The United States Bureau of Labor Statistics defines the responsibility of a food scientist as “research [into] ways to improve the efficiency and safety of agricultural establishments and products.” 

For Tara McHugh, the United States Department of Agriculture Area Director for the Pacific West, the enjoyment of this work comes from bringing innovation to scientific challenges, collaborating with others, and seeing the impact and benefits these projects have for the general public. 

McHugh has been part of the USDA for 30 years and has worked on a myriad of projects that help “make the foods we need healthier, more marketable, and safer through sustainable processing technologies.” Her goal of improving food safety and product longevity, while helping communities incorporate more fruits and vegetables in their diets, relies heavily on cooperative research and new technology.

After being introduced to food science by a magazine article, she decided to pursue her bachelors in food science from Cornell University and her PhD from UC Davis.

“I learned of a major called food science through a Time Magazine article,” McHugh explained. “It was talking about fabricated foods, like innovative foods. At that time, they had a fabricated egg that was formed into a log that you could slice with the yolk in the middle and the white was on the outside. It was like a long log.” 

Her love for math and science combined with her curiosity pushed her to give food science a try.

“I ended up really enjoying it, so I stuck with it not only for undergraduate but for grad school and then throughout my career,” she said.

 McHugh began her journey with the USDA as a postdoc or, as she explained, a scientist. After 30 years in the field, she’s been able to work on several projects that benefit different communities. 

How the sausage - or fruit bar - is made

One of McHugh's main projects involved modifying a vacuum former, typically used to manufacture sausages. She used it instead to produce shelf-stable bars made of 100% fruit. 

“The bar project was focused around a collaboration with a company called Gorge Delights. We were approached by some growers in Washington and Oregon. They were third-generation growers,” she explained. “They’ve been growing pears and apples for three generations and were having trouble with fruit coming from other countries being sold at a lower price and running into challenges with fruit that was misshapen or too small for the fresh market.” 

To avoid losing fruit deemed unmarketable but safe for consumption, the growers approached McHugh's team.

Tara McHugh works on fruit bars aimed at reducing food waste. - Photo: Submitted

“They were looking for a value-added technology, and that’s when we explored different options and pursued the use of this vacuum-forming technology to make a product that was shelf stable and 100% fruit.” 

A shelf-stable product, she explained, was important to avoid the need for refrigeration or freezing to remain fresh. 

“This was 20 years ago. There weren’t 100 percent fruit bars on the market. Now there are, but at that time that didn’t exist. So, it was a novelty.” 

The fruit bar became a convenient way of incorporating fruit into people’s diets and helping the growers. 

“Sometimes folks might like something that’s just a little easier, quicker to eat. It’s an alternative that’s nutritious. In some cases, they fortified it with vitamin D or they could fortify it with other vitamins,” McHugh explained. 

The average U.S. diet still falls short of the recommended level of fruit consumption made in the 2020-2025 Dietary Guidelines for Americans. In McHugh’s project, one small fruit bar counted as one serving and a standard bar as two servings. The recommended amount, according to the American Heart Association, is four to five servings daily. 

The product is now owned by ZEGO.

Dreaming up new, value-added foods

After the fruit bar project, McHugh started working on creating edible films for cooking.

“You could think of that like a piece of paper. But it would be made out of food material,” she explained. “New Gem Foods approached me and then we worked together for a number of years to commercialize close to 100% fruit and vegetable films.” 

The films can be used as nori, wraps or a sandwich ingredient to increase fruit and vegetable consumption. 

While developing these films, her team created a commercial apple glaze sheet and incorporated essential oils to enhance food safety. 

McHugh explained that all of her projects are interconnected. 

“It's all around food processing innovation to help people eat more fruits and vegetables, reduce waste, improve healthfulness of foods, improve food safety, sustainability and processing,” she explained. “So, it all relates to those broad goals.”

Now, her team is working on new projects. One uses isochoric freezing to improve the quality of food and increase food safety benefits. More on that project is still to come.