ReseaRch Quality assuRance foR the futuRe a ... - Lund University

Panel 14 – chemistry
positions will become vacant and attention should be given on the one
hand to maintain competences and expertise and on the other hand to
attract new competences and expertise to realize the research ambitions.
DFTEN finds new challenges in developing new, more sustainable
technologies for producing food that is more healthy, more tasty, convenient
and more fresh. As research areas are mentioned membrane emulsification,
development of new technologies e.g. pulsed electric field in
fruit and vegetable processing to retain important constituents effecting
health and sensory properties, and development of new ingredients based
on dietary fibre for structure and texture formation in foods. These are
indeed very relevant research areas. These intentions also mean a choice
for more focus in the technological research which the Panel very strongly
supports. Research on membrane emulsification and dietary fibre as
structure and texture ingredient can build on existing competence and
expertise. There is also quite some application experience in fruit and
vegetable processing but in our opinion this needs a more fundamental
basis. It is already anticipated to enforce the technological research with
mathematic modeling.
Also in the technological and engineering research some vacancies will
arise with the risk to lose competences and expertise. This has partially
been anticipated by appointing young researchers but it is important to
use the opportunity to create more focus and attract new competences.
4.5 SWOT analysis:
S: Research quality is good to excellent but can improve for some areas.
More focus in the research program will help in this and is already
partly anticipated in the future research intentions (see below). The
international reputation of LU can be improved (as mentioned above)
and also the external funding.
W: The Panel agrees with the points made. that Short term projects
should be avoided. The Panel also wants to mention here the automatism
in career development and recruitment of new professionals
and the relatively high average age of Ph.D. students. From form 3:
“Quality summary of research activities and academic reputation” it
appears that in the period 2003–2007 for the academic staff 6 positions
were renewed all by internal recruitments. It is also mentioned
410