq |
| Data-intensive bioscience / Plant & crop systems | New software to detect horizontal gene transfer in microbiomes: from forage to the rumen | Martin Swain | Chris Creevey, Queen’s University Belfast | FBS2023-58-Swain-aq |
| Animal health and livestock agricultural systems | Ruminating over host-parasite interaction models for fluke driven immune responses. | Ruth Wonfor | Mark Robinson, Queen’s University Belfast | FBS2023-63-Wonfor-aq |
| Brunel University | ||||
| Food safety / Animal health and livestock agricultural systems | Enhancing seaweed aquaculture for alternative animal feeds | Lorna Anguilano | Pamela Walsh, Queen’s University Belfast | FBS2023-04-Anguilano-bq |
| Cranfield University | ||||
| Food safety & food authenticity | Food Authenticity: Targeted and untargeted DNA barcoding approaches for traceability of cross-contamination and adulteration in animal and plant-based foods | Maria Anastasiadi | Katrina Campbell, Queen’s University Belfast | FBS2023-03-Anastasiadi-cq |
| Data-intensive bioscience / Soil systems | Breaking new ground: using X-rays to study how roots penetrate through soil parent materials | Dan Evans | Tom Sizmur, University of Reading | FBS2023-43-Evans-cr |
| Decarbonising food systems /Soil systems | The impacts of regenerative farming on soil carbon, structure and biodiversity across spatio-temporal scales | Nick Girkin | Liz Shaw, University of Reading | FBS2023-18-Girkin-cr |
| Plant / crop systems | Developing drought resistance and building soil carbon through optimising root traits in oats | Chris McCloskey | Irene Griffiths, Aberystwyth University | FBS2023-47-McCloskey- ca |
| Microbial food safety / plant & crop systems | Development of novel tests to evaluate the food safety risk associated with mycotoxigenic fungi in wheat | Carol Verheecke-Vaessen | Katrina Campbell , Queen’s University Belfast | FBS2023-61-Verheecke-Vaessen-cq |
| Queen’s University Belfast | ||||
| Food safety & food authenticity | Developing next-generation portable rapid tests for food authenticity | Katrina Campbell | Alexander Edwards, University of Reading | FBS2023-08-Campbell-qr |
| Data-intensive bioscience /Animal health and livestock agricultural systems | Automated monitoring of health and welfare in groups of pigs using evidential reasoning and video-analytics | Niall McLaughlin | Alasdair Cook, University of Surrey | FBS2023-37-McLaughlin-qs |
| Data-intensive bioscience / Animal health and livestock agricultural systems | Application of machine learning to genomic selection of dairy cattle through improved feed efficiency complex prediction | Mark Mooney | Faisal Rezwan, Aberystwyth University | FBS2023-42-Mooney-qa |
| Decarbonising food systems / Animal health and livestock agricultural systems | Helminth extracellular vesicles – the key to reducing methane emissions from farmed livestock? | Mark Robinson | Russ Morphew, Aberystwyth University | FBS2023-50-Robinson-qa |
| Decarbonising food systems / Animal health and livestock agricultural systems | Insects for sustainable animal feed: Livestock farming in a climate change challenged world | Katerina Theodoridou | Sokratis Stergiadis, University of Reading | FBS2023-59-Theodoridou-qr |
| University of Reading | ||||
| Alternative food systems / decarbonising food systems | High moisture extrusion technology assisted by enzymatic protein-protein crosslinking approach to improve the texture quality of plant-based meat analogues and eliminate the need for additives | Sameer Khalil Gawi | George Fern, Brunel University | FBS2023-28-Khalil Ghawi-rb |
| Food security & inclusive positive nutrition / Gut Microbiota | Can probiotics and prebiotics reduce the impact of high protein diets on gut barrier function by modulating the microbiota in sex-dependent manners? | Marie Lewis | Denise Robertson , University of Surrey | FBS2023-33-Lewis-rs |
| Data-intensive bioscience / Food science | A reverse engineering approach to sucrose replacement in biscuits: modelling texture | Stella Lignou | Gareth Tribello, Queen’s University Belfast | FBS2023-51-Lignou-rq |
| Data-intensive bioscience / Plant & crop systems | How to improve measurement of major wheat diseases using artificial intelligence? | Alexey Mikaberidze | Ronald Corstanje, Cranfield University | FBS2023-39-Mikaberidze-rc |
| Plant & crop systems | Smart control of crop diseases: how can we best combine fungicides and plant resistance genes? | Alexey Mikaberidze | Martin Swain, Aberystwyth University | FBS2023-69-Mikaberidze-ra |
| Food security / human nutrition | Understanding the mechanism of cardiovascular disease reduction and cognitive enhancement by dietary flavanols: the impact of flavanols on blood rheology and erythrocyte deformability | Jeremy Spencer | Christian Heiss, University of Surrey | FBS2023-55-Spencer-rs |
| Data-intensive bioscience / Gut microbiota | Precision Nutrition for Gut Health: Development of a novel seaweed-containing, gut microbiota targeted nutraceutical | Anisha Wijeysekera | Jessica Adams, Aberystwyth University | FBS2023-62-Wijeyesekera-ra |
| University of Surrey | ||||
| Decarbonising food systems | BIO-ESPRESSO: Bio-Electrochemical System for Product REcovery from Spent Substrate cOffee waste | Claudio Avignone Rossa | Stuart Wagland, Cranfield University | FBS2022-02-Avignone Rossa-sc |
| Food security / human nutrition | Efficacy, application and consumer acceptance of plant-based proteins for metabolic health | Adam Collins | Daniele Asioli, University of Reading | FBS2023-12-Collins-sr |
| Microbial food safety / animal health | New tools for Rapid Field Detection of clinical biomarkers in poultry | Inaki Deza-Cruz | Alexander Edwards, University of Reading | FBS2023-13-Deza-Cruz-sr |
| Human nutrition | Anthocyanins, Microbiome and Healthy Aging | Julie Hunt | Glenn Gibson, University of Reading | FBS2023-25-Hunt-sr |
| Human nutrition | Interaction between Iron Status and Vitamin D Health in Ethnic Groups – Implications for Immune Function | Susan Lanham-New | Julie Lovegrove, University of Reading | FBS2023-32-Lanham-New-sr |
| Food security / human nutrition | Insects as a novel source of dietary protein: Does it have legs? | Ralph Manders | Rhys Thatcher, Aberystwyth University | FBS2023-35-Manders-sa |
| Food safety & food authenticity | Nanoplastics in the food chain: from food, to cells, to function | Matthew Parker | Mark Dallas, University of Reading | FBS2023-44-Parker-sr |