Dr. Han Peng

Assistant Professor

Dr. Han Peng will join Kansas State University’s Department of Grain and Food Science in January 2026 as a principal investigator. His research integrates analytical and food chemistry to study the composition and metabolites of complex food and feed systems, with the goal of improving sustainability, safety, quality, functionality and processing strategies for food and feed products.

Dr. Peng completed postdoctoral training at the University of California, Davis, where he applied multi-omics approaches to study prebiotic carbohydrates from food byproducts such as pomegranate and grape pomace, unlocking their potential for sustainable food systems and functional foods. He also conducted research on the enzymatic synthesis of polyphenol derivatives and the characterization of novel bioactive compounds from agri-food byproducts during his doctoral studies at Memorial University of Newfoundland in Canada and his master’s and bachelor’s degrees at Nanchang University in China.

In addition to his research, Dr. Peng is committed to advancing the scientific community through editorial work and peer review. His passion lies in using food science to support a healthier and more sustainable global food system.