The Food Technology Industrial Achievement Award has been awarded by the Institute of Food Technologists since 1959. It is awarded for the development of an outstanding food process or product that represents a significant advance in the application of food technology to food production. The process or product must have been successfully applied in actual commercial operations between six months and seven years before December 1 in the year of the nomination.
Sponsored by Food Technology magazine, award winners receive a plaque from IFT.
| Year | Winner | Product or Process |
|---|---|---|
| 1959 | United States Department of Agriculture-Agricultural Research Station, Eastern Utilization Research & Development Division | Process to manufacture instant potato flakes. |
| 1960 | Merck & The American Meat Institute Foundation | Pediococcus cerevisiae starter culture for controlled fermentation of sausage. |
| 1961 | Swift & Company | Process using papain into cattle prior to slaughter to increase beef carcass tenderness. |
| 1962 | Sunkist Growers, Inc. | Encapsulated citrus oil. |
| 1963 | Swift & Company | Electrocoagulation method of continuous frankfurter processing. |
| 1964 | Whirlpool Corporation | Controlled atmospheric storage of produce. |
| 1965 | C.J. Patterson Co. | Calcium stearoyl-2-lactylate bread dough strengthener. |
| 1966 | Swift & Company, & Trenton Foods, Inc. | Canning process conducted under pressure to shorten processing times and improve food quality packaged in institutional-sized cans. |
| 1967 | Foremost Dairies | dough developers containing cysteine and whey solids that eliminate fermentation or sponge steps in breadmaking. |
| 1968 | Hoffman-LaRoche | Oil-soluble suspensions and water-dispersible beadlets of synthetic carotenoid food colors. |
| 1969 | Thomas J. Lipton, Inc. | Air-dried meat bits, granules, and strips composed of meat or poultry solids and soy protein isolate. |
| 1970 | General Foods Corporation | Freeze-thaw stable, nondairy whipped emulsion resembling whipped cream in appearance, usage, texture, and flavor. |
| 1971 | Central Food Technological Research Institute (India) | Peanut protein-fortified milk drink that expands the milk supply in India |
| 1972 | United States Department of Agriculture - Agricultural Research Station, Western Regional Research Laboratory | Dry caustic process for peeling fruit and vegetable products that lessens both pollution and water usage. |
| 1973 | Armour & Company - Food Research Division | Portable electronic instrument that tests a raw carcass and predicts its tenderness after cooking using nondestructive testing methods. |
| 1974 | Kelco Company & United States Department of Agriculture - Agricultural Research Station, Northern Regional Research Laboratory | Xanthan gum, a microbial polysaccharide used for thickening, suspending, emulsifying, and stabilizing purposes in foods. |
| 1975 | Clinton Corn Processing Company, a division of Standard Brands, Inc. | Production of high fructose corn syrup with immobilized enzyme technology. |
| 1976 | Bishopric Products Company & Purdue University | Aseptic bulk storage and transportation of partially processed foods. |
| 1977 | Mississippi State University & Dacus Packaging Corporation | Developing and commercializing canned catfish. |
| 1978 | United States Army Natick R&D Command, Reynolds Metals Company, & Continental Flexible Packaging | Retort pouch, a flexible laminated package that can handle thermal processing by combining the advantages of metal cans and boil-in bags. |
| 1979 | Grumann Corporation, & Armour & Company - Research Center | Hypobaric transportation and storage system which extends the storage life of fresh meats and other commodities six times greater than average. |
| 1980 | General Mills, Inc. | Packaging system protecting the shelf life of hydroponically grown produce |
| 1981 | Award not given | |
| 1982 | Oregon State University & Galloway West Company | Bulk starter medium that improves starter culture growth for cheesemaking. |
| 1983 | Fundacion de Estudios Alimentarios v Nutricionales & Productos Alimientos Delicas | Soy-Oats infant formulas created to combat malnutrition in Mexico. |
| 1984 | Agriculture Canada - Research Branch & ABCO Manufacturers Limited | Blancher/cooker that introduces "individual quick blanching" to vegetable processing. |
| 1985 | G.D. Searle Company | Aspartame low-calorie sweetener. |
| 1986 | Award not given | |
| 1987 | United States Department of Agriculture-Agricultural Research Station, Eastern Regional Research Center & LactAid, Inc. | Enzyme that assists lactose-intolerant individuals by reducing lactose into simple sugars. |
| 1988 - 1991 | Award not given | |
| 1992 | Auburn University | Low-fat ground beef. |
| 1993 | Kelco Division of Merck | Gellan gum. |
| 1994 | North Carolina State University & Michael Foods | Ultra-pasteurized liquid whole egg products. |
| 1995 | Award not given | |
| 1996 | APV - United Kingdom & EA Technology Limited | APV ohmic heating process. |
| 1997 | Qualicon, LLC | Development of Riboprinter microbial characterization system. |
| 1998 | National Starch and Chemical Company | Novationfunctional natives starches. |
| 1999 | McNeil Specialty Products | Sucralose, a low-calorie sweetener. |
| 2000 | Sunphenon DCF-1, Taiyo Kagaku Company, Limited | Decaffeinated green tea polyphenols. |
| 2001 | Calpis Company, Limited | Ameel-S lactic acid bacteria beverage created to prevent or lessen hypertension. |
| 2002 | Avure Technologies, Inc. | High pressure processing technology Fresher Under Pressure. |
| 2003 | National Starch and Chemical Company | Novolese 240 and Novolese 260 RS2 resistant starches. |
| 2004 | Tetra Pak | Tetra Recart AB Retortable carton packaging system. |
| 2005 | Snow Brand Milk Products Company, Limited | Milk basic protein. |
| 2006 | Praxair, Inc. | NatureWash ozonated water wash and dry system. |
| 2007 | Diversified Technologies, Inc. | Pulsed-electric fields technologies - treated juice |
| 2008 | Praxair, Inc | Controlled atmosphere stunning technology |
| 2009 | North Carolina State University, USDA–ARS South Atlantic Area Food Science Research Unit & Industrial Microwave Systems, L.L.C. | Continuous-flow microwave sterilization |
| 2010 | ConAgra Foods | |
| 2011 | MicroThermics | Laboratory-scaled UHT/HTST Direct-Indirect Process System (DIP) with Full Automation |