Visitors from 18 countries attend 2010 Short Course

June 11, 2010

2010 SHORT COURSE BRINGS VISITORS FROM 18 DIFFERENT COUNTRIES TO NSRL

It was a whirlwind week at NSRL. Over sixty visitors from eighteen countries descended on the U of I campus June 6 - 11th for the 2010 Short Course. It was an excellent opportunity for participants to interact with industry experts and world-renowned professors about issues facing the industry. They also gained valuable knowledge about advances in soy processing and learned more about soy's role in fighting chronic diseases. One perk of attending that participants enjoyed was taste testing over twenty new soy products.

The week started out with some outstanding presentations by Ilan Weiss, SunOpta; Joe Cornelius, Monsanto; and Bruce Chassey, U of I. The questions came fast and furious about industry trends, extrusion and texturizing and the steps to producing soymilk. This year's group was made up of entrepreneurs, nutritionists, humanitarian aid leaders and food technologists along with researchers and marketing individuals.

Dr. Hans H. Stein and I welcomed our guests during a lunch held at the U of I Memorial Stadium. What a spectacular view! We think the attendees were listening, but they may have been slightly distracted by the football field that was showcased through the floor to ceiling windows.

The participants had the opportunity to make presentations on Tuesday evening. I always look forward to hearing what innovative ideas people share and the information usually leads to interesting conversation and new collaborations. The Illinois Soybean Association has been hosting three young Brazilian farmers from Aprosoja this summer and they were part of the Short Course. Darlan Anese, Fabio Henrique de Oliveira and Jefferson Castilho Bergamasco made presentations abou their visits to Illinois farms and they had the group smiling when they told their stories about what they've experienced while in the U.S.

Midweek the participants created meat analog products, learned the process for producing soymilk and baked up some delicious recipes that included soy. There was a great deal of interaction and hands-on experiences that made the NSRL Short Course unique and very worthwhile. Colleen Meadows, ConAgra, told us the course was very beneficial to her and she plans to encourage others from her company to be part of the next Short Course slated for
June 5 - 10, 2011.

A field trip to Archer Daniels Midland in Decatur on Thursday was enjoyed by all. ADM shared a wonderful afternoon of hospitality and knowledge. The evening brought graduation, which is always a fun event. By the time the certificates were handed out, everyone had exchanged business cards and email addresses and had become fast friends.

Friday ended on a high note with presentations by Mark Messina, Nutrition Matters; Michael Dunn, BYU; and Dr. Barbara Klein, U of I. The NSRL team really outdid themselves with all the great work that went in to making the 2010 Short Course a success. They are to be commended for their efforts.

As things wrapped up on Friday afternoon, participants and NSRL staff gathered together to celebrate the completion of the course and cheer on their teams in the World Cup Soccer Games.

Regards,

Bridget