Dr. Les Bourquin

Dr. Bourquin is an Associate Professor and Food Safety Specialist in the Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition, and the National Food Safety and Toxicology Center at Michigan State University.  He also is a core faculty member in the Center for Advanced Studies in International Development and the Center for Integrative Toxicology at Michigan State University.  Dr. Bourquin's research program focuses on the impacts of public and private food safety standards, barriers to their acceptance and effective implementation by the food industry, and the potential impacts of these standards on public health.  Dr. Bourquin's outreach and development work focuses on applied research, education and capacity building, and risk communication on food safety issues.  He provides consultation, education and training on general food safety practices, Good Agricultural Practices, Good Manufacturing Practices, Good Hygiene Practices and HACCP (Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points) for food producers and processors, foodservice workers, and government agencies throughout the United States and internationally.  He has extensive experience in conducting training and agricultural development projects throughout India, and also has conducted training and educational programs on food safety in China, Thailand, Romania and Bulgaria.  Dr. Bourquin also maintains a basic research program in human nutrition which focuses on the potential of diet (specifically flavonoids from fruits and vegetables) to influence gastrointestinal tract health and cancer risk in humans. 

            From September 2007 - August 2008, Dr. Bourquin conducted research on "Food Safety Risk Governance"as a Fulbright Research Scholar at Polytech'Lille (Ecole Polytechnique Universitaire de Lille), part of the University of Sciences and Technology of Lille in France.