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Two Master thesis were completed in collaboration with the Biotechnical Faculty University of Ljubljana:

KEJŽAR, Jan. Comparison of algae dietary supplements: antioxidative potencial and isotopic composition Primerjava prehranskih dopolnil iz alg: antioksidativni potencial in izotopska sestava, April 2020

VEZJAK, Urša. Characterization of milk and cheese by using stable isotopes of light elements = Karakterizacija mleka in sira z uporabo stabilnih izotopov lahkih elementov, December 2019

Nives Ogrinc had an invited talk entitled: “Stable isotopes in the environment and their application in science” on February 24 2020 at the University of Primorska.

StableIsotopes

3rd International Congress on Food Safety and Quality – Food, Health and Climate Changes in which Nives Ogrinc is actively participating will be held in Opatija, Croatia on November 10th – 13th, 2020. For more details, see congress website.

The industrial partners of SRIP Hrana visited Jožef Stefan Institute on December 18 2019. After short presentation given by N. Ogrinc, A.Lapanje and P. Pongrac the participants visit laboratories at the Reactor Center. For more details, see the program of the visit together with the presentations.

SRIP1 SRIP2 SRIP3

Prof.dr. Nives Ogrinc attended the “4th Festival of table olives” held in Koper on November 30 2019. At the festival she presented the activities performed within REALMed project to relevant stakeholders.

tableolives1 tableolives2

tableolives3 tableolives4

tableolives5

The activities related to food research performed at Jožef Stefan Institute including ISO-FOOD are presented at the “FUTURE FOOD” exhibition opened until January 10 at the Chamber of Commerce. The exhibition is organized as a “showroom” of solutions and products with an emphasis on innovative achievements and new solutions of Slovenia.  

The FUTURE FOOD exhibition is the fourth exhibition organized under the single brand FUTURE. All FUTURE exhibitions and related conferences are organized in partnership with various Strategic Development and Innovation Partnerships (SRIPs). This year’s FUTURE FOOD exhibition is organized by the Chamber of Commerce and Industry in cooperation with SRIP Food and with the support of the Ministry of Economic Development and Technology of the Republic of Slovenia and SPIRIT Slovenia.

futurefood1 futurefood2 futurefood3

The research of Lidija Strojnik and Jasmina Masten related to ISO-FOOD activities was presented at the RAFA conference held in Prague (Czech Republic) November 5 to 9 2019. The conference is one of the largest conferences in the field of food research. This year 820 delegates participated at the conference from 53 countries from 4 continents.

RAFA

Prof. Dr. Nives Ogrinc received the Zois Award for Excellence in the Use of Stable Isotopes in Interdisciplinary Research.

Prof. Dr. Nives Ogrinc from the Department of Environmental Sciences at the Jozef Stefan Institute received the Zois Award for Excellence for the interdisciplinary use of stable isotopes of light and heavy elements in the fields of physical chemistry, ecology, metrology, food science and archaeology.

She conducted the most extensive research in the study of carbon cycling in aquatic environments and related climate change. An important result of her work is that despite the increase in carbon dioxide concentration in the atmosphere, the Gulf of Trieste is still not susceptible to acidification processes. She upgraded such research by introducing new methods in the field of isotopes in organic chemistry, which is a novelty on a global scale and provides new information on the origin and traceability of organic compounds in the environment. One of its greatest achievements is the use of stable isotopes in foodstuff. She was the first to establish a system for determining the authenticity and traceability of foodstuff in the Slovenian area, which helps to protect consumers and contributes to the promotion of high-quality Slovenian products. Cooperation with archaeologists has led to new insights into the development and way of living of our ancestors and represents an important contribution to the enrichment of Slovenian and world cultural heritage.

Foto_Marjan_Verč_20191120-_MG_4110 Nives1 Picture2

Our sincere Congratulations!

Prof.dr. Nives Ogrinc was awarded honorary title of the Congress Ambassador of Slovenia!

Twenty-five awarded individuals included doctors, scientists, professors, researchers and other experts in various fields who have contributed to the internationalization of Slovenia on the meetings industry’s stage. Slovenian Ambassadors Program was this year launched by the Slovenian Convention Bureau in collaboration with the Slovenian Tourist Board, the Ljubljana Convention Bureau at Ljubljana Tourism, and sixteen joining partners. The program is intended to acknowledge and honour the individuals able to successfully host many international congresses and other business events in Slovenia.

