Topic: Applied Culinary Research in Action – Great Ideas Start in the Kitchen
Heather Hill and Mavis McRae will give an overview of the work they do at the Prairie Research Kitchen, the skills and creations from the team, and a case study recently completed under a collaborative partnership showcasing the use of Manitoba grown pulses for tofu production. They used a variety of beans, hemp and soy to develop new tofu prototypes and final applications.
Prairie Research Kitchen is one of 60 NSERC funded Technology Access Centres (TACs) across Canada. The TACs are positioned to leverage the knowledge and assets embedded in colleges to help industry with their applied research needs and provide work integrated learning opportunities for students. The Prairie Research Kitchen is one of three TACs at Red River College and focuses on food research and innovation. The team’s blend of culinary and science expertise has helped create over 120 prototypes in the last four years.
Event Details:
Wednesday, April 28, 2021
12:00 - 12:45 p.m. EST
Our Speakers:
Mavis McRae, Director, Prairie Research Kitchen, Red River College
Mavis McRae is an agri-food specialist with over 25 years’ experience in the Manitoba agri-food industry. She started her food career in the food microbiology lab at the Food Development Centre (FDC) in Portage la Prairie. After graduating from the MBA program at the University of Manitoba her career trajectory turned to opportunities in entrepreneurship and market research eventually leading to working as an Industrial Technology Advisor for IRAP working with small and medium sized agri-food and environmental clients in Manitoba.
After several years with IRAP, Mavis left to pursue her own entrepreneurship venture leading to a successful and interesting 14-year global career as an independent consultant specializing in business development, strategy, entrepreneurship training, teaching, and market research. As a consultant with Red River College, Mavis wrote the grants leading to the successful acquisition of approximately $7 million in research funding from NSERC, the Canadian Foundation for Innovation, and Research Manitoba. This funding established the college’s third Technology Access Centre, the Prairie Research Kitchen.
On April 1, 2020, she left her consulting career to be a proud member of the Red River College team as the Director of the Prairie Research Kitchen.
Heather Hill, Research Manager, Red River College
In her role as Research Manager, Heather provides a science-based perspective to support the applied culinary research activities of Red River College’s Prairie Research Kitchen.
Heather holds a Master’s of Science degree in Food Science, and has a background in value-added ingredient development. She loves being presented with food innovation challenges and providing practical, applicable solutions to problems.
Heather brings more than 10 years of experience to the table with expertise in food development research. She has worked in partnership with agri-food companies and organizations from Beijing, Switzerland, Morocco, Minneapolis, Steinbach and Portage la Prairie – from large multi-national corporations, to farmers looking to add more value to their crops, and everything in between.
