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
The MS Food DAY is a biannual conference focused on all topics related to the use, methods and applications of mass spectrometry in food and was this year supported by the MASSTWIN project. It was held on 11 – 13 October in Bologna (Italy). Anja’s poster entitled “A preliminary traceability model for tomato using analysis of stable isotopes, elemental content and chemical markers” was selected by the jury as the best one among 73 presentations.
The Summer School included theory and two days of hands-on experience in the laboratory. Understanding elemental speciation requires robust analytical methods with well-established methodologies for analysing food. The course addressed this by providing participants with an in-depth knowledge of trace element speciation using examples of essential and non-essential elements including Cr, Zn, Ni, Hg and As to teach and demonstrate the state-of-the art analytical approaches to the problem of trace element speciation. The lectures also covered the topic of nanoparticle residues in food. In total forty-five participants representing academia, industry and governmental and non-governmental organizations attended this free event.
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.
From April 4 to April 7, 2017, ISO-FOOD organized a spring school for national stakeholders where the trainees got acquainted with the isotopic and chemometric methods for determination of geographical origin, authenticity and production regime of food products, such as wine, fruit juices, honey, milk products, bottled water, oils, vegetables etc. Following topics were covered:
backgrounds of isotope chemistry and application of stable isotopes for determination of the geographical origin of food
elemental analysis of foodstuffs and their components
stable isotope analysis of hydrogen, oxygen, carbon, nitrogen and sulphur using isotope ratio mass spectrometry
compound-specific isotope analysis of food components and its relevance for determination of authenticity of food products
basic and multivariate statistical methods for data treatment
quality assurance and quality control
EU and national legislation
The lectures were given by the ERA Chair researchers and students and by guest speakers from the IJS Department of Low- and Medium-Energy Physics, Administration of the Republic of Slovenia for Food Safety, Veterinary Sector and Plant Protection, and Institute of Oliveculture. During practical work in the laboratory, the trainees got acquainted with sample preparation, analytical instruments and procedures of water and honey isotope analysis, as well as data evaluation. The course was designed for graduate and postgraduate students, researches and experts dealing with food analysis and control with background in food technology, agronomy, dairying, viniculture, analytical chemistry or other relevant fields of science and biotechnics. The working language of the school was Slovene.
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.
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.
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