New EMU major combines beer, pickles, cheese and science

By Ben Freed | benfreed@mlive.com   –   MLive

Science class never tasted this good.

Students wanting to learn the chemistry behind brewing and distilling will soon be able to enroll as Fermentation Science majors at Eastern Michigan University.

The new major, approved by the school’s Board of Regents Friday, will be a comprehensive four-year program fusing elements of chemistry, biology and hospitality services.

The major’s architects said in their application they expect 15 students to enroll in the program’s first year and an addition 20-25 annually after that.

“We suspect that as our Fermentation Science degree program (and the presence of others) becomes more well-known and a more desirable degree to hiring managers within the industry, we may find that these projections are conservative,” they wrote.

The curriculum for the program will include a number of basic science classes in addition to special courses designed for the major. Those courses include a survey course entitled Intro to Fermentation Science and courses on fermentation in food, fermentation beverage production and fermentation production facilities.

An additional course, “Sensory Analysis of Fermented Products,” may only be available to students 21 years and older.

The fermentation industry has grown rapidly in Michigan in recent years. A Beer Institute report estimated the economic impact of the brewing industry alone at $6 billion in 2012, including $2 billion in wages. That same year, the state added 17 new breweries.

Unlike a similar program being developed at Western Michigan University, the course of study will not be limited to beer and other alcohol. The program notes emphasize that cheeses, pickles and sausages all utilize fermentation processes and will be studied. There are also non-consumptive fermentation processes used in the production of biofuels.

In 2014, only Oregon State University, Colorado State University and Appalachain State had comparable programs. Western Michigan has announced its new 4-year Sustainable Craft Brewing major and Central Michigan University has a new fermentation science certificate program.

No new faculty will be hired initially, though one person with expertise in fermentation science could be brought on sometime in the program’s third year. The cost of the program is expected to be absorbed by the current Academic Affairs budget and is not expected to exceed $600,000 spread out over the first three years of the program.

Ben Freed is the education and entertainment reporter for The Ann Arbor News. Email him at benfreed@mlive.com and follow him on twitter at @BFreedinA2. He also answers the phone at 734-623-2528.