Dr. Govindaraj Dev Kumar, is an Assistant Professor at the University of Georgia’s – Center for Food Safety (2018-current). He received his Ph.D. from Virginia Tech in Food Science and Technology and conducted postdoctoral research at the University of Arizona and the University of Maryland. Dr. Dev Kumar researches microbial stress adaptation strategies such as biofilm development, filament formation and transient dormancy in foodborne bacterial pathogens. His lab also develops and validates antimicrobial interventions to control food contamination during handling and processing.

He uses cloning, classic microbiology, genomics, mathematical modelling and imaging to study foodborne pathogens such as Salmonella, Listeria and E. coli. The Kumar lab has a team of seven graduate students from five different countries. He has served as the President of the Indian Association of Food Protection in North America (2022). IAFPNA was awarded the 2022 Affiliate Education Award from IAFP under his leadership.