Simona Grasso is an Assistant Professor at the School of Agriculture and Food Science of University College Dublin, Ireland (https://people.ucd.ie/simona.grasso). A food scientist by background, she has a first class honours BSc and MSc in Food Science from the University of Catania in Italy and a PhD from University College Dublin in Ireland. She has worked for the food industry in various roles, including new product developer, food technologist and auditor. She has been awarded and has successfully led several European projects with both industry and academic partners. She is passionate about the development of healthier and functional foods, as well as the valorisation of by-products into upcycled foods.