Helping farmers, food businesses and consumers in New York state and beyond.

Our extension program mission is to help farmers, food businesses and consumers in New York state and beyond to produce safe, healthy and wholesome foods.

Extension programs and personnel in the Department of Food Science programs are located at the Cornell University campus in Ithaca, New York, and at Cornell AgriTech in Geneva, New York. 

Our programs offer a wide array of courses in multiple subjects. View our course catalog for a complete listing.

 

Our Services

Cornell Craft Beverage Institute

New York state is home to a flourishing and diverse craft beverage industry that encompasses over 400 wineries, 400 breweries, 120 distilleries and 50 hard cideries. CCBI has played a central role in the industry's development by providing resources, education and services. CCBI specializes in the analyzing industry samples, processing samples for research and educating and training craft beverage professionals to excel at every level of their business.

Beer and Brewing

Information on the essentials of beer including barley, malt, hops, and yeast as well as on the brewing process for various styles of ales and lagers.

  • Cornell Brewing Program
  • Contact: mec339 [at] cornell.edu (Molly Cappiello)

Wine and Distilled Spirits

The Cornell Extension Enology Lab (CEEL) provides resources to aid the New York wine industry in a variety of ways.

More Information

Affordable analysis of juice, wine, and distillates for quality assurance, trouble shooting, and federal regulatory compliance.

Dairy & Milk Products

The Dairy Foods Extension team has helped dairy producers obtain training in current dairy processing, providing the latest dairy research and technological advances to ensure the long term sustainability of the dairy industry in New York state. Training and consulting services are available in a variety of topics and specialties. Process review and validation, pre-audit consulting, and on-site consultations provided beyond our core curriculum.

Dairy Foods

Our dairy foods extension program focuses on supporting the production of safe and high quality dairy products with specific expertise in microbial spoilage and food safety issues. Our program offers an extensive set of workshops that lead towards certificates in fluid milk production, cheese production, and production of cultured and fermented dairy products.

Chemistry & Processing of Milk

As part of the dairy foods extension program, specific technical expertise is provided in areas of chemistry and processing, including: cheese and whey manufacturing technology and chemistry; milk filtration for milk protein concentration and separation; use of carbon dioxide in milk processing and dairy product manufacturing; and milk component payment testing by reference and indirect mid-infrared analytical methods, calibration samples, and laboratory proficiency testing.

Milk Quality Improvement

The Milk Quality Improvement Program is a program funded by the New York State Dairy Promotion Board, dairy farmers dedicated to the production, manufacture and distribution of quality dairy products. The objectives of this program are to assist New York State dairy plants in improving the quality of dairy products and to monitor and make recommendations to improve the quality of raw milk produced in NYS.

Entrepreneurship & Sensory Analysis

Entrepreneurship & Small Scale Processing

The Cornell Food Venture Center provides assistance to ensure safety and stability of food products entering the marketplace including:

  • Lab Analysis for pH, water activity, and Brix of food and beverage products
  • Process Authority approval and Scheduled Process: Product Review, Documentation, and Process Validation 
  • Resources for Nutrition Analysis, Co-packers, Packaging Suppliers, Shelf-Life Studies, and More!
  • Regulatory Compliance: Registration and Licensing with State and FDA agencies
  • Small Scale Food Entrepreneurship: A Technical Guide for Food Ventures 

Dairy Product Sensory Milk Quality Improvement Program

Dairy Product Sensory Analysis is a vital component of the Milk Quality Improvement Program (MQIP). Under the MQIP's Voluntary Shelf Life (VSL) Program, retail milk samples from participating dairy plants are tested over shelf-life, and results of flavor, odor, and appearance are reported. In addition, defective milk sample sets are available for training employees and have been used for fulfillment of SQF sensory requirements; MQIP personnel are available for on-site training, if requested. Sensory training sessions are routinely offered as stand-alone programs/workshops or as an integral component of other Dairy Foods Extension workshops, such as Cultured Dairy Products and Basic Cheese-making.

  • Contact: at543 [at] cornell.edu (Aljosa Trmcic)
  • Contact: ap262 [at] cornell.edu (Alina Stelick)

Sensory Evaluation Center

The mission of the Sensory Evaluation Center is two-fold: to provide training and hands-on learning opportunities to students that are interested in the fields of sensory and consumer research, and to help businesses develop and improve their product offering through consumer and sensory testing.

Among the standard services that are offered to commercial clients are Consumer Acceptability, Preference and Discrimination Testing. In addition, the program provides consultations in all matters related to sensory product testing: appropriateness of particular test method, study sample size, questionnaire design, statistics and analyses, sample blinding and serving sizes, to name a few.

  • Contact: ap262 [at] cornell.edu (Alina Stelick)
  • Contact: rd426 [at] cornell.edu (Dr. Robin Dando)

Fruits, Vegetables, Cider & Juice

The Good Agricultural Practices (GAPs)

The Good Agricultural Practices (GAPs) program provides training and materials that support food safety objectives that reduce identified risks in the production of fruits and vegetables.

For More Information:

The Produce Safety Alliance

The Produce Safety Alliance provides fundamental, science-based, on-farm food safety knowledge to fresh fruit and vegetable farmers, packers, regulatory personnel and others interested in the safety of fresh produce. A major objective of the alliance is to assist the industry in meeting compliance expectations of the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA).

For More Information:

Fruit, Vegetable & Juice Processing and Safety

Fruit, Vegetable and Juice Processing and Safety outreach is focused on the fruit, vegetable and beverage industries in New York State providing expertise in sanitation and processing recommendations for products that have problematic heat resistant molds and bacteria spoilage. Juice HACCP training is offered for the industry in New York State as well as the rest of the US. 2025 Juice HACCP Certification courses will be on March 11, August 12, and November 6. This training is only offered in-person at Cornell AgriTech in Geneva, NY. 

For More Information:

Contact: Randy Worobo or sjl38 [at] cornell.edu (Sarah Lincoln) or add your name to the Juice HACCP list serve for upcoming training announcements.

Food Safety Programs

Fruit and Vegetable Safety

The Good Agricultural Practices (GAPs) program provides training and materials that support food safety objectives that reduce identified risks in the production of fruits and vegetables.

The Produce Safety Alliance provides fundamental, science-based, on-farm food safety knowledge to fresh fruit and vegetable farmers, packers, regulatory personnel and others interested in the safety of fresh. A major objective of the alliance is to assist the industry in meeting compliance expectations of the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA).

Microbial Food Safety Lab

The application of molecular biology and GIS tools to prevent and reduce microbial food safety hazards from pre-harvest to processing and retail. The Microbial Food Safety Lab has specific expertise in foodborne transmission of Salmonella and Listeria monocytogenes.

For More Information:

Cornell Microbial Food Safety and Quality and Outreach Program

Focuses on microbial food safety and quality concerns associated with fruit and vegetable products, sanitation during fruit and vegetable production and beverage plant sanitation. The Microbial Food Extension Lab works closely with other researchers, government regulators, extension agents, food processors, food producers, distributors, retailers and consumers and provides the following fee-based services: Shelf-life Study, Accelerated Shelf-life Study, Challenge Studies, Validation of UV Tubes, Total Aerobic Plate Count, Yeast & Mold Count, Lactic Acid Bacteria Count, and other tests as requested.

Contact: rww8 [at] cornell.edu (Randy Worobo) or mc998 [at] cornell.edu (A)nn Vegdahl