Food Science Researcher to Lead Hartwick’s Center for Craft Food & Beverage

Harmonie Marie Bettenhausen, MSc, has been named the new director of the Hartwick College Center for Craft Food & Beverage (CCFB), Hartwick College President Margaret L. Drugovich announced today. Bettenhausen assumes the role in late June, and succeeds Aaron MacLeod, who served as the center’s inaugural director for seven years.

Bettenhausen brings a wealth of academic research to the role, as well as experience in analytical chemistry, mass spectrometry, teaching, and fundraising. She comes to Hartwick from Colorado State University, where she is completing innovative doctoral research in horticulture, specifically flavor chemistry, sensory science, agricultural biology, and metabolomics of crops for food and health. Bettenhausen also served Colorado State as a graduate assistant and brewing lab manager in the Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition.

In commenting on the selection of Bettenhausen, Drugovich said, “The Hartwick Center for Craft Food & Beverage has proven to be the catalyst for innovation and growth in the beverage industry that we had hoped it would be. Harmonie has the depth and breadth of expertise necessary to open the next chapter in the CCFB’s work with the brewing and distilling industry, all along the supply chain. I look forward to her leadership as she builds on the excellent work of founding Director Aaron Macleod.”

Launched in 2014, Hartwick College’s CCFB is a resource for testing, business development, and education for small and mid-sized breweries, wineries, distilleries, farms, and other craft food and beverage producers. The first such facility in New York State, Hartwick’s CCFB is funded in part by a grant from the Appalachian Regional Commission, and an incentive from Empire State Development Corporation through New York State’s Consolidated Funding Application process.

Prior to her positions with Colorado State University, Bettenhausen worked abroad in the US Peace Corps and domestically in the food and beverage industries. She followed her undergraduate studies with work for Odell Brewing Company of Fort Collins, CO in various positions, including product development and creating a new internal sensory program. At MouCo Cheese Company in Fort Collins, she helped develop in-house microbiological testing methods that would eliminate high-priced outside testing and avoid the risk of infection/contamination.

“I am delighted to be joining Hartwick College and the Center for Craft Food & Beverage,” Bettenhausen said. “I look forward to both continuing great relationships and also building new partnerships and collaborations within the malting, brewing, and distilling industries, as well as in some new areas of opportunity. I am honored to be a part of an exceptionally innovative and progressive institution.”

Bettenhausen has earned numerous scholarships and grants related to her research. She has been published in peer-reviewed industry journals, and has presented at both domestic and international scientific meetings and professional conferences.

She has also held executive positions in a number of professional organizations, including the American Society of Brewing Chemists, International Food Technologists, Master Brewers Association of the Americas, Colorado Biological Mass Spectrometry Society, Pink Boots Society, Womix/Women in Metabolomics, and International Food Technologists.

Patricia Delaney, PhD, director of the College’s Griffiths Center for Collaboration & Innovation, helped lead the search for CCFB’s new director. She noted, “Ms. Bettenhausen will expand our research capabilities into new areas, build on Hartwick’s relationships with other leading institutes, and develop new educational opportunities to support our clients in this creative and dynamic industry.”

A native of Chicago, IL, Bettenhausen holds a bachelor’s in animal sciences/equine sciences and an interdisciplinary master’s in food science and food safety from Colorado State University, where she is completing her doctoral research.

The announcement comes days after the College broke ground on an initiative that will complement CCFB, the new Hartwick College Grain Innovation Center. In partnership with the City of Oneonta, Hartwick’s Grain Innovation Center will provide convenient, affordable, and reliable testing and technical support for growers, millers, and bakers. Located in downtown Oneonta, it will house a research bakery, a lab, and space to host workshops and other educational events. As with the CCFB, a priority of the Grain Innovation Center will be to provide Hartwick students with research and other experiential learning opportunities. A nationwide search is currently underway for the GIC inaugural director.

For more information on Hartwick’s Center for Craft Food & Beverage, visit http://www.hartwick.edu/craftfoodandbeverage.