Date: 11 March 2009

OCEAN SPRAY APPOINTS RESEARCH SCIENCES MANAGER

Ocean Spray has appointed Dr Christina Khoo as manager of research sciences. Dr Khoo, formerly principal scientist at Ocean Spray, will drive research into the health benefits of the cranberry, providing scientific support for product innovation with cranberries across the world. Her role will encompass research on the healthy properties of Ocean Spray’s ingredients, such as sweetened dried cranberries and BerryFusions® Fruits, as well as supporting clinical trials on the cranberry’s whole body health benefits. 

Geoff Woolford, vice president R&D, commented: “During her 18 months as principal scientist at Ocean Spray Christina brought both research and applications knowledge to the team – a valuable combination that will be used to the full in her new role. Ocean Spray has invested heavily in research over the years and we have a huge portfolio of evidence pointing to wide-ranging health benefits. As health becomes ever more important to today’s consumer, Christina will help channel this research into commercial projects to create new opportunities for innovation across the food and beverage industry.”

Dr Khoo has a long experience in the field of functional and nutritional foods. Her previous position at Hills Pet Nutrition, a division of Colgate Palmolive, saw her involved in new product development in the area of probiotics and gastrointestinal health. She also has considerable experience in clinical nutrition, with five years of post doctoral research at the Harvard School of Public Health. Dr Khoo studied Biochemistry at Susquehanna University, Pennsylvania and has a PhD in Nutritional Biochemistry from the University of Florida.