Keith Belk, PhD
Dr. Keith Belk is the Director of Eurofins’ Advanced Learning Institute and Professor and Holder of the Monfort Endowed Chair, Center for Meat Safety & Quality, Colorado State University (CSU), and as an Adjunct Professor in the Colorado School of Public Health. Previously, he served as Professor and Head of the Department of Animal Sciences at CSU. He earned B.S. and M.S. degrees from CSU, and a Ph.D. from Texas A&M University. He currently serves in a consulting role as the Director of Education for Eurofins Rapid Microbiology Laboratories, LLC. Dr. Belk is also a member of the International Committee for the National Western Stock Show, the Board of Directors for the International Stockmen’s Educational Foundation, on the Academic Advisory Committee for the Meat Institute Protein PACT, and on the technical advisory committees for Sustainable Beef, JBS, Colorado Premium Foods, and Hawkins.
Below are resources from Dr. Keith Belk:
High-value edible oils like olive oil and avocado oil command premium prices for their flavor and health benefits. However, their value also makes them targets for degradation and food fraud. Read our blog about two complimentary testing approaches essential to protecting your customers and brand: quality testing and authenticity testing.
Olive growers need to accurately measure polyphenol concentrations in their raw products for downstream processing. Watch our case study video below to learn how Eurofins effectively analyzed both the complex matrix of raw olives and the simpler matrix of olive-based refined products.
The polyphenols found in olives are partially responsible for the many recognized pharmacological properties of olive-based products, such as their antioxidant, antiviral, and immune-modulating effects. This paper briefly discusses the analytical methods developed and offered by Eurofins Craft Technologies (ECT), designed to quantify several polyphenols found in both raw olives and refined olive products.
February 17, 2025 – In response to increasing global demand for high-phenolic olive oils, Eurofins Craft Technologies Inc. has developed an innovative method for quantifying Valuable Olive Polyphenols (VOPs) in olive oil, olive leaf extracts, and other olive-derived products. Read more about the new method and applications for olive oil products.
Eurofins participated in this year's annual member meeting of the AOOPA, jointly hosted by the Olive Oil Council of California (OOCC). This was the first meeting with the California group. And they are taking the lead in grading and labeling certification standards for olive oils.
With a more wellness-conscious consumer market, virgin olive oil has an opportunity to attract customers with its health-boosting properties tied to polyphenols. In our webinar, John Reuther discuses pros and cons of testing methods for polyphenol determination and introduces a new quantitative method. Then, Mary Mori of California Olive Ranch discusses California agriculture regulations regarding discharge of waste streams and effect in field.
