Dr. Moises Torres-Gonzalez
Nutritional Research - National Dairy Council
Dr. Moises is Director of Nutritional Research at the National Dairy Council. He earned a bachelor degree and a master degree in Biochemical Engineering at the Colima Institute of Technology and Veracruz Institute of Technology, respectively, in Mexico. He, then obtained a Master and a Doctoral degree in Nutritional Sciences at the University of Connecticut, USA. Dr. Moises has strong educational background on human metabolism and its association with the onset and progression of cardiometabolic diseases (e.g. cardiovascular diseases, type 2 diabetes, obesity, etc); He has authored and co-authored more than 20 peer-reviewed scientific articles and written book chapters in dairy and human health.
Additionally, he has previously held research scientific positions at the Linus Pauling Institute at the Oregon State University, and at the School of Medicine at the University of California in San Diego. Currently, at NDC he serves as the subject matter expert in dairy fat and dairy proteins. He also serves as Chair of the Scientific Sub-committee of the Whey Protein Research Consortium. His main role is to define the research strategies needed to build the scientific support to advance our understanding of the nutritional roles that whole dairy foods and dairy proteins can play on human health.
Eric Bastian
VP Innovation Partnerships
Dairy West
Vice President of Industry Relations – Dairy West
Eric D. Bastian was born in central Utah and reared on a dairy farm. He obtained his education at Utah State University with a BS degree in Dairy Science, and MS and Ph. D. (1989) degrees in Nutrition and Food Sciences. He spent one year (1989-1990) as a research fellow with the Danish Government Research Institute for the Dairy Industry in Hillerod, Denmark. Subsequently, he returned to post-doctoral work at Utah State University (1990-1992).
In 1992, Eric accepted a faculty position at the University of Minnesota in the Department of Food Science and Nutrition and for six years he led a research team focused on milk protein and enzyme chemistry, process cheese functionality, and milk protein fractionation. In 1998, he was promoted to Associate Professor with tenure. In the same year, he accepted a position with Avonmore West (now Glanbia) as Director of Research & Development (R&D) and relocated to Twin Falls, Idaho.
Eric was promoted to Vice President of R & D for Glanbia Nutritionals in 2006 and began leading the cheese R&D for Glanbia Foods in 2013. In 2015, Glanbia restructured its entire Nutritionals group of businesses creating a single business unit. As part of that restructuring, Eric was promoted to Senior Vice President of Innovation. During his time at Glanbia Nutritionals, he developed a research team, starting with 5 people and building to a team of 80. His work with Glanbia focused on whey protein, cheese, specialty grains, aseptic beverages and flavors.
In July of 2016, Eric joined the United Dairymen of Idaho, now Dairy West, as Vice President of Industry Relations.
Eric is married, has five children and lives in Twin Falls, Idaho.