IFT Proud Member Focus: Meet Thanh Vu

How do you identify?

I identify as a straight woman.

What is your background?

I love cooking, and when I turned 18, I decided to pursue food science to understand the food from the molecular level. Even though, a lot of people told me that pharmacy or medicine was promising, and that food science was not a smart choice, it was the first time that I put myself out of my comfort zone and thrived to achieve my dream. My curiosity brought me far away from my hometown, a small town in Vietnam, and then far away from my home country. After college, I got a full scholarship to study and pursue my Master's degree in a foreign country, Thailand. And after my Master's degree, I got a full fellowship to study for my PhD at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, in the US. Upon graduating from my PhD program, I joined DuPont Nutrition and Bioscience‘s commercial team in ASEAN as a Technical Development Manager. I enjoyed applying the science of food to solve practical problems, and putting the commercial perspective into application. I got promoted to Project Manager, after DuPont merged to IFF.

I moved back to the US due to personal reasons. Since then, I have been researching the food and beverage market in the US as well as emerging topics in the food science and technology here. I love food science and my curiosity is leading me to a next journey in my life.

How has being a member or ally of the LGBTQIA+ community impacted you personally and/or professionally?

I have lived and traveled to different countries, and anywhere I go, I always get a sense of distance between LGBTQIA+ individuals and the rest of the society. I have heard tragic stories about victims of criticism. I also saw how people looked down to the LGBTQIA+ individuals. I never wanted to initiate a gender topic to LGBTQIA+ people because I did not want to make them feel uncomfortable. And, this unspoken topic created an “imaginary shield” that kept me from connecting with classmates, professors, staffs, colleagues who were LGBTQIA+ individuals.

Only once I joined the IFT Proud Resource Group, I found I can hear voices directly from LGBTQIA+ members. I started to understand how hard it is for LGBTQIA+ individuals to come out. Personally, I feel connected to these groups. I am glad that I joined IFT Proud Resource Group because it helps me to eliminate the “imaginary shield” that has bothered me for so long.

What advice do you have for somebody to be a part of the community within the food industry?

Acknowledging and accepting the LGBTQIA+ community is a step to accepting minority traits in ourselves. I believe that in any one of us, there are dominant traits as well as minor traits. For some, it is a minority in gender. For others, it is minority in something else. Living with our true selves frees us from a mental burden and lets us bond to each other.

What do you hope to see in the food industry or IFT?

Achieving gender equality is a long journey, and achieving it in the food industry is not exempt. I hope more food companies will have resource groups for their LGBTQIA+ employees. Will it be a day that all food companies have resource groups? I believe it will, but certainly not now. Until that day, I hope IFT Proud Resource Group continues to be the place where LGBTQIA+ individuals and allies in the food science community can find a safe space, support, and resources.

How do you think IFT Proud can best provide support to the LGBTQIA+ community in the food industry and beyond?

On the top of the support that IFT Proud Resource Group has been providing, including safe spaces, visibility, education and training, professional development, a persistent support is the best support for the LGBTQIA+ community, I think. The community needs an available and reliable resource group that LGBTQIA+ individuals and allies can join whenever they are ready. The reasons are: firstly, it is not easy for the LGBTQIA+ individuals to come out, and secondly, it also takes time for allies to understand and get connected to the LGBTQIA+ community.