Dr. Kevin M. Folta has a background in both biology and communications. He has studied biology and agricultural biotechnology for over thirty years, working exclusively in public academic institutions. His group is known for using innovative genomics approaches to identify genes associated with fruit quality, especially flavors and aromas. He has been a professor at the University of Florida since 2002, serving as Chairman from 2012-2018. His laboratory has hosted over 100 undergraduate researchers, dozens of international scholars, and trained many postdocs.