Meet the Team

Debbie Rees

Postharvest Plant Biologist & Reader at NRI

Debbie has managed projects and carried out research for more than 25 years on the maintenance of quality and reduction of waste within food supply chains in the UK and overseas. Her areas of research are very diverse; include developing and evaluating new technologies such as Dynamic Controlled Atmosphere storage of top fruit, ethylene management, ozone for decontamination, chlorophyll fluorescence for monitoring produce quality, sprout control in potato, shelf-life extension of leafy vegetables, varietal evaluation and storage of yams and sweet potato.

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Richard Colgan

Postharvest Plant Physiologist and Senior Research Fellow at NRI

Richard’s research centres on identifying mechanisms to extend the storage and shelf life of fresh produce. His research spans from the identification of genes orchestrating biosynthesis and the perception of ethylene, and developing molecular markers for the marker-assisted selection of new apple varieties with improved texture and eating quality, through to the development of novel chemical inhibitors of the plant hormone ethylene. More recently, his work has expanded into the control of dormancy, sprout growth and sugar accumulation in potatoes.

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Karen Thurston

Postharvest Research Assistant and Facilities Manager at NRI

Karen Thurston is a postharvest research assistant with 10 years’ research experience working with a wide range of perishable commodities. She also has a decade of knowledge running the Postharvest facilities at the Jim mount Building at East Malling.

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Ross Newham

Operations Director at NIAB EMR

Ross has over twenty years experience working within the agriculture and horticulture sectors. During his time at East Malling Research and NIAB EMR, he has developed relationships across the county and country, providing him with an in depth understanding of the industry’s needs and challenges.

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Stacey Duvenage

Lecturer in Food Safety

Dr Stacey Duvenage is a Lecturer in Food Safety at the Natural Resources Institute (NRI), University of Greenwich. Her research focuses on bacterial food safety of fresh produce across formal and informal supply chains, including food genomics, antimicrobial resistance, and pathogen characterisation using both traditional and next-generation technologies. Her work also explores water and produce quality indicators through metadata analysis. Prior to joining NRI in 2021, Stacey was a Senior Postdoctoral Research Fellow and part-time lecturer at the University of Pretoria, South Africa.

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Tobi Fadji

Lecturer in Food Science

Tobi’s work focuses on exploring emerging technologies to address challenges related to food loss reduction, product quality, and value addition across agricultural and horticultural supply chains. His interests include developing innovative strategies to optimise postharvest handling, sustainable packaging solutions, and green treatments aimed at maintaining freshness while reducing environmental impact. He is particularly interested in the application of machine learning within postharvest agriculture and aligns his work with the Sustainable Development Goals to support more resilient and sustainable food systems.

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Iain Goodall

Analytical Chemist

Iain is the Head of Mass Spectrometry Support for the Faculty of Engineering and Science, University of Greenwich. He provides specialist academic and practical support for faculty research groups and oversight for the mass spectrometry laboratories. Iain’s current projects include Ion-mobility mass spectrometry of aqueous aerosol analogues derived from biogenic precursors, Gas-phase analyte evolution of low-O2 crop storage, ripening biomarkers, glyceride/ fatty acid characterisation of human skin and adipose tissue, and neutraceuticals screening of natural product extracts.

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