Ph.D of Kousseila Tigrine (2026-2029)

The first 1,000 days of life and nutrition during this period are crucial for short- and long-term health. Despite improvements, infant formula does not fully mimic the health benefits of breastfeeding, hence the need to develop more biomimetic infant formula in terms of composition and/or nutrition-health impacts. In addition, IFMs must meet regulatory standards, dairy industry constraints, and consumer expectations by being microbiologically safe, stable, economically viable, and accessible to all, while aiming for optimized environmental performance throughout their life cycle.
The thesis project is part of the ANR BIFORES (https://anr.fr/Projet-ANR-24-CE21-2521) program, which proposes to rethink the production of NPPs by combining fermentation and minimal processing, while simultaneously addressing the challenges of health, food safety, and sustainability of NPPs. The BIFORES project, which will last four and a half years, involves three teams from STLO as well as the NUMECAN, SECALIM, and MEDIS joint research units and the Bba Milk Valley consortium. It is coordinated by Sergine Even, Director of Research at STLO.

The thesis project will aim to evaluate the performance of the PPNs developed during the BIFORES project using a multi-criteria analysis that takes into account health benefits (nutrition, intestinal homeostasis, etc.), microbiological risk, and potential environmental impacts (Life Cycle Assessment).