Engineering Prof. Wins Global Engagement Award

Dr. Kevin Keener, Engineering Professor and Barrett Family Chair, is the recipient of the 2024 Lalit and Aruna Verma award for Excellence in Global Engagement for global efforts in tackling food sustainability through educational programming and collaborative research in food engineering. The award recorgnizes outstanding contributions made towards global advancement and recognition of the profession of agricultural and biological engineering. 

Keener oversees an eight-person research group at the University of Guelph and performs research on sustainable food manufacturing technologies, coordinates food engineering research, and teaches a graduate course in sustainable food manufacturing. Throughout his career, he has provided technical assistance to hundreds of companies and government agencies working internationally, completing over 80 unique engineering projects all over the world. 

Academically, he was invented a number of new technologies including high voltage atmospheric cold plasma (HVACP), controlled dynamic radiant frying, cryogenic cooling of shell eggs, and others under patent review. He has mentored 23 research scientists and post-doctoral students, 21 graduate students, and over 100 undergraduate student researchers in his laboratory. 

Congratulations Dr. Keener!