Rate My Professor Wes Schilling

Wes Schilling is a professor of meat science, sensory science, and food chemistry in the Department of Biochemistry, Nutrition and Health Promotion within Mississippi State University’s College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. He serves as the William L. Giles Distinguished Professor, Reed Family Endowed Professor, and Director of the Food Science Innovation Hub. Schilling earned a Bachelor of Science in Food Science and Technology, a Master of Science in Statistics, a Master of Science in Food Science and Technology, and a PhD in Food Science and Technology, all from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University. Over his 20 years at Mississippi State University on a 70% research appointment, he has supervised 116 graduate students and secured nearly $9 million in research funding.

His research specializations encompass protein functionality and quality of muscle foods, sensory science including preference mapping, consumer testing, and shelf-life evaluation, nutrition effects on meat composition and quality, food chemistry with a focus on flavor chemistry, added value technologies, and novel statistical methods to optimize food processing conditions. Schilling has authored 186 peer-reviewed articles, 162 scientific abstracts, and 73 invited articles, accumulating nearly 6,000 Google Scholar citations. Key publications include "Principles of Food Sanitation" (2006), "Relationships between sensory descriptors, consumer acceptability and volatile flavor compounds of American dry-cured ham" (2008), "Broiler genetic strain and sex effects on meat characteristics" (2011), "Fatty acid composition of meat animals as flavor precursors" (2021), and "Processed meat in the diet: general nutritional profile–protein quality" (2025). He has received the 2025 SEC Faculty Achievement Award, American Meat Science Association Signal Service Award and Fellowship, DAVFM Superior Faculty Research Award, MAFES Outstanding Faculty Research Award, and Ralph E. Powe Outstanding Research Award. Schilling is internationally recognized for his trailblazing collaborative research addressing agricultural challenges for industry, consumers, and companies worldwide.