Peter de Jong, ISPT’s expert in food and agriculture, brings a unique perspective to the table, emphasizing the critical importance of food in human existence. He holds the view that while humanity has lived without cars or even energy, food is an indispensable need, necessitating the optimization of existing processes. His focus is on sustainability, maximizing raw material usage, and extracting the utmost nutritional value from food products.
Joining ISPT around 2014, Peter started as Manager for the Mild Fractionation for Food project. This initiative explores advanced technologies for extracting complex molecules and proteins from various food industry process flows. Under his leadership, the project has fostered unlikely collaborations, bringing together diverse groups and organizations, some of whom are competitors, to share unique viewpoints and spark new ideas. This approach to collaboration is at the heart of ISPT’s ethos, where networking and facilitating partnerships drive innovation.
Collaboration gives birth to new ideas through the blending of unique viewpoints
Peter de Jong – ISPT’s specialist on food and agriculture
Peter’s background in Chemical Engineering, combined with his choice of a career in dairy over the chemical industry, demonstrates his commitment to the food sector. Starting at Campina Melkunie and later at NIZO Food, he also completed his PhD specializing in dairy production processes. Besides his work at ISPT, he lectures at Van Hall Larenstein, educating students on innovative technologies for sustainable production in dairy chains.
As an expert in food production, Peter’s work encompasses energy consumption, emissions, and health. He leads large research programs in collaboration with industry and government, focusing on health improvement, cost reduction, and sustainability through technological advancements. With extensive experience from national and international collaborations in the food industry, his professorship specializes in sustainable dairy and food processing. Over the past decade, he has dedicated himself to the food transition, emphasizing mild processing techniques and increasing plant-based, healthy food production. His goal is to make this transition both feasible and successful for the Netherlands.
Journalists can approach Peter for insights on the pros and cons of processed food, the role of artificial intelligence (AI) in food production, and the Netherlands’ role in global food knowledge. He also provides explanations on dairy alternatives, techniques to reduce emissions in food processing, methods to make food healthier, the importance of investing in plant-based diets, and the future of the Netherlands as a leading knowledge country in the field of food.
Peter has a background in Chemical Engineering. After completing his studies most of Peters alumni pursued a career in the chemical industry, but Peter chose for a career in dairy, starting at Campina Melkunie and later at NIZO Food. Around the same time, he completed his PhD specialising in dairy production processes. Next to Peters work at ISPT, he is a lecturer at Van Hall Larenstein, where he teaches students on the development and application of innovative technologies for sustainable production in dairy chains.
My interviews & articles
How smart processing makes a difference in protein functionality (podcast)
