Author Bio

Hansel A. Mina, Ph.D., is a Research Associate and Extension Specialist for the Food Entrepreneurship and Manufacturing Institute in the Department of Food Science at Purdue University. He specializes in produce safety, food microbiology, and value-added product development, with a research focus on routes of contamination, antimicrobial interventions, and practical sanitization strategies for fresh produce and specialty crops. Dr. Mina has led and collaborated on national and international projects spanning seed sanitation, produce washing systems, and microbial risk reduction, working closely with growers, processors, and regulatory stakeholders. His work integrates applied research, extension, and entrepreneurship to translate food safety science into accessible, scalable solutions for small and mid-size producers. Presentation: Turning Byproducts into Safe, Marketable Foods: A FEMI Perspective: This presentation will highlight food safety considerations associated with developing value-added products and utilizing agricultural byproducts, drawing on applied examples from the Food Entrepreneurship and Manufacturing Institute (FEMI) at Purdue University. Attendees will gain insight into how food safety risks can evolve when raw agricultural commodities are transformed into shelf-stable or refrigerated products, and when byproducts are repurposed into new food or ingredient streams.