Condition for being nominated into the title of the Congress Ambassador of Slovenia 2019 was an organisation of scientific-professional or business event with a minimum of 100 attendees and at least a half international participation. Into account were taken the events that took place in the period between 2014 and 2018. Priority went to events of regional, European, and international or global associations that have brought to Slovenia as large international participation as possible or were of exceptional international importance.

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Prof.dr. Nives Ogrinc obtained the award for the organization of the the 22nd International Symposium on Environmental Biogeochemistry (ISEB), which was held in Piran in 2015.

Some links:

Kongresni urad Slovenije: http://bit.ly/2QinJx3

Slovenska turistična organizacija: https://bit.ly/2pkL5am

Revija Kongres: https://bit.ly/37dlHEP

STA: https://bit.ly/2Qnw2Ii

 

Congratulations!

The research performed within ISO-FOOD activities were presented at three conferences in September 2019 as oral presentations

7th Conference of the Forensic Isotope Ratio Mass Spectroscopy Network, 16-19 September 2019, San Michele al’Adige, Italy

4th IMEKO FOODS “Metrology in Food and Nutrition,16th-18th September 2019, Tervuren, Brussel

conference1

and poster presentations

2nd Food Chemistry Conference, 17-19 September 2019, Seville, Spain.

conference2 conference3

Special Issue of Molecules seeks to explore emerging topics and trends in isotopic techniques and their application to food science from instrumentation, measurement, data‑analysis to novel applications.

Journal: Molecules
Special Issue: Isotopic Techniques for Food Science
Special Issue Editor: Prof. dr. Nives Ogrinc, dr. Federica Camin
Deadline: 29 February 2020

Take a look for more information.

Administration for Food Safety, Veterinary and Plant Protection nominated ORG-O2 department group to be the official laboratory for performing stable isotope analyses of food samples.

On 9.9.2019 Organic biogeochemistry group (ORG-O2) received the official nomination as the laboratory for the official analysis of stable isotopes in food samples by the Administration of the Republic of Slovenia for Food Safety, Veterinary and Plant Protection, Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Food. It comes on the back of the laboratory receiving accreditation certificate No. LP-090 with the new extended scope for methods in the field of stable isotope analysis of light elements using mass spectrometry. Accreditation is given only to laboratories that apply rigid standards of quality in day-to-day operations, demonstrate continued accuracy in the performance of proficiency testing, and pass a rigorous on-site laboratory survey. The Laboratory has earned the designation of an official laboratory as a result of a long-term commitment to providing excellence in analytical measurements. Congratulations!

Students from Jožef Stefan International Posgraduate School and Biotechnical Faculty, University of Ljubljana were involved with Jata Emona in the project: FrAPI: Funcional suplements in food and feed: Antioxidation Potencial and the Source that was concluded in July 2019. The main results can be summarized as follows:

  • determination of Antioksidative Potencial (AOP) in various samples: in onion samples, dietary supplements made from algae (different species), in fresh laboratory-grown algae (chlorella), tannins and hydrolysates of egg membranes;
  • development of a rapid method for AOP (microtiter plates);
  • chlorella and its use for cleaning wastewater;
  • characterization of algae dietary supplements on the Slovenian market;
  • development of new products from eggshell residues: creams, dietary supplements for pets.

The project was financially supported by Slovenian and EU Social Founds.

emona2 emona1

N. Ogrinc attended the international fair AGRA in Gornja Radgona on August 28 2019 and presented the future of ISO-FOOD “ISO-FOOD Chair – New challenges”.

Special Issue in:Food and Chemical Toxicology

Guest Editors: 

Milena Horvat (Milena.horvat@ijs.si)

David Heath (David.heath@ijs.si)

Nives Ogrinc (Nives.ogrinc@ijs.si)

The past few years have witnessed a resurgence in demand for and the development of methods and techniques for assuring the quality, authenticity, and safety of food. Much of this need is born out of major food scandals, globalisation, and the increasing complexity of the food supply chain. Fortunately, this has coincided with significant advances in instrumentation, where isotopic and other techniques play a significant role. Recently The ERA Chair ISO-FOOD for isotopic techniques in food quality safety and traceability, Jožef Stefan Institute, Slovenia organised the first ISO-FOOD International Symposium on Isotopic and Other Techniques in Food Safety and Quality held in Portorož, Slovenia (1-3 April 2019). It aimed to highlight recent advances in food safety and quality and to explore the opportunities and challenges ahead.

This special issue of Food and Chemical Toxicology FCT (invites you to join contributors from the ISOFOOD2019Symposium to publish your work (original or review papers) to the peer-reviewed Special Issue on Advances Isotopic and Other Techniques in Food Safety and Quality. The issue will focus on food authenticity and traceability, food safety and quality, foodomics, nanotoxicology, metrology and food databases and semantics.

