Dr. Ana Miklavčič Višnjevec joins the ERA Chair FOODOMICS project with extensive interdisciplinary experience in food science, analytical chemistry, metabolomics, food microbiology, bioactive compounds, and food contaminant analysis. Prior to joining the project, she was a Senior Researcher and Associate Professor at the Department of Applied Natural Sciences, Faculty of Mathematics, Natural Sciences and Information Technologies (UP FAMNIT), University of Primorska. Her research focuses on the characterization of bioactive compounds and metabolites in foods and plant-derived materials, the valorisation of food-processing by-products, the development and optimization of advanced analytical methodologies, the assessment and mitigation of contaminants in food systems, and the development of sustainable edible films and coatings for food packaging.
She obtained her PhD in Environmental Science in 2013, focusing on mercury exposure in the Slovenian population, following a Master’s degree in Food Science and Technology from the Biotechnical Faculty, University of Ljubljana. Her early research combined environmental health, food chemistry, human exposure assessment, and chemical analysis, providing a strong foundation for her later work in food quality, safety, and metabolomics. Throughout her career, she has developed extensive expertise in chromatographic and mass spectrometry-based analytical techniques, including HPLC–DAD, HPLC–QqQ, and HPLC/UHPLC–HRMS methodologies, as well as advanced extraction approaches such as pressurised liquid extraction (PLE). Her research has included the analysis of phenolic compounds, glucosinolates, and other metabolites in vegetables, olives, rapeseed, plant extracts, and food-processing by-products. More recently, she has also gained experience in the analysis of mineral oil hydrocarbons (MOH) using LC–GC–FID. Within the ByNewBioactive project, which she led, she investigated the development of new food products with enhanced bioactivity from Brassica vegetable by-products. This work combined lactic acid fermentation with metabolomic approaches, contributing to sustainable strategies for the valorisation of food-processing by-products.
Dr. Miklavčič Višnjevec has substantial international research experience, particularly through collaborations and research stays at the University of Udine and Università Politecnica delle Marche in Italy, as well as earlier research and industrial training in Germany and Spain. She has authored more than 120 scientific works, including 31 peer-reviewed journal articles and three book chapters, with her publications receiving more than 1,000 citations in Scopus. She has participated in numerous national and international research projects and was awarded the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Postdoctoral Fellowship – Seal of Excellence in 2022, subsequently funded through the Slovenian Recovery and Resilience Plan (NextGenerationEU). In addition, she has successfully led competitive postdoctoral and bilateral research projects. Alongside her research, Dr. Miklavčič Višnjevec has been actively involved in university teaching since 2013, delivering courses in food science, chemistry, biochemistry, and related fields. She also has extensive experience in mentoring students. Her work combines fundamental research with practical applications, with the broader aim of contributing to safer, more sustainable, and functionally advanced food systems.
For more information on her research and publications, visit: UP FAMNIT website or bibliography.
