Sustainability: Keeping Vanilla Growing
November 5th and 6th, 2013, Crowne Plaza - Jamesburg, NJ
Medicinal properties of phenolics and terpenes
Ivica Labuda
Biokeys for Flavors, LLC
Norwood, NJ
The small molecules of flavor and fragrance compounds are intriguing for many reasons. While these small molecules are well known for their role the communication of plants and insects, they are also found to stimulate peripheral physiological and cognitive responses in mammals and humans. In this presentation, Dr. Labuda will focus on the human health effects of two different groups of fragrance and flavor molecules: vanillin and vanillin-like phenolics compounds and terpenes.
Dr. Ivica Labuda has twenty-three years of research and management experience in food and flavor ingredients industry with a strong reputation for results. Ivica brings together the technical expertise in flavors, biochemistry, microbial physiology, food safety, biotechnology and fermentations for product discovery, secondary metabolites, research and development in the area of unique flavor and bioactive ingredients.
Ivica Labuda’s graduate, post-graduate studies and research were done at Institute of Biochemistry, Komensky University, Bratislava, Slovakia, at Rutgers University, New Brunswick, NJ and at University of Graz, Austria. Ivica’s experience in industry started at Kraft Foods, continued at Givaudan, Danisco/Cultor and as a Senior Manager at Pepsi-Cola. Besides leading Biokeys as president, she is also an adjunct professor at Georgetown University teaching courses on Food Biotechnology, International Biotechnology and Fermentation technology.
Dr. Labuda’s research was published in 24 peer-review publications and described in 13 patents. Key patents include processes for the production of natural vanillin and nootkatone. She was an invited speaker at conferences such as Gordon Conference, Wuerman Symposium, ASM, SIM, ACCS and ACS.