Submission deadline: September 30 2019

To submit a paper to the special issue, please be sure to select “VSI: ISOFOOD 2019”as the article type.

https://www.journals.elsevier.com/food-and-chemical-toxicology

IAcreditationn the framework of the ERA Chair ISO-FOOD, the Department of Environmental Science, as of 1.4.2019, obtained the Accreditation certificate LP-090 with a new extended scope for methods in the field of stable isotope analysis of light elements more precisely in the determination of the ratios of stable carbon isotopes (13C/12C) in ethanol, and oxygen (18O/16O) in water of foodstuff using mass spectrometry. Accreditation is an important acquisition for the Department and for the Jožef Stefan Institute, since it will strengthen our role in the national metrology system and enable us to enter into the new international projects in the field of food traceability and authenticity.

D3X4sj_XsAAeb5zTome received the “Best Young Scientist” award for 2018 from the Macedonian president. He was recognized as an extremely talented young scientist with great capacities, knowledge and experience in the scientific and research work. More information »

 

 

 

We would like to offer a big “Congratulations!” to Prof Barbara Koroušić Seljak this year’s The Young Academy of Slovenia Mentor of the Year Award 2018 winner.

Prof Barbara Koroušić Seljak from the Computer Sciences Department, Jožef Stefan Institute collaborates closely with the Department of Environmental Sciences and is a valued member of the ISO-FOOD ERA Chair Team. Prof Barbara Koroušić Seljak was mentor to ISO-FOOD’s doctoral student Tome Eftimov who in January 2018 defended his thesis entitled “Statistical data analysis and natural language processing for nutrition science”.

The Young Academy of Slovenia Mentor of the Year Award 2018 awards recognizes outstanding mentors who have demonstrated a longstanding commitment to student success and development. A good mentor is one who effectively advises, guides, and inspires his/her students throughout their research training, while helping them to navigate obstacles, whether personal, professional, or academic. This year’s deserved winner is Barbara Koroušić Seljak from the Computer Sciences Department, Jožef Stefan Institute. Prof Barbara Koroušić Seljak works closely with of the Department of Environmental Sciences, a valued member of ERA Chair ISO-FOOD Team and mentor to Dr Tome Eftimov who as an ISO-FOOD funded doctoral student in January 2018 successfully defended his thesis entitled “Statistical data analysis and natural language processing for nutrition science”. Tome Eftimov currently works as a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the Centre for Population Health Sciences, Stanford University, USA. As well as an outstanding mentor, Prof Barbara Koroušić Seljak is an accomplished researcher in her own right, and has made significant contributions in real-time and embedded computer systems and statistics, including topics such as evolutionary computation, natural language processing, machine learning, and data analysis in relation to public and clinical nutrition, and nutrition science.

 

The desire for improved food safety, quality and traceability by governments and consumers alike is driving demand for more and better information about the food we eat, from where it is sourced and how it is produced, its quality, and its impact on health and on the environment. Nevertheless, food fraud and recalls of food items due to mislabelling or contamination are commonplace, and experts know that these reported cases are just the tip of the iceberg. Maintaining and assuring the integrity of food is hugely important and this in turn is resulting in the development of innovative and cutting-edge analytical approaches. This symposium brings together an interdisciplinary array of researchers, scientists, policy makers, and stakeholders to present advances in isotopic and chemical methods, and to foster a lively and rewarding exchange of ideas and information. We warmly welcome prospective authors to submit new research papers and to share their valuable experience with scientists and scholars from around the world.

Topics:
– Food authenticity and traceability
– Food safety and quality
– Metrology in food
– Food databases and semantics
– Nanomaterials and nanotechnology
– Foodomics

More information: http://iso-food.academicevent.net/

FOOD CHEMISTRY

ISO-FOOD: Isotopic techniques in food safety, quality and traceability

Virtual Special Issue

  • Guest Editors

    The past few years has seen a resurgence in the need for and development of new methods and techniques for assuring the quality and safety of food. Much of this comes on the back of major food scandals, continued globalisation and complexity of the food supply chain, new threats (e.g., nanotechnology), advances in instrumentation (especially Mass Spectrometry) and a shifting definition of how we define food quality. The ERA Chair ISO-FOOD as guest editor of this special issue invites people to submit original research and critical reviews on the use of isotopic techniques relating to food safety and quality. Although ISO-FOOD has a bias towards the use of Isotopes in authenticity and traceability we will consider submissions on essential and nonessential elements and their speciation, organic contaminant and important bioactive compounds in food and articles on the exploitation of big data in relation to food chemistry as long as they conform to the scope of FOOD Chemistry.

