Kiruba Krishnaswamy

Dr. Kiruba Krishnaswamy is an Assistant Professor with joint appointments in the Department of Biomedical, Biological and Chemical Engineering (College of Engineering) and the Division of Food, Nutrition and Exercise Sciences (College of Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources) at the University of Missouri. She leads the Food Engineering and Sustainable Technologies (FEAST) research program, which focuses on addressing hidden hunger through circular food systems and sustainable development goals.

• Post-Doc (Chemical Engineering) - University of Toronto
• PhD (Bioresource Engineering) - McGill University
• MTech (Food and Agriculture) - Tamil Nadu Agricultural University & McGill University (Commonwealth Scholar)
• BTech (Food Process Engineering) - Tamil Nadu Agricultural University

Her research integrates sustainable food process engineering, micronutrient fortification, and food waste valorization. Key focus areas include upcycling acid whey from Greek yogurt production, enhancing nutritional value of underutilized crops like millet and pawpaw, and developing culturally appropriate food technologies. The FEAST lab emphasizes community engagement through partnerships with indigenous groups like the Osage Nation.

Recent publications demonstrate expertise in spray drying, microencapsulation, and circular economy applications for food security. She received the prestigious NSF CAREER Award (2024) for her work on micronutrient recovery systems. Krishnaswamy teaches the Zero Hunger Challenge course, which brings interdisciplinary students together to address food-environment-health connections.

• NSF CAREER Award (2024) - $532,000, 5-year grant

The FEAST lab collaborates with agricultural engineers, nutritionists, and indigenous communities to develop sustainable food technologies. Current projects include creating nutritious food products from food industry waste, optimizing drying processes for native fruits, and building frameworks to address the 'double burden of malnutrition' through systems thinking approaches.