Marcel Zwietering obtained his MSc Biotechnology in 1987 and his PhD in 1993 from Wageningen University. During his positions as assistant and associate professor at Wageningen, he spent a sabbatical half year in the Unilever research lab in Colworth House, UK. In 1998, he moved to the research lab of Danone in France. Since January 2003, he is professor in Food Microbiology at Wageningen University. He has published 253 papers and has a h-factor of 57 (Scopus January 2025) and is member of the editorial board of the International Journal of Food Microbiology and the Journal of Food Protection. In 2006, he was appointed in the Dutch Health Council. In 2005, he was elected as member of the International Commission on Microbiological Specifications for Foods (ICMSF) and was elected chair in 2020. At IAFP2019, he was awarded the Elmer Marth Educator Award and the International Leadership Award; at IAFP2024, the Frozen Food Foundation Freezing Research Award; and at IAFP2024, the Frozen Food Foundation Freezing Research Award.