Source:  NCSU COOPERATIVE EXTENSION, 8/3/20

Josip Simunovic has a passion for improving the world. One food product at a time.

“Josip Simunovic collects people and infects them with this idea of microwave processing and how it’s literally going to save the world and improve every type of food in it,” said Amanda Vargochik, an NC State alumna and co-founder of microwave processing technology company SinnovaTek. “He’s collected all of us and I’ve worked with him since my master’s thesis.”

Microwaves are a form of energy, which is why you can use microwave ovens to heat food in your kitchen. Microwave processing, also known as “continuous-flow microwave pasteurization and sterilization,” uses microwaves to sterilize thick, viscous materials — like sweet potato puree. And Simunovic, a professor in NC State’s Department of Food, Bioprocessing and Nutrition Sciences, knows a lot about microwave processing.

Microwave processing gives you a finished product that retains its taste and nutrition, but is shelf-stable and doesn’t require refrigeration during shipping and storage, Simunovic said.

Microwave processing also reduces food waste in three ways. First, it provides a good market for vegetables that are too big, too small or too oddly shaped for fresh market sales. Secondly, because the final product is shelf-stable, it won’t go bad in the back of someone’s fridge only to be tossed out. Finally, because the processing is so gentle, the end product retains all of the vitamins and antioxidants that can be destroyed by other processing methods.

Simunovic’s research on continuous-flow microwave processing has led to 19 U.S. patents and dozens of international patents, with more pending, and two highly regarded Institute of Food Technologists (IFT) industrial achievement awards.

However, Simunovic’s significance goes beyond patents and great-tasting, long-lasting products; he has mentored dozens of students and launched around ten spin-off companies.

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