School of Nutrition and Food Sciences
The School of Nutrition and Food Sciences aims for excellence with comprehensive, education, scholarship, and outreach. Nutrition professionals provide training in nutrition science, community nutrition, and clinical nutrition with a focus on improving health and well-being of all citizens and populations. Food science professionals train students in the quality, processing, and safety of foods for the multibillion dollar food industry.
Scholarly and educational programs at the undergraduate and graduate level integrate the basic and applied sciences with outreach. In the spirit of the land-grant university system, the School offers students unique opportunities to gain valuable experience by working with our diverse research faculty on projects covering a broad range of nutrition and food science topics.
Our extension faculty, with specializations in consumer/ producer food safety, community nutrition, health and well-being, work with parish agents to deliver science-based information to Louisiana citizens.
The school also collaborates with LSU AgCenter Food Innovation Institute (FOODii) which is a business incubator that specializes in developing emerging food ventures and providing technical services to existing and emerging companies.
Dietetics
Students can pursue a concentration in dietetics to gain specialized skills in human nutrition, food and food system management. Upon successful completion of the program, students can apply for a dietetic internship with the ultimate goal of obtaining professional credentials in dietetics.
Nutrition Sciences with Pre-Med option
The nutrition and food sciences curriculum prepares students for careers in the health professions, specifically dietetics or medicine, or in the food industry. The nutritional sciences/pre-medical concentration provides students with a strong grounding in nutritional sciences while meeting the course work requirements for students planning to apply to most medical or dental schools.
Nutrition, Health, and Society
The concentration of nutrition, health and society prepares students for a variety of careers in nutrition including, but not limited to nutrition education, the food industry, or scientific writing.
Food Science and Technology
For students taking the food science and technology area of concentration, there are several job areas available in the food industry related to food quality and safety, applied microbiology, food engineering, processing and technology, food chemistry and analysis, food business and marketing research, and product development.
Explore Research and Outreach
The School of Nutrition and Food Sciences is integrating basic and applied learning through outreach and extension.
School of Nutrition and Food Sciences in the News
The paper highlights the importance of inclusive produce safety outreach for refugee and immigrant growers who play a vital role in local food systems but often face language and cultural barriers to accessing food safety education. Researchers identified a need for training materials that are multilingual, easy to understand, and tailored to growers' experiences. The study recommends using visual guides, short videos, and mobile-friendly resources to improve accessibility and engagement. By designing outreach programs that reflect growers' languages, cultures, and farming practices, educators can support regulatory compliance, protect public health, and strengthen the success of diverse farming communities across the Midwest. https://www.foodsystemsjournal.org/index.php/fsj/article/view/1544
The LSU Food Science Club was recognized with the LSU Purple Organization Award at the 2026 Tiger Excellence Awards ceremony and the club's Diversified Foods & Seasonings industrial tour was also nominated among the Top 5 Educational Events of the Year. The college bowl team beat both Texas A&M and Texas Tech to come in second behind Arkansas in the IFTSA South Central Regional college bowl competition. Team members were undergraduate students Kay Gaines, Sanjhbati Mukherjee and Dominic Carallo and graduate students Dikshya Shilpakar, Drew Puckett, Neelam Sharma, Pratiksha Shrestha and Andrea Muela. The Food Science Club is advised and the college bowl team coached by Dr. Joan M. King, who won the College of Agriculture club advisor of the year award. https://lsureveille.com/277236/news/lsu-food-science-club-visits-manufacturing-plant-learns-about-food-production/ The pruple award info will be shown soon on this website https://www.lsu.edu/campus-life/leadership/awards.php
Dear Dr. King, We are excited to officially congratulate you on being named the Club Advisor of the Year! Your exceptional guidance, unwavering support, and dedication to the success of your student organization have truly made a significant impact. Your efforts to foster growth, encourage member engagement, and support your club in making a lasting contribution to the LSU College of Agriculture community have set you apart. This recognition is a testament to the positive influence you've had on your club members and their success. We will be officially announcing the winner on our Instagram (@lsuagstudentassociation). Once again, congratulations on this well-deserved recognition! We look forward to seeing your continued success in guiding and inspiring students. Best, Abbygail Davis https://www.instagram.com/lsuagstudentassociation/