    Interests: Isotopic techniques; Authenticity; Adulteration; Traceability; Safety, Mass spectrometry, NMR techniques; Chemometrics, Modeling

    Manuscript Preparation and Submission

    All manuscripts must be submitted through the online submission system (EES) of Food Chemistry. To ensure that all manuscripts are correctly identified for inclusion into the special issue, it is important to select “VSI: ISO-FOOD” when you reach the “Article Type” step in the submission process. Please refer to the journal’s Guide for Authors for specific advice on how to prepare a paper (http://www.elsevier.com/locate/foodchem). All papers will be evaluated by the Guest Editors and then reviewed by at least two reviewers. Accepted papers are published online individually as ‘Articles in Press’ after final acceptance, and before final print publication.

    Special issue Timelines

    • • January 1, 2018: EES will be open for submission
    • • April 30, 2018: Deadline for submission
    • • January 2018 – November 2018: Period of peer-review process

    For Interactive tutorials, EES User Guide for Author:

    http://service.elsevier.com/app/home/supporthub/publishing/#au1

     

IMG_9942On 31.01.2018, Tome Eftimov successfully defended his PhD thesis. His work entitled “Statistical data analysis and natural language processing for nutrition science” was conducted under the supervision of Assist Prof Barbara Koroušić Seljak from the Computer Systems Department, Jožef Stefan Institute (JSI) as part of the ERA-Chair ISO-FOOD project. The thesis was evaluated by the examiners: Prof Nada Lavrač from the Department of Knowledge Technologies, JSI, Prof Sophia Ananiadou from the School of Computer Science, University of Manchester and the UK Centre for Text Mining,  and Prof Peter Korošec from the Computer Systems Department, JSI.

If you are interested in Tome’s research results, you can follow him on ResearchGate.

Our congratulations!

 

 

Thinking about your post-graduate study in food science?

The International Postgraduate School Jožef Stefan together with the Biotechnical Faculty, University of Ljubljana offers an unique range of courses in aspects of food safety, quality and traceability.

Courses are open to all III level students enrolled in either the Ecotechnology Programme at the Jožef Stefan International Postgraduate School and/or in the Interdisciplinary Doctoral Food Science Programme in Biosciences at the University of Ljubljana.

 

Courses on offer:

Jožef Stefan Post graduate School

Food Traceability and Authenticity (10 credits)

Food Chemical Safety – inorganic, organic contaminants, nanoparticles (10 credits)

Foodomics (5 credits)

Chemical and food toxicology (5 credits)

Sensor systems (5 credits)

 

Food Science Programme at the Biotechnical faculty, University of Ljubljana

Physical and Biochemical methods (5 credits)

Food quality and safety (10 credits)

Combining sensoric and instrumental methods (5 credits)

Modern technologies for animal based food production (5 credits)

Modern technologies for plant based food production (5 credits)

 

For more information and to enroll, visit www.mps.si

Email info@mps.si, call +386 1 477 31 00

http://www.bioznanosti.si/en/studij-2/curriculum-1617

Contact – mag. Vesna Ješe Janežič

+386 1 320 30 27

vesna.jesejanezic@bf.uni-lj.si

 

Jožef Stefan International Postgraduate School invites to the Defence of the Master Thesis of Anja Drame entitled: Colorimetric assay for TiO2 nanoparticles detection in complex matrices as food samples. The Defence is scheduled for Monday, September 11th, 2017, at 10:00 at the IPS Lecture Room.

Three Post Doctoral Fellowships are available at Slovenia’s leading research institute Jožef Stefan Institute. The institute is looking to strengthen its research excellence in relation to food safety, authenticity and traceability. Fellowships are available in the following fields:

1) Organic analysis

2) Stable Isotope analysis

3) Metrology

Job description

The selected candidates will combine laboratory experiments and analytical measurements in the field of food research. The new team members will work within a dynamic and interdisciplinary international research environment, with the possibility to learn new techniques and skills. He/she is expected to critically evaluate and improve the approach, where appropriate, providing opportunity for putting their own stamp on the research.

