Dr. Bruce German

“As a scientist, I am alerted to the growing challenges to food, from health and safety to preference and sustainability, all in the context of a changing world. This program provides a unique environment to empower students with the knowledge they need to make wise decisions about where innovation will be most needed and solutions most effective. Big challenges need bold solutions.”

Course: Food Systems.

Dr. Bruce German is a professor and chemist of food science and technology at the University of California, Davis and the director for the university’s Foods for Health Institute. Dr. German’s work includes researching the role of fats and other components in the diet and developing ways to assess health and metabolism in response to foods. He uses milk as the model for the genetic blueprint for foods that support health, as milk evolves for the purpose of nourishing growing mammals. This evolutionary logic forms the basis of research for discovering physical, functional, and nutritional properties of milk components and applying these properties to foods.

Dr. German has published articles in more than 400 peer-reviewed publications, including Food in an Evolutionary Context and Nutrigenomics and Personalized Diets: What Will They Mean for Food? He has received honors as a Dean’s Distinguished Lecturer and a Distinguished Professor, and he was recognized by the Institute for Scientific Information as a Most Highly Cited Scientist.