Sofía is a master’s student in the Alcaine Research Group. She graduated from the University of Costa Rica with a bachelor’s degree in Food Engineering. Early in her undergraduate studies she decided to follow a career in dairy science, intrigued by the versatile field that relies on the integration of chemistry, microbiology, and engineering in order to produce desirable products.

Her current research focuses on dairy biopreservation. Specifically, her work involves investigating the application of lactose oxidase as an enzymatic preservative to improve the shelf life and safety of dairy products. In addition to research, Sofía is a trained dairy sensory panelist, where she has participated in national competitions and is currently the assistant coach of Cornell’s Dairy Products Sensory Evaluation Team.

Upon graduation, Sofía aspires to continue serving the dairy industry by developing products and applying new technologies in alignment with consumer needs, as well improving consumer education to promote dairy products consumption. She aims to innovate and help in transferring knowledge to the industry, not only to improve the processing and quality of food, but also to generate new opportunities for dairy producers.