NRF 25 years: Dr Lusani Norah Vhangani

This year, the NRF is celebrating a major milestone in our history as we commemorate 25 years of Research, Innovation, Impact and Partnerships. It gives us great joy to share the accomplishments and impact of the many students and researchers we have supported during various stages of their careers. We thank all participants for submitting their stories and hope you enjoy reading about their journey with the NRF.

Dr Lusani Norah Vhangani is a lecturer in Food Science and Technology at the Cape Peninsula University of Technology. She is currently funded under the NRF Black Academics Advancement Programme (BAAP) and also received funding from the NRF for her postgraduate studies.

How did your journey start?

Growing up, I always knew I was destined to teach. My childhood games always involved me being a teacher. However, in high school, I fell in love with Biology and realised that my future career would have to be based in the Biological Sciences.

In 2005, I applied for a Diploma in Food Technology because I was fascinated by the idea of working in a laboratory analysing food composition and nutrition. I was hooked. During my fourth year, while working on my research project after lab hours, my supervisor and the Head of the Department, Prof Van Wyk, told me, “You have the qualities of a good researcher. You grasp concepts so easily; you should register for a Master’s next year.”

Two years later, as I was finishing my MTech laboratory work, she informed me about the “Khula program” and suggested I would be a suitable candidate. “Khula” means “grow” and is aimed at training and mentoring young individuals into academic researchers.

I started as a junior lecturer under the Khula program in 2011 and am currently a lecturer in the Food Science and Technology department, also serving other Applied Science departments such as Chemistry, Food Consumer Science, and Biotechnology

How has your affiliation with the NRF impacted your studies/career?

I first obtained an NRF scholarship in 2008 when enrolled for a BTech in Food Technology. For the MTech in Food Technology (2009 – 2010) I received an NRF Innovation scholarship. In 2020 – 2022 I was amongst the first cohort of CPUT staff members to be awarded the NRF BAAP PhD track with sabbatical relief. This funding allowed me to take sabbatical leave to complete my PhD which was conferred in 2023. I am currently a grantee of the BAAP post-PhD track 2024 – 2025.

Other NRF-related activities include community engagement via the NRF-SAAO centre as a speaker, and programme director of the annual Women’s Day “Girls in STEM future workforce” programme; where we showcase critical and scarce STEM skills/careers to grade 10 – 11 female learners across the Western Cape Schools.   

I remember opting to do my BTech studies part-time in order to pay tuition, but with the NRF bursary I was able to complete my degree fulltime and have all my tuition covered. The same applies to the Masters’ degree. The biggest impact of NRF on my life was being awarded the BAAP PhD track.

Over the years, my teaching load increased, and the department ran a dual qualification. That meant a high teaching load and little time to do research. The sabbatical funds meant that I could study full-time and still get a salary as a staff member whilst having someone take over my teaching load. I have all my degrees because of NRF, and two of my students were able to collect data using this funding. This year, I have three new postgraduate students who will be supported via the post-PhD BAAP funds.

My family witnessed the ups and downs of the PhD journey from registration to graduation. I am proud that my nieces and nephews can use this milestone as a life blueprint – if one of us can do it, then it is possible for them, too. It is doable, and this is what we do. This also extends to my students and all the youth of South Africa.

What is your research focus on/what is your area of expertise?

My area of specialisation is Food Chemistry, with a broad niche area in lipid chemistry, antioxidants, encapsulation and browning reaction kinetics. My current project focuses on using alternative non-thermal processing technology to valorise bioactive compounds from plant waste, with emphasis on indigenous South African plants.

Why is your work/studies important?

Plant waste, such as oil seed meals, contains valuable nutrients including proteins, simple and complex carbohydrates, and bioactive compounds like polyphenols, vitamins, and minerals. These are typically used in animal feed or end up in landfills, contributing to pollution. By extracting these nutrients or converting the meals into food products, we can add value by creating ingredients and functional components for new food products. This process also creates jobs, reduces waste, and promotes further research.

What are some of your proudest academic achievements?

Besides obtaining a PhD, I created learning material on YouTube. My students always commented on how well I explain Food Chemistry. With the help and encouragement of a colleague, Dr Mshayisa, I took a leap of faith and in 2021 uploaded some of my teaching material (videos) on YouTube: Food Science and Technology Concepts Made Easy.

One of my best videos has 11K views, and I have received good comments about. My channel is available here.

My research work can be accessed via ResearchGate.

The rights to this article (content and images) are reserved by the National Research Foundation of South Africa. This work is licenced under an Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 DEED) license: this implies that the article may be republished (shared) on other websites, but the article may not be altered or built upon in any way. Credit must be given to the National Research Foundation and a link provided back to the original article.