At its meeting held on November 24, 2023, the Board of Directors of Raisio plc’s Research Foundation decided to award a total of EUR 172 083 in post graduate research grants for the year 2024. Taking into account possible other research grants and possible doctoral researcher positions under an employment contract at universities, the Research Foundation will distribute EUR 135 210 to six PhD student in 2024.
The grant of the Research Foundation are intended as a salary grant for a doctoral researcher. A doctoral researcher whose PhD topic is once awarded with a research grant of the Foundation has the opportunity to receive a salary grant for a maximum of four years, provided that the studies proceed according to plans. The overall duration of dissertations supported by grants of the Foundation is four years.
Continued postgraduate grants are decided annually on the basis of a separate application.
Based on the public grant application process held in October 2023, 16 new grant applications and five continued grant application were submitted to the Foundation within the deadline. The total amount of funding requested was EUR 478 433.
Raisio plc’s Research Foundation supports scientific research related to the development of foods, food ingredients and their production methods. The Research Foundation also supports research related to safety of food products and commercialization of food products.
In recent years, the Foundation has executed its activity by awarding personal salary grants for postgraduate studies aiming at a doctoral degree. In addition, awards recognition scholarships to well executed master’s theses.
The grants awarded for 2024 are as follows:
Nazia Deoghare, VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland, (Department of Microbiology, Faculty of Agriculture and Forestry, University of Helsinki)
PhD research title: Application of legumes for the development of zero-waste, carbon-neutral solutions for the brewing Industry.
The objective of the research of the dissertation is to investigate the potential use of legumes as an alternative to barely in the brewing process. This could lead to new types of nutritious beverages with reduced environmental impact.
Katja Kantanen, Department of Food and Nutrition, Faculty of Agriculture and Forestry, University of Helsinki
Dissertation title: Reduction of oligosaccharides from meat analogues utilizing fermentation, germination and enzymatic treatment
The dissertation focuses on the effects of fermentation, germination and enzymatic treatment of faba bean on high moisture extrusion and on the content of oligosaccharides like raffinose, stachyose and verbascose and on the structure, physico-chemical and sensorial properties of meat analogues.
Sini Kuosmanen, Department of Food and Nutrition and Department of Economics and Management, Faculty of Agriculture and Forestry, University of Helsinki
PhD research title: Plant-based diets and pulse consumption – Exploring advancing sustainable diets through Capability, Opportunity, Motivation, Behaviour (COM-B) model.
The dissertation deals with the transition towards more plant-based and sustainable diets specifically from the consumer perspective with a special focus on adding legumes, especially domestical faba beans and pea, into diets to partially replace animal proteins. The objective is to find out how plant-based eating and increasing legume consumption could be advanced both on societal and individual levels.
Petri Lassila, Department of Physics, Electronics Research Laboratory, University of Helsinki
The dissertation aims to develop novel solid fats, for the sustainable development of our society. In the work, a technology utilizing ultrasonic standing waves will be used to generate tailorable micrometer level structures in semi -solid lipids.
Anna Puganen, Food Sciences, Department of Life Technologies, Faculty of Technology, University of Turku
PhD research title: Connecting the lipid content and composition to the volatiles and perceived sensory quality in oat samples
The aim of the PhD research is to determine the lipid profiles of different oat lots representing different Finnish oat cultivars and to study the relationship between lipids, volatile compounds and perceived flavour as such and after storage. The goal of this research is to enhance the versatile use of Finnish oat cultivars in food products
Anton Örn, Laboratory for Molecular Research and Technology, Faculty of Science and Engineering, Åbo Akademi University
Dissertation title: Synthesis of rare sugars through site-selective epimerization
The thesis work aims to develop a cost effective production method for psicose that is based on the site-selective catalytic epimerization of fructose. The goal can be achieved by studying the materials and mechanisms of the required multiphase catalytic systems in detail.
2024 scholarships
In 2024 Raisio plc Research Foundation has granted seven scholarships for master’s theses. The value of one scholarship is €500.
University of Eastern Finland
Vilma Liikonen: Whole grains, tryptophan metabolism, and psychological distress
Anni Kuosmanen: The effect of oat bran on perceived satiety and physiological responses
University of Turku
Carla Vecenâncio da Silva: Sensory characteristics and phenolic profile of the first-generation interspecific hybrid strawberries
Zeynep Özturk: Functional screening of beneficial strains and consortia to maximize healthy fermentation potential
University of Helsinki
Katri Mäyrä: Body weight changes of a dairy cow and their relationship to milk production, rumination and metabolism
Tuuli Markkanen: Development of sustainable practices for using lake sediment as growing medium for grass production
Enni Ala-Kurikka: Effect of fermentation on sorghum phenolic compounds
