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Decades of research undertaken by South Dakota State University Distinguished Professor Kasiviswanathan “Muthu” Muthukumarappan earned him lifetime achievement awards from two professional organizations this summer.

Muthu was honored by the Institute of Food Technologists (IFT) as a fellow at its meeting in Chicago July 11, and on July 14 he was in Indianapolis to be honored by the American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers at its international meeting.

Muthu, who has been on the SDSU faculty since 1997, has been serving as the Klingbeil Endowed Department Head for SDSU’s Department of Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering since June 2022.

Muthu’s focus is on food and bioprocess engineering, and he has held numerous leadership positions in the Food and Process Engineering Institute as well as representing the institute on the Standards Council.

Muthu was promoted to distinguished professor in February 2013, when he also became graduate coordinator for the college.

A fellow is the highest honor that the Institute of Food Technologists can bestow upon a member, and Muthu was one of 10 to be so honored this year. Also at the gathering, he was recognized with the Outstanding Service Award for his contributions and service to the Minnesota section of the Institute of Food Technologists. 

“With a distinguished career spanning over 35 years, Muthu has positioned himself as a global leader in research and mentoring in the food processing sector,” according to Kumar Mallikarjunan, a University of Minnesota researcher who supported Muthu’s nomination and has received the same honors that Muthu received in July.

Muthu has secured 65 grants as a principal investigator and co-PI, totaling over $20 million. His scholarly contributions are extensive with over 250 peer-reviewed publications and over 350 regional, national and international presentations.

An example of his research is developing methodology for evaluating cheese functionality, which is used by major industry players like Pizza Hut and Schreiber Foods. That methodology allows the companies to fine tune the cheese ingredients for better meltability and stretchability in pizza applications.

The American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers honored Muthu with its 2026 Lalit and Aruna Verma Award for Excellence in Global Engagement.

His international engagement is extensive, featuring long-term research collaborations with institutions such as Tamil Nadu Agricultural University in India, where he received his bachelor’s degree in engineering; University College Dublin in Ireland and the University of Sydney in Australia. 

A former Fulbright-Nehru Research Scholar and Fulbright Specialist, he has delivered keynote addresses and technical expertise in more than a dozen countries, including China, Thailand, South Korea and Chile, and has served as an external examiner for graduate programs worldwide.

Muthu called this summer’s awards a testament to the Department of Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering’s research productivity and global engagement both in the College of Agriculture, Food and Environmental Sciences and the Lohr College of Engineering. 

Fellow SDSU faculty member assistant professor Sushant Mehan, also in the Department of Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering, was honored at the American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers gathering.

Mehan received the Outstanding Associate Editors Award and was a winner of two Educational Aids Blue Ribbon Awards for developing data-driven educational tools for estimating harmful algal blooms and field-scale actual evapotranspiration.