Margaret Lawson honored by IFT

Margaret Lawson, Vice President of Science and Innovation, D.D. Williamson & Co., Inc., has been selected as the winner of the 2010 Calvert L. Willey Distinguished Service Award by the Institute of Food Technologists, a not-for-profit international society with 22,000 members working in food science, technology and related professions.

Margaret Lawson, Vice President of Science and Innovation, D.D. Williamson & Co., Inc.

The Calvert L. Willey Award is given yearly to honor an individual who has provided continuing, meritorious and imaginative service to IFT. The award was first presented to Calvert L. Willey, then Executive Director of IFT, in 1987 and initiated on the 50th Anniversary of IFT in 1989. The award will be presented at IFT’s Annual Meeting and Food Expo in Chicago, IL on July 17th 2010, and includes a $3,000 honorarium and a plaque from IFT.

>From her earliest involvement as a student member, Margaret Lawson has been an IFT leader, serving as IFT President (2005–2006) and volunteering for numerous roles on National, Division, and Section levels. She has been a global ambassador for IFT, meeting with food scientists in Japan, Cuba, China, Uruguay and Mexico to strengthen IFT’s alliances with food science organizations in these countries. During her IFT presidency, Lawson focused on making IFT a global source of sound science and encouraged a diversity of voices within the organization. Lawson’s wide range of experience and her enthusiasm for the field of food science has made her a dynamic communicator and a champion of the profession worldwide.

IFT recognizes the many accomplishments that individuals and organizations have made to advance the food science industry and to help ensure safe, affordable, and nutritious foods to the world. To honor these individuals and organizations, the IFT Awards Program was created. This program grants awards, fellowships, and prizes for outstanding accomplishments in all areas of food science and technology, administering 14 Achievement Awards, the Marcel Loncin Research Prize, and the IFT Fellows program. A complete list of Award Winners can be found on the IFT Web site at www.ift.org.