About LiFT Graduate School
The overarching goal of the national graduate school LiFT is to strengthen the competitiveness of the Swedish food industry by providing educated doctors with scientific competence in areas important to Swedish society and industry.
The national graduate school LiFT started in 1997 and is part of Food Science Sweden, which brings together doctoral students in food science, food engineering and technology, nutrition, economics, agriculture, and sustainable food systems. LiFT is co-financed by the The Swedish Food Federation (Livsmedelsföretagen).
Activities
LiFT offers annual courses and workshops with lecturers from both academia and industry. To ensure industrial relevance, all courses have been developed and continuously updated in collaboration with representatives from the Swedish food industry. The tailored courses are designed to complement the regular curriculum and cover topics such as actors in the food industry, food sustainability, innovation and entrepreneurship, ethics and legislation, health aspects of food production and marketing, environmental aspects of food production, and sensory properties of food.
Continuous contact with the industry is crucial to understanding the industry’s challenges and thinking within the LiFT graduate school. This is achieved through an established mentoring programme where all students receive an industrial mentor whom they meet and interact with regularly throughout their doctoral period. LiFT also organises study visits to Swedish and international food companies/institutes and offers scholarships for participation in international doctoral courses or visits to Swedish or international research departments. This increases students’ knowledge of new methods or establishes collaborations within various sub-projects of a research programme.
The various activities organised by LiFT support the important interaction between academia and industry and provide them with competence and skills through well-educated doctors who are trained at the forefront of food research and well-prepared for employment in companies.
Benefits for LiFT doctoral students
- Strong support throughout the doctoral studies through close interactions with the industry, including a personal mentoring programme to facilitate professional and personal development.
- Interactive network with doctoral students in food-related fields across Sweden and internationally.
- Diverse activity content to meet the specific needs of doctoral students.
- Tools to understand and communicate how research can benefit society.
Benefits for Swedish industry
- A platform for interactions, discussions, and the dissemination of ideas, leading to the establishment of research and innovation collaborations.
- Improved integration of academic research into the food industry sectors, leading to more effective use of research results.
- Opportunity to recruit highly qualified professionals with research competence, supporting the influx of new knowledge and skills into the food industry in the form of doctors trained in the food field and prepared for employment in companies.
Benefits for Swedish society
- Increased public awareness of food and science and the provision of evidence-based knowledge on food-related issues.
- New knowledge leads to well-informed decisions by individuals and organisations, improving the health of the population and the environment.
- Practical applications of research supported by LiFT increase opportunities for economic growth and prosperity.
- Contributing necessary knowledge to meet global challenges.
In summary, LiFT organises and supports activities that benefit industry, academia, and society by bringing research to industry and contributing to achieving the global sustainable development goals.