Cesar Ricardo Bressani Castignoli (28 September 1926 – 30 January 2015) was a Guatemalan food scientist. Born in

Guatemala City Guatemala City (, also known colloquially by the nickname Guate), is the Capital city, national capital and largest city of the Guatemala, Republic of Guatemala. It is also the Municipalities of Guatemala, municipal capital of the Guatemala Depa ...

, he received a bachelor of science in

chemical engineering Chemical engineering is an engineering field which deals with the study of the operation and design of chemical plants as well as methods of improving production. Chemical engineers develop economical commercial processes to convert raw materials ...

degree from the

University of Dayton The University of Dayton (UD) is a Private university, private, Catholic research university in Dayton, Ohio, United States. Founded in 1850 by the Society of Mary (Marianists), Society of Mary, it is one of three Marianist universities in the U ...

in 1948. In 1951, he received a master's degree from

Iowa State University Iowa State University of Science and Technology (Iowa State University, Iowa State, or ISU) is a Public university, public land-grant university, land-grant research university in Ames, Iowa, United States. Founded in 1858 as the Iowa Agricult ...

. In the same year, Bressani returned to

Guatemala Guatemala, officially the Republic of Guatemala, is a country in Central America. It is bordered to the north and west by Mexico, to the northeast by Belize, to the east by Honduras, and to the southeast by El Salvador. It is hydrologically b ...

where he worked at the Institute of Nutrition of Central America and Panama, INCAP. In 1952, he received a scholarship from the

Rockefeller Foundation The Rockefeller Foundation is an American private foundation and philanthropic medical research and arts funding organization based at 420 Fifth Avenue, New York City. The foundation was created by Standard Oil magnate John D. Rockefeller (" ...

to study

biochemistry Biochemistry, or biological chemistry, is the study of chemical processes within and relating to living organisms. A sub-discipline of both chemistry and biology, biochemistry may be divided into three fields: structural biology, enzymology, a ...

Purdue University Purdue University is a Public university#United States, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in West Lafayette, Indiana, United States, and the flagship campus of the Purdue University system. The university was founded ...

, where Bressani obtained his Ph.D. in 1956. Afterwards, he reincorporated to the INCAP, this time as the Head of the Division of Agricultural Sciences and Food until 1993. In 1983, Bressani became one of the 42 founding members of the Third World Academy of Sciences, known today as

The World Academy of Sciences The World Academy of Sciences for the advancement of science in developing countries (TWAS) is a North–south research partnerships, merit-based science academy established for developing countries, uniting more than 1,400 scientists in some 1 ...

. In the 1990s, Bressani was the editor-in-chief of the journal Archivos Latinoamericanos de Nutrición. He was also an associate editor of the Food and Nutrition Bulletin. In 1992, he arrived to the

Universidad del Valle de Guatemala The Universidad del Valle de Guatemala (UVG) (University of the Valley of Guatemala) is a private, not-for-profit, secular university in Guatemala City, Guatemala. It was founded in 1966 by a private foundation, which had previously overseen ...

, and in 1998, he founded the Center for the Studies of Food Science and Technology. Bressani wrote more than 300 publications in many scholarly international journals. Bressani performed an investigation on practical solutions to nutritional problems within the population of

and the rest of

Central America Central America is a subregion of North America. Its political boundaries are defined as bordering Mexico to the north, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the southwest. Central America is usually ...

. His experiments led to the creation and production of Incaparina, a nutritional supplement based on a mixture of

corn flour Cornflour or corn flour may refer to: * Corn starch or cornflour (in the UK), from the endosperm of the kernel of the corn (maize) grain * Maize flour or corn flour (in the US and elsewhere), very finely ground cornmeal, ground from dried maize ...

soy flour The soybean, soy bean, or soya bean (''Glycine max'') is a species of legume native to East Asia, widely grown for its edible bean. Soy is a staple crop, the world's most grown legume, and an important animal feed. Soy is a key source of f ...

cottonseed meal Cottonseed meal is the byproduct remaining after cotton is ginned, the oil extracted, and the seeds crushed. Cottonseed meal is usually used for animal feed and in organic fertilizers. Cottonseed meal is about 40 percent protein by weight. Comp ...

, and Torula yeast. This supplement was intended to be primarily served in the form of

gruel Gruel is a food consisting of some type of cereal—such as ground oats, wheat, rye, or rice—heated or boiled in water or milk. It is a thinner version of porridge that may be more often drunk rather than eaten. Historically, gruel has been a ...

References

External links

UNICEF campaign 'Te Toca' (It's your turn)

Corinne A. Pernet, “Between Entanglements and Dependencies: Food, Nutrition, and National Development at the Central American Institute of Nutrition (INCAP),” In Sönke Kunkel, Corinna Unger und Marc Frey, eds., International Organizations and Development, 1945-1990, Palgrave Macmillan, 2014, p.101-125.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bressani, Ricardo 1926 births 2015 deaths Food scientists Guatemalan scientists Grand Crosses of the Order of the Quetzal Albert Einstein World Award of Science Laureates University of Dayton alumni Iowa State University alumni Purdue University alumni Guatemalan people of Italian descent Foreign associates of the National Academy of Sciences

References

Further reading

External links