Rate My Professor Mark Traynor

Mark Traynor is an Associate Professor and Director of the Culinary Science Program in the Horst Schulze School of Hospitality Management within Auburn University’s College of Human Sciences. He holds a Ph.D. in Culinary Arts and Science and a Bachelor of Arts in Culinary Arts, both from the School of Culinary Arts and Food Technology at Dublin Institute of Technology in Ireland, where his doctoral research focused on the theoretical and practical application of molecular gastronomy principles to the development of novel food products. Traynor has extensive experience in the foodservice industry, holding various front-of-house and back-of-house positions, including general manager. His academic career includes serving as Assistant Professor of Culinology at Southwest Minnesota State University’s Culinology and Hospitality Management Department in 2013, becoming Chair of that department in 2015, and joining Florida International University’s School of Hospitality & Tourism Management in 2016, where he taught undergraduate and graduate courses in culinary arts and innovation as well as restaurant management and development. In 2019, he was appointed to his current position at Auburn University, where he received tenure in the 2024-2025 academic year.

Under Traynor’s leadership, Auburn’s Culinary Science Program emphasizes the full lifecycle of food—from production and procurement to preparation, cooking, serving, and sustainable disposal—through hands-on labs in the Tony & Libba Rane Culinary Science Center, collaborations with the Horticulture Department, field trips to local farms, and practices such as composting food waste, food donation via the Campus Kitchen Project, and cooking oil recycling. He has developed fully immersive virtual reality environments to supplement theoretical learning and received the 2023 Alumni Undergraduate Teaching Excellence Award for creating innovative programs that enhance hospitality management education. Traynor’s research interests include restaurant resilience, food product development, and culinary innovation. Key publications comprise Shooting for the Stars: The Case of an Elite Chef (2022, Journal of Culinary Science & Technology), Restaurant Resilience: A Qualitative Study of Independent Restaurants During COVID-19 (2024, Journal of Innovation & Knowledge), Consumer Acceptability of No Added Sugar Pound Cakes Under Hedonic Scale and Check-All-That-Apply Questions (2023, Journal of Food Science), and Exploring Attitudes and Reactions to Unfamiliar Food Products (2020, Journal of Culinary Science & Technology). He serves as Treasurer for the SECSA CHRIE Board of Directors (2023-2024) and contributes to Auburn’s partnerships, such as with Worldchefs as an education partner.