The past, present and future of the meat science and muscle biology programs at UW–Madison will be the focus at this week’s Wednesday Nite @ the Lab talk.

Jeff Sindelar, associate professor/Extension meat specialist in the Department of Animal Sciences, will present a lecture titled “The ‘State of Meat Address’ at the University of Wisconsin–Madison” on Wednesday, Dec. 6 from 7 – 8:15 p.m. at the UW Biotechnology Center.

The UW meat-science and muscle-biology program has had a long and storied history and has served the campus and its stakeholders well since 1930. Today the next chapter of meat science is unfolding with the help of a new, state-of-the-art facility. Its mission will remain unchanged, although the means of accomplishing it will be different. Sindelar will talk about building a program through bricks and mortar, increasing stakeholder accessibility, and encouraging on-campus collaborative capacity. He will also provide a behind-the-scenes perspective on the facility’s design and construction.

Sindelar earned a BS at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln in 1999, an MS at Michigan State University in 2002, and a PhD at Iowa State University in 2006. In 2007, he joined the Department of Animal Sciences at the UW, where he provides assistance to meat processors in the areas of product development, problem solving, and regulatory compliance. Sindelar also coordinates meat-science workshops and training programs, and he provides involvement and support for meat science–related activities for youth. Sindelar’s research focuses on quality and sensory characteristics of processed meats, nonmeat-ingredient functionality in meat products, and intervention strategies to control pathogenic bacteria in meat products. He holds one patent and has published seven monographs/books/book chapters, 28 referred journal articles, and more than 85 abstracts.

WN@tL is free and open to the public. It can also be viewed via live webcam at www.biotech.wisc.edu/webcams. Afterwards, the archived lecture will be available at www.biotech.wisc.edu/lectures/search.