Profile and requirements

  • You hold (or obtain during the application period) a doctoral degree (PhD) in Chemistry (Organic Chemistry, Analytical Chemistry, Food-Chemistry, Bio-chemistry, Bio-engineering (Chemistry), and Environmental Science;
  • You are familiar with concepts related to food sample preparation and state-of–the-art analytical instrumentation including GC, LC hyphenated with tandem and high resolution MS, IRMS, GC‑C‑IRMS, ICP-MS depending on position applied for;
  • You are highly motivated to work in an international, dynamic environment;
  • You have good English communication writing and presentation skills;
  • You are quality-oriented and creative and have demonstrated organization skills;
  • A record of publications in quality, peer-reviewed journals in the field of food/organic/analytical/environmental chemistry.

We offer

Tenure: A position at the postdoctoral level (max 2 years) open to international candidates for an initial one-year fixed-term contract, extendable with additional year after positive evaluation. The positions are available immediately.

Salary: According to institute standard remuneration rates, funded through the ISO-FOOD ERA Chair for isotopic techniques in food quality, safety and traceability.

How to apply?

  • Applicants must state which position they are applying for and send the following supporting documents: motivation letter, updated CV, and two letters of recommendation to erachair@isofood.eu until 25.5.2017.
  • For questions about the profile and the job description, please contact ERA Chair Holder Dr David Heath (erachair@isofood.eu).

The Jožef Stefan Institute is as an equal employment opportunity and affirmative action employer committed to a diverse and inclusive workplace that fosters collaborative scientific discovery and innovation.

 

Bisphenol A (known as BPA) is a synthetic organic compound found in polycarbonate plastics and epoxy resins. Polycarbonate plastics have many applications including in the food industry in water bottles, food-storage containers, and plastic tableware. Epoxy lacquers are used as linings in many metal products such as food can, bottle tops, lids of glass jars for baby food, pickles, jam, honey, salsa and other condiments, aerosol cans for whipped toppings and non-stick sprays, bottles and tins of cooking oil, aluminium beverage cans, metal coffee cans and beer kegs. When taking into consideration the myriad of non-food applications, it is no wonder that BPA has become ubiquitous in modern-day life and impossible to avoid. The cause for concern is that BPA is a known endocrine disruptor and years of animal testing has linked BPA with neurological and behavioural disorders, reproductive disorders such early onset of puberty and a rise in prostate and breast cancer, cardiovascular diseases, obesity and diabetes. As a precaution, the EU in 2012 banned its application in baby bottles and sippy cups although in 2015 the EU rescinded the ban after the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) re-evaluated BPA exposure and toxicity. Several EU nation states, including Austria, Belgium, Denmark, France and Sweden, despite the EFSA ruling, continue to regulate BPA more strictly. The food industry has responded to consumer concerns and “BPA-free” products are commonplace. Despite this, “BPA free” does not mean “bisphenol-free”. Many alternatives to BPA, such as BPS and other similar compounds found in plastics have just as potent, if not more potent, hormone mimicking effects as BPA and scientists are only now beginning to investigate the risk posed by these compounds. In a new study by Česen et al., (2016), published in the journal of Agriculture and Food Chemistry, the authors examine the occurrence of bisphenols and related compounds in honey and their migration from selected food contact materials. The authors chose honey because it is a highly prized food commodity, cherished for its quality, purity and taste. The authors also noted how honey comes in many different types of packaging, which could put the honey at risk from potentially harmful migrating compounds. Their paper describes the development of a single method to analyse nine bisphenols (BPA, BPAF, BPAP, BPB, BPC, BPE, BPF, BPS, and BPZ) and related compounds (4-cumylphenol and dihydroxybenzophenone) in honey samples and food simulant. The authors used their method to analyse honey from European and non-European countries and food simulant stored in different packaging. The majority of samples contained bisphenol residues and the highest number of bisphenol compounds determined in any one sample was four. Only BPA and BPAF were found during migration tests and in glass jars with epoxy lined metal lids and in laminated sachets. Based on the exposure from observed maximum levels of BPA in honey, there is little risk to consumer health (exposure < TDI 4 μg/kg bw/day), although the authors’ emphasise that cumulative health effects of the identified bisphenols should be further explored. The authors also show how some of the contamination derives from a source other than the final packaging. Retailers could use this data to pass on recommendations to honey producers with respect to the use of suitable food contact materials along the honey value chain.

