People: Hormel Foods Corp (HRL.N)

Mr. Philip L. Minerich, Ph.D., is Vice President - Research & Development of Hormel Foods Corporation. He oversees product development, regulatory compliance and food safety. Over his 30-year career with Hormel Foods, he has developed an experience in food technology, packaging and the development and application of food safety intervention technologies and systems. He started his career at Hormel Foods in the quality control department at the Austin, Minn. plant in 1976. After holding various supervisory positions at the Austin and Davenport, Iowa facilities, he was named corporate manager of sanitation at the corporate headquarters in Austin in 1983. In 1988, Minerich joined the research and development division as a food technologist and advanced to senior food technologist three years later. In 1996, he was promoted to research scientist of packaging and advanced to development leader of new interventions in 2002. He was promoted to director of research, responsible for product and process development and packaging in 2003. He was appointed to his current position in 2006. He received a Bachelor of Science degree in Food Technology at The Ohio State University in Columbus in 1976. He earned his Master's and Doctorate degrees in Food Science at the University of Minnesota in St. Paul in 1990 and 2002, respectively.