Current activities

Professor Cole is a distinguished food scientist and science leader.

He is responsible for leading the CSIRO Animal, Food and Health Sciences (AFHS) research portfolio and developing CSIRO's research capability in animal, food and health science.

Background

Professor Cole joined CSIRO as Chief of Food and Nutritional Sciences in January 2010 and was appointed as the first Chief of the new Division of Animal, Food and Health Sciences in July 2012.

From 2004 to 2009 he was the Director of the US National Centre for Food Safety and Technology (NCFST) and Research Professor of Biology at Illinois Institute of Technology (IIT), Chicago, Illinois, USA.

NCFST is a research consortium between the United States Food and Drug Administration, IIT and more than 30 global food companies.

As NCFST's Director, he greatly expanded the scientific capability and productivity of the Center, and created a new human nutrition unit to work on health promoting foods as well as growing the industry membership of NCFST.

Between 1999 and 2004 he was a research scientist at Food Science Australia (FSA), a Joint Venture between CSIRO and the Victorian Government and the predecessor of FNS. He was acting CEO of FSA during 2003–04.

Professor Cole's earlier professional career included research and management appointments with Unilever and Nabisco.

Academic qualifications

Professor Cole graduated with a Bachelor of Science with honours from the Manchester Metropolitan University in the United Kingdom.

He completed a Doctor of Philosophy at the University of East Anglia, Norwich, England, in 1988.

Achievements

Professor Cole has published and presented over 150 papers on many aspects of food science including food safety, food trends and innovation, novel processing and nutrition. 

He has received numerous awards including election as a Fellow of the International Academy of Food Science & Technology, and he currently chairs the International Commission on the Microbiological Specifications for Food.

Professor Cole has frequently been called upon as an expert by organisations such the World Health Organization (WHO), the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) as well as the US House of Representatives.

Learn more about CSIRO Animal, Food and Health Sciences.