Anna Traksmaa

Anna Traksmaa is a Senior Lecturer at Tallinn University of Technology's School of Science, Department of Chemistry and Biotechnology, with a 0.10 full-time equivalent (FTE). She has been a project leader at TFTAK since 2005, focusing on food and fermentation technologies. Her research spans food science, cereal chemistry, and fermentation, with expertise in sourdough metabolites, bread staling, and volatile compound analysis using GC/MS and microcalorimetry. She teaches MSc courses on cereal processing and plant food technology. Traksmaa holds a PhD (2012) and a Research Master's (2002) from Tallinn University of Technology, with a thesis on rye sourdough fermentation. Awards include the 2013 National Student Research Competition first prize and the 2008 ICC Best Poster Award.

Research & Administrative Roles:

• Project Leader at TFTAK (2005–2023)
• Member of the Management Committee for the COST project CA18101 (SOURDOMICS)
• Lead roles in over 16 research projects, including systems biology of food technologies and novel food fermentation processes

Research Focus: Her work addresses bread staling mechanisms, cereal processing, and microbial dynamics in sourdough systems. She explores sustainable food technologies, with contributions to understanding polysaccharide composition, gluten functionality, and microbial community analysis.

Awards:

• First Prize, National Student Research Competition (2013)
• Best Poster Award, ICC Bosphorus 2008 Conference

Grants & Projects:

• Competence Center of Food and Fermentation Technologies (2004–2023)
• Systems Biology of Food Technologies (2014–2019)
• Novel Waste Management of Baltic Sea Red Algae (2015–2017)

Supervision: Advised over 10 MSc students on topics ranging from gluten quality analysis to sustainable bread production techniques.

Labs/Teams: Active in TFTAK's food fermentation laboratories and collaborates internationally through the COST network.