University of Auckland food engineering expert to give academic seminar

Summary

Associate Professor Meng Wai Woo (Dr Hu Mingwei) of the Department of Chemical and Materials Engineering at the University of Auckland will give an academic seminar. The notice was published at 11:42 on 26 October 2026. Founded in 1883, the University of Auckland is New Zealand's largest public research university, with more than 40,000 students.

It ranks 65th in the QS World University Rankings 2026 and 152nd in the Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2025, retaining its position as New Zealand's top university. Dr Woo also serves as Associate Head (Academic) of the department, where he coordinates the university's Master of Food Engineering programme. He is a member of the editorial board of Drying Technology, published by Taylor & Francis; a board member of the IChemE Food and Drink Special Interest Group; a Chartered Chemical Engineer with the UK Engineering Council; the current chair of the IChemE New Zealand board; and co-director of the Future Foods Centre in the University of Auckland's Faculty of Science, which is positioned to connect the food industry with academia, particularly serving companies in the Auckland region.

He works closely with the Australian and New Zealand food industries, especially the dairy sector, and has collaborated with major companies including Fonterra, Bega Cheese, Glaxo Smith Kline Australia, Nufarm and CleanTEQ. He is also a principal investigator in the Australia-China Joint Research Centre (ACJRC), funded by the Australian government, which involves major Australian dairy companies and China's COFCO. He has published 120 peer-reviewed journal papers, four books and nine book chapters in chemical engineering, food engineering and spray drying.

Commentary

The University of Auckland's academic resources in food engineering are becoming an important support for innovation in New Zealand's food industry. Dr Woo's research in spray drying and dairy processing, together with his experience working with companies such as Fonterra, highlights the practical role of industry-academia collaboration in raising product value. New Zealand dairy exports account for about one-third of global trade, but the country faces the challenge of insufficient high-value-added products.

Dr Woo's involvement in the Australia-China Joint Research Centre, which includes COFCO, offers New Zealand SMEs an indirect channel to understand Chinese market demand and standards. For NZ SMEs, monitoring such academic collaboration developments may reveal opportunities for technology transfer or joint research and development, especially in functional dairy products and plant-based alternatives. At the same time, the service orientation of the University of Auckland's Future Foods Centre means local companies can more easily access cutting-edge technical advice and reduce R&D costs.

However, SMEs need to assess their own absorptive capacity and avoid blindly following trends. Dr Woo's expertise in drying technology has direct application value for extending product shelf life and developing new food ingredients, which may be a technical breakthrough point for NZ SMEs seeking to enter Asian markets.

Keywords: University of Auckland, Meng Wai Woo, Hu Mingwei, academic seminar, food engineering, spray drying, Future Foods Centre, dairy industry, China-New Zealand academic exchange

Source: South China University of Technology