Postdoctoral position in Organic Analysis

The ERA Chair ISO-FOOD “ERA CHAIR FOR ISOTOPE TECHNIQUES IN FOOD QUALITY, SAFETY AND TRACEABILITY” at Jožef Stefan Institute aims at strengthening its research excellence related to organic contaminants in food. We are currently looking for:

A post-doctoral researcher

Job description

A position is vacant for a postdoctoral researcher to study new emerging contaminant residues such as industrial, agricultural and pharmaceutical related compounds in food/feed and compounds migrating from food contact materials. The first step will be to identify a list of compounds that match the above criteria and develop, optimize and validate analytical methods for determining their residues (metabolites, where applicable, and transformation products) in complex matrices. Their presence, effects and risk will be investigated using state-of-the-art analytical instruments and a battery of toxicological assays. The selected candidate will combine laboratory experiments and analytical measurements. The new team member will work within a dynamic and interdisciplinary international research environment, with the possibility to learn new techniques and skills. He/she is expected to critically evaluate and improve the approach, where appropriate, providing opportunity for putting their own stamp on the research.

Profile and requirements

  • You hold (or obtain during the application period) a doctoral degree (PhD) in Chemistry (Organic Chemistry, Analytical Chemistry, Food-Chemistry, Bio-chemistry, Bio-engineering (Chemistry), and Environmental Science;
  • You are familiar with concepts related to food sample preparation and state-of–the-art analytical instrumentation including GC and LC hyphenated with tandem and high resolution MS;
  • You are highly motivated to work in an international, dynamic environment;
  • You have excellent English communication writing and presentation skills;
  • You are quality-oriented and creative and have demonstrated organization skills;
  • A record of publications in quality, peer reviewed journals in the field of food/organic/analytical/environmental chemistry.

We offer

Tenure: A position at the postdoctoral level (max 2 years) open to international candidates for an initial one year fixed-term contract, extendable with additional year after positive evaluation.

Location: Jožef Stefan Institute, Jamova 39, Ljubljana, Slovenia.

Salary: According to institute standard remuneration rates.

How to apply?

  • Applicants must send the required supporting documents, updated CV, intention letter and two recommendation letters to erachair@isofood.eu until 31.3.2017.
  • For questions about the profile and the job description, please contact ERA Chair Holder Dr David Heath (david.heath@ijs.si).

The Jožef Stefan Institute is as an equal employment opportunity and affirmative action employer committed to a diverse and inclusive workplace that fosters collaborative scientific discovery and innovation.

Postdoctoral position (two year)

The ERA Chair ISO-FOOD “ERA CHAIR FOR ISOTOPE TECHNIQUES IN FOOD QUALITY, SAFETY AND TRACEABILITY” at Jožef Stefan Institute aims at strengthening its research excellence related to metrology in food. We are currently looking for:

A post-doctoral researcher: Metrology in chemistry

Job description

A position is vacant for a postdoctoral researcher to implement principles of metrology in chemistry for food analysis and characterization, particularly related to food safety issues (inorganic and organic contaminants). The selected candidate will combine laboratory experiments and analytical measurements and apply and develop metrologically based support to secure comparability of measurement results. The new team member will work within a dynamic and interdisciplinary international research environment, with the possibility to learn new techniques and skills. He/she is expected to critically evaluate and improve analytical approaches, validate the measurement procedures, develop appropriate uncertainty assessments based on internationally valid principles.   It is also expected that the selected candidate will putt his/her own stamp on the research.

Profile and requirements

  • You hold (or obtain during the application period) a doctoral degree (PhD) in Analytical Chemistry;
  • You are familiar with concepts related to metrology in chemistry;
  • You are highly motivated to work in an international, dynamic environment;
  • You have excellent English communication writing and presentation skills;
  • You are quality-oriented and creative and have demonstrated organization skills;
  • A record of publications in quality, peer reviewed journals in the field of food/organic/inorganic/analytical/environmental chemistry.

 

We offer

 Tenure: A position at the postdoctoral level (max 2 years) open to international candidates for an initial one year fixed-term contract, extendable with additional year after positive evaluation.

Location: Jožef Stefan Institute, Jamova 39, Ljubljana, Slovenia.

Salary: According to institute standard remuneration rates.

How to apply?

  • Applicants must send the required supporting documents, updated CV, intention letter and two recommendation letters to erachair@isofood.eu until 7. April, 2017.
  • For questions about the profile and the job description, please contact ERA Chair Holder Dr David Heath (david.heath@ijs.si).

The Jožef Stefan Institute is as an equal employment opportunity and affirmative action employer committed to a diverse and inclusive workplace that fosters collaborative scientific discovery and innovation.

