Pratiksha Kotkar
Summary
Certified Food Safety and Quality Assurance Specialist with over 3 years of experience ensuring regulatory compliance, microbial safety, and audit readiness throughout research and industry settings. Demonstrated ability to lead HACCP validation studies, optimize GMP protocols, and collaborate cross-functionally to enhance food safety culture. Seeking opportunities in QA/QC, food safety leadership, or R&D integration.
Overview
4
4
years of professional experience
1
1
Certification
Work History
Graduate Research Assistant
University of Georgia, Department of Food Science and Technology
Athens, GA
08.2023 - Current
- Conducted HACCP-based validation studies for cold-filled mayonnaise and salad dressings, elevating food safety benchmarks across 10+ formulations.
- Executed microbial enumeration and preservative efficacy trials to achieve pathogen reduction goals per FSMA guidelines.
- Maintained QA documentation and revised HACCP-based SOPs to ensure compliance with industry standards.
- Presented research findings at IAFP 2024 and CoFE 2024, fostering collaboration between academia and industry.
Food Scientist- Quality Assurance
Equinox Labs Pvt. Ltd.
Mumbai, India
10.2022 - 08.2023
- Supervised and mentored three interns, ensuring accurate execution of over ten food safety testing projects.
- Reviewed testing reports and provided guidance to startups on food safety plans and compliance issues.
- Conducted GMP and sanitation training for more than 20 professionals, improving audit readiness.
- Tracked CAPAs and supported internal quality audits to maintain ISO and HACCP compliance.
Food Technologist
Samyog Health Foods Pvt. Ltd. (Prolicious)
Mumbai, India
11.2021 - 05.2022
- Spearheaded R&D for high-protein, plant-based snacks, achieving 20% protein content and regulatory compliance.
- Collaborated with cross-functional teams to launch new SKUs, including Indian Roasted Snacks and Gluten-Free Pasta.
- Executed ingredient risk assessments and strategies for sodium and fat reduction to meet clean label standards.
- Created product specifications and conducted cost analyses to support process scale-up and quality assurance.
Food Application Intern
JRS- Rettenmaier India Pvt. Ltd.
09.2021 - 10.2021
- Supported R&D initiatives for clean-label ingredient applications in food systems.
- Conducted market surveys to gather insights for ingredient sourcing decisions.
- Documented findings to inform and guide sourcing strategies.
Project Lead
Central Food Technological Research Institute
01.2021 - 08.2021
- Developed and implemented sugar-free osmo-drying protocol for pineapple chunks utilizing juice concentrate.
- Conducted shelf stability analysis through moisture, water activity, vitamin C, and antioxidant assays.
Education
MS - Food Science
University of Georgia
Athens, GA07.2025
B.Tech - Food Science and Technology
D.Y. Patil Deemed University
Mumbai, India08.2021
Skills
- HACCP plan development and validation
- FSMA and GMP compliance
- Allergen control and sanitation
- Environmental swabbing and micro sampling
- Microbial enumeration and pathogen detection
- Shelf-life evaluation
- Root cause analysis (RCA)
- Quality assurance documentation
- Written communication skills
- Reporting and presentation skills
- Sanitation standard operating procedures (SSOP)
- New product development (NPD)
- Team leadership
- Statistical analysis with Excel
- R statistical software proficiency
- SharePoint management
- Consumer complaint tracking dashboards
- Sensory evaluation protocols
Certification
- Preventive Controls for Human Food (PCQI), FSPCA
- HACCP and GMP for Food Processors, University of Georgia
- Lean Six Sigma Green Belt, SGS Institute
- Safe Quality Foods (SQF)
- Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI)
Accomplishments
- Vice-President – Indian Student Association, University of Georgia
- Graduate School Master’s Fellow Award – University of Georgia
- Recipient of Romeo Toledo Graduate Student Travel Award
- Recipient of Dr. K. U. Naram Excellence Award – Association of Food Scientists and Technologists, India
- Gold Medalist – B.Tech in Food Science and Technology, D.Y. Patil University
Projects
Microbial Inactivation in Cold-Filled Acidified Mayonnaise Sauces: Investigated the inactivation kinetics of E. coli O157:H7, Listeria monocytogenes, and Salmonella enterica in clean-label, cold-filled acidified sauces. Validated a non-thermal, pH- and time-based microbial reduction strategy to meet FDA's 5-log reduction requirement using D- and z-value modeling under varied storage conditions.
Osmo-dried Pineapple Chunks with no added sugar: Developed a clean-label dehydration method using pineapple juice concentrate as an osmotic agent. Compared two drying techniques and analyzed nutrient retention, water activity, and sensory quality. Proposed a low-cost solution for small-scale farmers to reduce post-harvest pineapple losses.
Timeline
Graduate Research Assistant
University of Georgia, Department of Food Science and Technology
08.2023 - Current
Food Scientist- Quality Assurance
Equinox Labs Pvt. Ltd.
10.2022 - 08.2023
Food Technologist
Samyog Health Foods Pvt. Ltd. (Prolicious)
11.2021 - 05.2022
Food Application Intern
JRS- Rettenmaier India Pvt. Ltd.
09.2021 - 10.2021
Project Lead
Central Food Technological Research Institute
01.2021 - 08.2021
MS - Food Science
University of Georgia
B.Tech - Food Science and Technology
D.Y. Patil Deemed University
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