BYU food science team wins national prize

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    By Angela Rose

    A team of five BYU food science students won the national college bowl competition in New Orleans Monday.

    The event was sponsored by The Student Association of the Institute of Food Technologists and General Mills, Inc.

    ?It was really satisfying to actually win after we practiced for a year with the same team members,? said Heather Pahulu, a BYU food science masters student. ?We didn?t have any idea how we were going to do it because we were going against teams we?d never seen before.?

    The BYU team lost its third match-up to Rutgers, putting them in the losers bracket. They came back and beat Rutgers twice to win the championship.

    The competition, which began in 1985, tests students? knowledge in the areas of food science and technology, history of foods and food processing, food law and general food-related trivia.

    ?In one of the questions we had to name the eight vegetables in V8 juice,? Pahulu said. ?Most the questions were really scientific, like the scientific name for vitamin B12, bacteria in food and illnesses they cause.?

    The BYU team also won a $1,000 award.

    ?As far as food science goes, it is one of the main competitions, it is really prestigious,? Pahulu said. ?All schools around nation know about this competition. The Institute of Food Technologists is the main organization for food scientists, so if you win the competition, it?s a really big deal.?

    Pahulu, Devin Rose, Andrew Neilson (team captain), Jacob Briggs and Robert MacKenzie have been a team for the past two years. They studied three times a week for a year to prepare for the competition.

    ?We were all willing to put in the time, and we set our own practice schedule,? Pahulu said. ?Part of the reason we did it is because it?s fun, but it?s also a really great opportunity.?

    Winning the regional competition in April qualified the team to compete against five other teams at nationals. In the national competition, two teams go against each other at a time and answer a total of 20 questions during a round. Whoever has the highest score goes on to the next round. The competition is double elimination.

    Michael Dunn, an associate professor of food science, helped coach the team and traveled with them to New Orleans. He said he was really proud of their sportsmanship and teamwork.

    ?They were all participative,? Dunn said. ?Other teams had just one shining star, but we were all chiming in. The moderator came up and commended me on the great team we had, and the organizer of the event commended me for our sportsmanship.?

    Rather than putting on a big show, BYU team members calmly got up and walked over to the other team to shake their hands, Dunn said.

    This is the third BYU college bowl win; they last won in 1997.

    ?It was as exciting as intercollegiate sports,? said Lynn Odgen, the department chair for nutrition, dietetics, and food science. ?There?s probably 100 other approved programs in the country, and that?s three wins for us, so we are doing pretty well. I just think it demonstrates the quality of students we have at BYU.?

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