The ERA Chair ISO-FOOD “ERA CHAIR FOR ISOTOPE TECHNIQUES IN FOOD QUALITY, SAFETY AND TRACEABILITY” at Jožef Stefan Institute aims at strengthening its research excellence related to food authenticity and traceability using stable isotope approach. We are currently looking for:

A post-doctoral researcher

Job description

A position is vacant for a postdoctoral researcher to study the authenticity and provenance determination of food in its widest sense (geographical, manufacturing and cultivation origin) using isotope ratio mass spectrometry (IRMS). The candidate will be investigating traditional bulk analysis methods of H C, N, O and S, emerging stable isotope applications and methods such as compound specific isotopic analysis. It is also expected that the applicant will combine the different isotopic methods with chemometric approaches for food authentication. We are seeking an applicant with expertise in Isotope Ratio Mass Spectrometry (IRMS) particularly in compound-specific isotope analysis. The selected candidate will combine laboratory experiments and analytical measurements. The new team member will work within a dynamic and interdisciplinary international research environment, with the possibility to learn new techniques and skills. He/she is expected to critically evaluate and improve the approach, where appropriate, providing opportunity for putting their own stamp on the research.

Profile and requirements

 You hold (or obtain during the application period) a doctoral degree (PhD) in either Chemistry (Organic Chemistry, Analytical Chemistry, Food-Chemistry, Bio-chemistry, Bio-engineering) or Environmental Science;

  • You are familiar with concepts related to food sample preparation and state-of–the-art analytical instrumentation in the field of isotope ratio mass spectrometry (IRMS) including GC-C-IRMS;
  • You are highly motivated to work in an international, dynamic environment;
  • You have excellent English communication writing and presentation skills;
  • You are quality-oriented and creative and have demonstrated organization skills;
  • A record of publications in quality, peer-reviewed journals in the field of food/organic/analytical/environmental chemistry.

 We offer

 Tenure: A position at the postdoctoral level (max 2 years) open to international candidates for an initial one year fixed-term contract, extendable with additional year after positive evaluation.

 Location: Jožef Stefan Institute, Jamova 39, Ljubljana, Slovenia.

Salary: According to institute standard remuneration rates.

How to apply?

  • Applicants must send the required supporting documents, updated CV, intention letter and two recommendation letters to erachair@isofood.eu until 30.1.2017.
  • For questions about the profile and the job description, please contact ERA Chair Holder Dr David Heath (david.heath@ijs.si).

The Jožef Stefan Institute is as an equal opportunity and affirmative action employer committed to a diverse and inclusive workplace that fosters collaborative scientific discovery and innovation.

We believe that projects like ISO-FOOD are crucial to prevent stories like this: Big supermarkets allowed to regulate their own food safety just 4 years after horsemeat scandal

From 7th to 9th December 2016, we will organize the ISO-FOOD Exploratory workshop – Isotopic Techniques at the Jožef Stefan Institute, Reactor center, Ljubljana, Slovenia.

For more information and registration click here.

 

An interesting story about how Amazon’s pink river dolphins reveal the bizarre impacts of seafood fraud.

More information: Amazon’s pink river dolphins reveal the bizarre impacts of seafood fraud

The ERA Chair ISO-FOOD “ERA CHAIR FOR ISOTOPE TECHNIQUES IN FOOD QUALITY, SAFETY AND TRACEABILITY” at Jožef Stefan Institute aims at strengthening its research excellence related to organic contaminants in food. We are currently looking for a post-doctoral researcher.

More information

Contact: erachair@isofood.eu

On Thursday, 19 May, 2016, at 19:00,  doc. dr. Barbara Koroušić Seljak from the Department of Computer Systems, at Jožef Stefan Institute will present a lecture entitled “What have computer, grandmother, and ancient doctor from Kos in common?” in Kavarna Union, Ljubljana, Slovenia.

More information: http://www.znanostnacesti.si/hrana-info.aspx

On Thursday, 12 May, 2016, at 19:00,  prof. dr. Ester Heath from the Department of Environmental Sciences, at Jožef Stefan Institute will present a lecture entitled “Residues of active ingredients and personal care in the environment” in Kavarna Union, Ljubljana, Slovenia.

More information: http://www.znanostnacesti.si/zdravila-v-okolju.aspx

From 19th to 22nd July 2016, the “ 39th ISEAC Environmental & Food Monitoring ” will be organized in Hamburg, Germany.

More information: http://www.iseac-conferences.org/index.php/home/iseac39-hamburg

From 4th to 6th April 2016, we will organize the ISO-FOOD workshop on speciation of trace elements at the Jožef Stefan Institute, Reactor center, Ljubljana, Slovenia. More information: ISO-FOOD workshop on speciation of trace elements Programme

Today, the 14th March, on VAL202 at 17:10 the ISO-FOOD postdoc student Martina Lorenzetti will talk about her experiences in Ljubljana.

