CAES Newswire

 College of Agricultural & Environmental Sciences UGA Cooperative Extension
Menu
Published on 04/25/14

Griffin-based scientist earns UGA's Creative Research Medal

By Sharon Dowdy

Walid Alali, a scientist with the University of Georgia Griffin Campus, has received the University of Georgia Creative Research Medal — an award presented to faculty who have conducted outstanding research within the past five years on a single topic.

Alali is an assistant professor of epidemiology at the UGA Center for Food Safety in Griffin. His research focuses on the epidemiology and control of salmonella in the poultry industry. A significant number of foodborne illnesses caused by salmonella are tracked back to the consumption of poultry.

With funding from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Alali led an international food safety data collection program centered around salmonella on raw poultry sold in retail markets in emerging market countries like China, Russia and Colombia. He also investigated the presence of antibiotic-resistant strains of salmonella in these countries and found high levels of multi-drug resistance. Alali worked with the World Health Organization and local officials to plan and execute a response to this problem.

“Dr. Alali’s research is extremely significant in Georgia, the U.S. and globally. His poultry research supports one of Georgia’s most important commodities that, along with eggs, had a farm gate value of $5.7 billion in 2012,” said Jerry Arkin, assistant dean of the UGA CAES campus in Griffin.

Alali joined the food science faculty of the UGA College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences in 2008. Overall, his research focuses on understanding foodborne pathogen transmission in animal populations and developing practical interventions to prevent the spread of those pathogens in food animals, particularly poultry.

He has published 31 refereed scientific journal articles, two book chapters and more than 30 scientific abstracts. He has also delivered 26 national and international talks.

Alali is the current president of the Georgia Association for Food Protection, serves on the editorial board for the Journal of Food Protection and Poultry Science, and is a member of the Preharvest Food Safety and Meat and Poultry Safety Professional Development Groups, the Food Protection Trends management committee and the program committee of the Dubai International Food Safety Conference.

He is also a member of the World Health Organization’s Global Foodborne Infectious Network and the European Food Safety Authority’s Expert Database.

Alali holds a veterinary medicine degree from Jordan University of Science and Technology, a master’s degree in epidemiology from Kansas State University and a doctorate in epidemiology from Texas A&M University.

Sharon Dowdy is a news editor with the University of Georgia College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences.

Authors:
Sharon Dowdy
Experts/Sources:
walid qasim alali
University of Georgia scientist Walid Alali was presented the university's 2014 Creative Research Medal based on his research on salmonella in the poultry industry. Alali is a food scientist with the University of Georgia College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences. He is shown (right) receiving the honor from UGA Vice President for Research David Lee.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipisicing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua.
Download Image
(L to R) New Creation Soda Works Founder and CEO Paul Kooistra, Head Brewer Alex Harding, CAES Dean and Director Nick Place. (Photo by Dennis McDaniel) CAES News
Flavor of Georgia grand prize goes to New Creation Soda Works 04/05/24 Jordan Powers
New Creation Soda Works won the grand prize at the 2024 Flavor of Georgia food contest for their product, PECHES Georgia Peach Soda. A family-owned company based in Bishop, Georgia, New Creation Soda Works started selling their soda syrups at a local farmer’s market in 2015. Today, their product line — comprised of sodas with flavors including strawberry habanero, butter pecan cream soda and the old-time root beer that inspired the company — sells in more than 700 locations nationwide.
CAES virologist Malak Esseili has found that certain teas inactivate SARS-CoV-2 in saliva — in some cases by up to 99.9%. This matters because the virus infects and replicates inside the oral cavity, passing through the oropharynx before reaching the lungs. CAES News
Can a cup of tea keep COVID away? 03/27/24 Jennifer L Reynolds
New research from the University of Georgia suggests that something as simple as a cup of tea can help in the fight against COVID-19. Tea has been renowned globally for its many health benefits, and Malak Esseili, a virologist with the University of Georgia Center for Food Safety in the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, wanted to know if it may also affect SARS-CoV-2.
Samples at the 2022 Flavor of Georgia food product contest CAES News
36 finalists advance in 2024 Flavor of Georgia contest 03/20/24 Lillian Dickens
Working their way through 139 hopeful food products organized in colorful rows, a panel of judges selected 36 finalists for the 2024 Flavor of Georgia food product contest to be held in Athens on April 4. The first round of the annual competition was held at Gourmet Foods International in Decatur and organized by the University of Georgia’s College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences. The popular contest features market-ready products from small businesses across the state of Georgia.
The First Flock was established at the Georgia Governor's Mansion in July 2021. CAES News
Inaugural First Flock retires to 4-H center as 15 new hens move to Governor’s Mansion 03/18/24 Josie Smith, Lily Thomas
Georgia’s inaugural First Flock is retiring to Fortson 4-H Center almost three years after they came to roost at the Governor’s Mansion in 2021. Six members of the original flock traded places with 15 new hens during a ceremonial swap on Feb. 1 at the First Flock’s custom coop on the eastern side of the 18-acre mansion grounds in Atlanta. The idea for the project was hatched in 2020 when Georgia first lady Marty Kemp expressed her desire to include agricultural education via residential hens at the mansion.
Abhinav Mishra and colleagues in UGA's Department of Food Science and Technology will use risk assessment models to identify which environmental and farm practice factors contribute to the food safety risk of fresh, organic food. CAES News
UGA food scientists build toolbox for organic growers to address food safety concerns 02/14/24 Maria M. Lameiras
University of Georgia researchers in the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences are part of a $3.5 million grant designed to assist organic producers in meeting both National Organic Program standards and food safety requirements. UGA food scientists will survey farms in the Southeast to determine the risk of contamination in organic crops by different environmental pathogens.
FoodPICdirectorJimGratzek CAES News
UGA FoodPIC empowers food startups for successful launch and growth 02/12/24 Emily Cabrera
Jim Gratzek, director of the University of Georgia’s Food Product Innovation and Commercialization Center, earned his doctorate in food process engineering from UGA’s Department of Food Science and Technology. He returned to the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences in 2022 after nearly 30 years in the commercial food industry, bringing a new perspective. In his experience, the biggest hurdle for new food entrepreneurs who don’t yet have sufficient working capital or manufacturing facilities is moving a product from concept to consumer.