Champaign, IL (May 8, 2026)—The American Dairy Science Association® (ADSA®) is pleased to announce John Lucey as the 2026 recipient of the International Dairy Foods Association Research Award in Dairy Foods Processing. The award will be presented on Tuesday, June 23, 2026, during the awards ceremony at the ADSA Annual Meeting in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
The International Dairy Foods Association Research Award in Dairy Foods Processing was created to recognize individuals whose research findings have allowed dairy foods processors to develop new products and to make a significant improvement in the quality, safety, or processing efficiency of dairy foods. The winner must have conducted research at public or private institutions, and their research findings must have clearly and significantly benefited the dairy foods processing industry in its ability to manufacture products with higher quality or safety (chemical or microbiological) or with increased processing efficiencies. Or the research must have led to innovative product development with a measurable impact on the market. The adoption of the findings must affect a significant portion of the dairy foods manufactured. Particular attention is paid to the long-term importance of the research application. The winner must have published the research during the five calendar years prior to the award. The winner must be and have been a member of ADSA for five years.
John Lucey earned his PhD at University College Cork in 1992 and has been a professor at the University of Wisconsin–Madison since 1999. He was named director of the Center for Dairy Research in 2011 and appointed the Owen R. Fennema Professorship in Food Chemistry in 2021. He teaches and conducts research on chemistry and the molecular basis for dairy product functionality. Lucey has published nearly 160 peer-reviewed papers and advised more than 50 graduate students. He teaches numerous industry courses and is a member of the International Scientific Advisory Board for Teagasc. He is a Fellow of ADSA.
It is with great pleasure that ADSA and the International Dairy Foods Association present John Lucey with the 2026 International Dairy Foods Association Research Award in Dairy Foods Processing.
About the American Dairy Science Association (ADSA)
The American Dairy Science Association (ADSA) is an international organization of educators, scientists, and industry representatives who are committed to advancing the dairy industry and keenly aware of the vital role the dairy sciences play in fulfilling the economic, nutritive, and health requirements of the world’s population. It provides leadership in scientific and technical support to sustain and grow the global dairy industry through generation, dissemination, and exchange of information and services. Together, ADSA members have discovered new methods and technologies that have revolutionized the dairy industry. www.adsa.org