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| | As of Tuesday, January 21st, all of our lab employees are back and excited for the new semester! We wanted to start the new year introducing our returning and new staff from October 2024! At the end of this newsletter, we have information about workshops, conferences, and grants!
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| Karen Blakeslee, M.S. Co-Director |
| Karen Blakeslee is the Coordinator of the Rapid Response Center and Co-Director of the Kansas Value Added Foods Lab with K-State Research and Extension. She has a B.S. in Food Science and M.S. in Foods and Nutrition from Kansas State University. Prior to her Extension career, she worked in food manufacturing. One of her roles is teaching food safety in many areas, including home food preservation. |
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| | Kelly Getty, Ph.D. Co-Director |
| Kelly Getty, originally from Emporia, KS, received her B.S. and Ph.D. in Food Science from Kansas State University and M.S. from Pennsylvania State University in Food Science. Currently, Dr. Getty serves as the Co-Director of the Kansas Value Added Foods where she provides food safety support to food processors in Kansas and teaches. Her research efforts involve ingredient functionality in food products and the development of new food products. |
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| Sydney C., B.S. Research Technician |
| I am a recent graduate of Kansas State University with a degree in Food Science and Industry, along with minors in Business and Nutrition. I am currently working as a Research Technician/Lab Manager at the KVAFL. Originally I am from Wichita but have been a K-State fan my whole life! Working in the lab for the past 2 1/2 years has deepened my passion for healthy, safe food, and I take great pride in ensuring the safety of our client's products. |
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| | | I am a junior in Food Science pursuing a minor in Chemistry. I'm originally from Wyandotte County, Kansas, and have been co-managing the lab this spring and last summer. During the fall semester, I was studying abroad in Thailand at Mahidol University and have been getting back in the swing of things this month. I love helping clients connect to the resources and assistance they need to grow their products, so please reach out if you are unsure! |
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| | | I am a sophomore in Food and Bakery Science with a Spanish minor, and this is my second year at the lab! I am originally from the Overland Park, KS and have loved making K-State and Manhattan, KS my second home as the first K-Stater in my family. I love going back home and seeing former and current clients' products at the farmers markets, local grocery stores, and restaurants in the KC metro! |
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| | | I am a junior in Food Science and I am from Olathe, KS. I love cooking and baking, especially for my friends and family! I am also the President of the Food Science Club, a professional development club that engages mostly food science students in activities that connect them to their peers and the industry. My favorite part of working at the lab is communicating and assisting with the needs of our wonderful clients! |
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| | Jedidiah G.Lab Technician |
| I am a junior studying Food Science and Industry with a secondary major in Global Food Systems Leadership. I am originally from Dallas, Texas and a first generation college student. Over the summer, I was an intern with Land O' Lakes as an Agronomy Plot Research Tech in Bismarck, North Dakota. While working in the Kansas Value Added Foods Lab for the past year, I have enjoyed testing products and seeing the creative product names producers come up with! |
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| | | I am a freshman pursuing a Food Science major with a minor in Business from Kansas City. This is my first year at K-State and working in the Kansas Value Added Foods Lab. My favorite part of working in the lab is seeing the variety of unique food products that clients create! |
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| | | This is my first year at the lab and I love that I get to help ensure the safety of the food we eat. Every day I am excited to learn something new and see new and innovative food products from our clients. I am from Westwood, KS studying Food Science and minoring in Cereal Chemistry at K-State, and I hope to work developing healthy foods post-graduation! |
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| | | I am a freshman in Food Science with hopes of a Chemistry minor, and I am brand new to the lab starting last October. I am from Spring Hill, KS, and Manhattan has always been near in my heart because many of my family members went to K-State. I've always had a passion for food; throughout high school I loved participating in the food science and milk quality competitions in FFA and finished my senior year second in the state for food science! |
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| | | I am a freshman majoring in Food science and this is my first year at the lab. I am from Topeka, Kansas but grew up around the KSU environment. My first ever Caturday was when I was about 6 months old! I am so grateful to be a new member of the KAVFL team and to keep learning new things! |
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Thank you for taking the time to learn a little bit about our KVAFL employees! We are excited for the new year, new clients, and new products! |
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Kansas Local Food Producers Workshops |
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The 2025 Kansas Local Food Producers Workshops are set to take place starting in late January. Plan now to attend the workshop that best fits your schedule and location.
Save the Date! Jan. 31 - Manhattan Feb. 1 - Wichita Feb. 7 - Olathe Feb. 21 - Chanute Feb. 28 - Hays Mar. 28 - Garden City |
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Women Managing the Farm Conference |
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Plan now to attend the 2025 Women Managing the Farm Conference in Manhattan, KS on February 12-14, 2025. The theme is Forging the Future! |
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Apply for More Business Builder Grants in 2025 |
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Congratulations to Kansas businesses that applied for the first round of Business Builder Grants. Kansas was the leader in applications in the Heartland region!
Because of the overwhelming response and high quality of proposals from Round 1, the application period for Round 2 has been delayed until later in Spring 2025. This will be the last round of applications for the Business Builder Grants.
Learn more at https://heartlandfoodbusiness.org/business-builder/. Make your plans now to apply and review the “Steps to Take Now” guidelines to guide your application information. |
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