Department of Chemistry and Fermentation Sciences

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Image reading “App State STEM Career Day,” with gold STEM lettering and a rough white brushstroke-style title on black.

App State students invited to explore careers, network with employers at Nov. 13 STEM Career Day
Oct 15, 2026

BOONE, N.C. — Ready to jumpstart your career and connect with top North Carolina STEM employers without leaving Boone?

Events
Fermentation Sciences lab manager Daniel Parker (left), and lab director Brett Taubman (right) stand in App State’s Chemistry and Fermentation Sciences Service Lab in Mountain Laurel Hall Sept. 30.

The newest dairy alternative comes from sweet potatoes [faculty featured]
Oct 15, 2026

Two professors in the Fermentation Sciences Program founded a sweet potato milk startup company, seeking to promote nutrition and combat food waste.

Faculty and Staff, Fermentation Sciences, Grants and Research
Smiling woman with long wavy blonde-brown hair, nose ring, and burgundy sleeveless top, posed against a gray studio background
Unearth the Voyage Logo on Dark Blue Green Background

15 Unusually Cool College Degrees That Actually Exist [program featured]
Sep 8, 2026

Long before craft beer and artisan kombucha became trendy, fermentation was a science.

Fermentation Sciences
Hundreds of people waited in line to get into the Beer Fest right at 3 p.m. when the general admission opened.

Bubbles, brews and sweet potatoes: High Country Beer Fest marks 19th year [staff featured]
Sep 3, 2026

BOONE — Thousands of beer lovers filled the Watauga County fairgrounds Saturday for the 19th annual High Country Beer Fest, sampling pours f

Faculty and Staff, Fermentation Sciences
Tents with people drinking beer in front of them.
A bunch of sweet potatoes.

Upcycling sweet potato field waste into a plant-based milk [faculty featured]
Aug 19, 2026

North Carolina grows most of the sweet potatoes in the US, which means it accumulates most of the sweet potato waste, too.

Faculty and Staff, Fermentation Sciences, Grants and Research
Incoming first-year App State student Brenda Randell, of Chapel Hill, presents tardigrade research she conducted through Summer Ventures at the American Junior Academy of Science conference in Phoenix last February. Photo submitted

Sweetpotato milk first gains big financial backing [faculty featured]
Jul 30, 2026

Will sweetpotato milk fill a gap in the dairy alternatives space?

Faculty and Staff, Fermentation Sciences, Grants and Research
Appalachian State University researchers, backed by a $1.82 million grant, have found a new use for sweet potatoes: sweet potato milk. It features a rich texture and sweet taste with a slight tint of the signature orange hue. Photo by Chase Reynolds

Buttery, sweet and orange: This milk alternative has deep North Carolina roots [faculty featured]
Jul 27, 2026

The humble sweet potato, long considered a North Carolina staple, is at the center of innovation as it’s transformed into the latest plant-b

Faculty and Staff, Fermentation Sciences, Grants and Research
Erik Martella

Fermentation Sciences lecturer Erik Martella named one of SevenFifty Daily’s 2026 Drinks Innovators
Jul 21, 2026

While the wine industry often casts Gen Z as a culprit for the current downturn, Erik Martella, a North Carolina winemaker with a foothold in... Alumni, Faculty and Staff, Fermentation Sciences

Megan Hutton '22 (left) and Alicia Roberts '03 (right)