Friends and colleagues will gather at 10 a.m. Wednesday, June 13, in the Cruess Hall Courtyard of the University of California, Davis, for a memorial service celebrating the life of retired food scientist Bor S. Luh, 85, of Davis, who died June 4 while visiting in Hilo, Hawaii.
Graveside services will be held June 8 in Hawaii.
As a food chemist, Luh was on the leading edge of research in food chemistry applied to evaluating the quality of processed fruits and vegetables including tomatoes, peaches, beans, rice and kiwi fruit.
Colleagues note that his work had a substantial impact on the development and improvement of food science and technology in Asia, Latin America and the Middle East. His research was reflected in improvements internationally in food processing, nutrition and food availability.
Luh was born Jan. 13, 1916, in Shanghai, China. He completed his bachelor's degree in chemistry in 1938 at Chiao Tung University in Shanghai. He went on to earn a master's degree in food science and a doctoral degree in agricultural chemistry from the University of California, Berkeley, in 1948 and 1952, respectively.
He joined the faculty of the UC Davis food science and technology department in 1952 as a researcher and lecturer.
Throughout his career and even after his retirement from the university in 1986, Luh displayed a remarkable generosity in welcoming students and foreign scholars into his lab to do research in the area of fruit and vegetable processing. He mentored more than 100 graduate students, many of whom have returned to their home countries to hold important positions in universities, government and industry. He also hosted many visiting scientists from abroad.
Luh was active in a number of professional societies and in 1986 was named a Fellow of the Institute of Food Technologists.
In May, the UC Davis food science and technology department recognized his many contributions to his profession and campus department by naming and dedicating the Bor S. Luh Food Laboratory. That honor paid tribute to Luh's commitment to the international food science community and to mentoring food science students, particularly those studying food chemistry.
Luh is survived by his wife, Bai Tsian Liu Luh of Davis, and his daughter, Janet Luh, and her husband, John Seastrom, of Hilo, Hawaii.
Memorial contributions may be made to the Luh Scholarship Fund, in care of the Department of Food Science and Technology, University of California, One Shields Ave., Davis, CA 95616.
Media Resources
Pat Bailey, Research news (emphasis: agricultural and nutritional sciences, and veterinary medicine), 530-219-9640, pjbailey@ucdavis.edu