Food Valley Ambassador from China

Name:                          Ruirui Liu (male) 

Nationality:                  Chinese

Year of birth:               1985

Education and work experience:
• MSc in Food Safety, Wageningen UR
• Food Technology in Reading, UK
• Biotechnology in Henan, China
• Internships: Soybean factory and TNO

Contacts in home country:
Chinese Network (most of my former classmates work in the food industry in China).

Knowledge of languages:
Chinese (mother tongue) and English

Personal note:
After studying Biotechnology for two years at Henan University, I was selected – based on my academic performance – to join an exchange program at Reading University. In order to broaden my horizons and acquire more applicable knowledge, I went to the UK and switched to Food Technology. After I got my bachelor degree, I realized I wanted to be educated further in the field of food. So I came to Wageningen University. After the melamine crisis, I realized that safety is not only the biggest challenge the Chinese food industry faces, but that it is also an opportunity. Consequently, I switched my focus from Food Quality Management to Food Safety. When I finished my thesis at TNO, I joined the Food Valley Ambassador (FVA) program. The FVA program has several extra benefits compared to other internships. Firstly, its exceptionally long, one-year internship will allow me to see a big project through from beginning to end. Secondly, the extra training program will stand me in good stead in my future career. Last but not least, I am given a chance to visit various companies in the Food Valley region and to meet many businesspeople. Through this FVA program, I will be able to expand my international network. This will allow me to help build bridges between the supply from Food Valley and the demand in the Chinese market.