St. Paul, Minn. (November 6, 2008) — AACC International recently awarded Jan A. Delcour with the William F. Geddes Memorial Award, one of the association’s most esteemed awards. The award was presented during the association’s annual meeting in Honolulu, Hawaii.
The Geddes award is given in recognition of the leadership and dedication of the late William F. Geddes who served AACC International long and unselfishly as president, vice-president, and Cereal Chemistry editor-in-chief. In 1961, the Geddes award was created to honor the zeal and unselfish industry of an individual member and to emphasize the importance of his or her contributions to the work of the society. Moreover, the award acknowledges a member whose work and commitment to the association are extraordinary. “The award is about recognizing exceptional members who have given of their time and expertise to AACC International,” notes AACC International Executive Director Steve Nelson.
Delcour, an active member of AACC International since 1988, is a professor at the Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, in Leuven, Belgium, where he focuses on the protein, nonstarch polysaccharides, and starch constituents of cereals and the way they affect cereal processes. Upon receiving the award, Delcour admits he was, “totally taken by surprise and very grateful.”
“I took particular pride in the fact that I, apparently, am the first non-North American AACC International member to receive it. I regard it as recognition of the work of our Leuven-based team [at the university] that allows me to play a small role in the association,” Delcour added.
Delcour noted that today, “an increasing interest goes to the health-promoting effects of cereals and fractions thereof” a trend that has allowed his university to “create the spin out company, Fugeia, which focuses on arabinoxylan oligosaccharides [constituents derived from cereals].” Fugeia, founded in February 2008, develops proprietary products and technologies targeted for multiple market segments, including beverages, cereals, cookies, biscuits, bread, pastries, dietary supplements, and therapeutics.
According to Nelson, Delcour is “recognized for contributing countless hours of his time to a long list of AACC International committees and activities. He is a skillful organizer and team player. He truly understands that it is the contributions of volunteers that benefit all members. His global perspective and energy has brought greater value to all members.”
In addition, Delcour has been given the status of ISI Highly Cited Researcher in the field of Agricultural Sciences in addition to being ranked 21 amongst Highly Cited Authors in Agricultural Sciences from 1996–2006. Over the years, he has also served on Cereal Chemistry as associate editor and now as senior editor. He has chaired the Technical Program and the Program Advisory Committees and currently chairs the Publications Task Force and is a member of the Carbohydrate Division. Additionally, he is a member of the Excellence in Teaching Award Committee and the Young Scientist Award Committee. In 2001, he was the William F. Geddes Lecturer, an award of AACC International’s Northwest Section.
AACC International is an organization of professionals who contribute to the research, development, and processing of grains and grain-based products.