More information:http://val202.rtvslo.si/2016/03/evropa-osebno-21/

From 6th to 10th June 2016, we will organize the ISO-FOOD Summer School Radionuclides in food at the Jožef Stefan Institute, Reactor center, Ljubljana, Slovenia. No participation fee is required. Travel and subsistence costs are not covered.

More information: ISO-FOOD Summer School Radionuclides in food    

From 30th October to 1st November 2016, the “1st Food Chemistry Conference: Shaping the Future of Food Quality, Health and Safety” will be organized in Amsterdam, Netherlands.

More information: http://www.foodchemistryconference.com/

The renovated space at the department O2 will facilitate work, help to increase the work quality, and improve working conditions in ISO-FOOD project. More information about the renovated space at the Jožef Stefan Institute can be found in the interview given by the head of department O2, prof. Milena Horvat, for RTV SLO, http://4d.rtvslo.si/arhiv/prispevki-in-izjave-prvi-dnevnik/174376540, and in the brochure.

From 25th to 27th November 2015, we will organize the Training Course “Quality assurance for Hg measurements in food and environmental samples” at the Jožef Stefan Institute, Reactor center, Ljubljana, Slovenia. No participation fee is required. Travel and subsistence costs are not covered.

IsoFood Hg Training Draft Programme

To register, please send an email to erachair@isofood.eu with “QA for Hg measurements” as Subject (no content). For further information contact us at erachair@isofood.eu.

We want to congratulate dr. Martina Lorenzetti for the “Julia Polak European Doctorate Award 2015”  granted by  the European Society of Biomaterials.

zagovor

On September 10, at the Department for Nanostructured Materials, under the supervison of Dr Martina Lorenzetti, Anja Drame finished her BSc work at the Faculty of Chemistry and Chemical Technology, University of Ljubljana (Prof Polona Žnidaršič Plazl). She also presented the results of her work at Cutting Edge.

The title: EXTRACTION AND CARACTERIZATION OF TiO2 NANOPARTICLES IN CHEWING GUM, Anja Drame, Martina Lorenzetti, Saša Novak, Polona Žnidaršič Plazl

From 8th to 9th October 2015, the “4th Edition of the International Conference on FoodOmics: Food to Life” will be organized in Cesena, Italy.

Additional information: www.foodomics.eu

On November 10-13, Dr David Heath attended the “International Symposium on Food Safety and Quality: Applications of Nuclear and Related Techniques” organised jointly by the IAEA – International Atomic Energy Agency and the FAO – Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations in Vienna, Austria. The ISO-FOOD activities and the research focus areas were presented at this unique forum of top international experts in development and application of nuclear related analytical techniques and researchers from the development countries, which was a unique opportunity for development of new collaborations.

Our first e-newsletter is out. Welcome to take a look! If you subscribe for the newsletter, we will deliver it to your mailbox.

ISO-FOOD will organize the first stakeholder event in 2015 – a Stakeholder Workshop in May 2015 – which will be held at the Jožef Stefan Institute. Representatives of business, academia, governmental organisations and NGOs are invited to present their views on the food quality and traceability issues, and become engaged into a stimulating discussion on the emerging topics of the food research, generating ideas and initiating collaborations. The key conclusions of the workshop will be published through a post-workshop press release. Contact us on erachair@isofood.eu

On 16 October 1945, 42 countries acted in Quebec, Canada, to create the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). In doing so they took another important step forward in man’s perpetual struggle against hunger and malnutrition. For through the establishment of FAO they provided themselves, and the many other nations that were to enter the Organization, with a mechanism through which its Member Countries could deal with a set of problems that are of major concern to all countries and all people.

So that, FAO was founded in 1943 at Hot Springs (USA) during the UN Conference on Food and Agriculture, and it was formally instituted during the First Session of the FAO Conference, held in Quebec, Canada, in 1945 – more information on FAO’s origin is available here.

FAO celebrates World Food Day each year on 16 October, the day on which the Organization was founded in 1945.

The objectives of World Food Day are to:

  • encourage attention to agricultural food production and to stimulate national, bilateral, multilateral and non-governmental efforts to this end;
  • encourage economic and technical cooperation among developing countries;
  • encourage the participation of rural people, particularly women and the least privileged categories, in decisions and activities influencing their living conditions;
  • heighten public awareness of the problem of hunger in the world;
  • promote the transfer of technologies to the developing world; and
  • strengthen international and national solidarity in the struggle against hunger, malnutrition and poverty and draw attention to achievements in food and agricultural development.