Idaho Milk Products recently promoted Pratishtha Verma to the position of research & development (R&D) scientist. In her new role, she will be working on ingredient applications aimed at increasing the protein load as well as developing new application areas for milk ingredients. She will also be assisting Idaho Milk Products’ customers with any application-related challenges and issues.

Ms. Verma came to Idaho Milk Products in 2020 as a management trainee in the R&D Department. She was responsible for setting up laboratory test protocols for high protein foods, setting up standard operating procedures for product processing, quality assurance testing and shelf-life testing for high protein foods using milk protein ingredients and permeate powders. Before joining Idaho Milk Products, Pratishtha attended South Dakota State University where she completed her MS in Dairy Manufacturing. She did her MS dissertation on “A natural antimicrobial from Bacillus subtilis as a biosanitizer for resilient membrane biofilms." She comes with a background in Dairy Microbiology and Food Technology.

“With the brand-new Milk Innovation Center at our disposal and Ms. Verma’s science and dairy manufacturing background, she will be a great asset in helping fulfill commitments to our customers,” said Dr. Chenchaiah Marella, VP of research & development. “Our R&D lab has the technology to develop and test high protein formulations, enhancing our capabilities to create prototypes based on clients' needs.”

“I am thankful for the promotion and eager to experiment with different product applications,” commented Ms. Verma, R&D Scientist. “I am looking forward to contributing value-added support to our customers in the area of developing higher protein, better tasting and more stable products.”

Idaho Milk Products proudly supports personal, professional, educational, technical and leadership development to help employees realize their potential and be part of a world-class team.