Teresa Perez Escoda: Developing Innovative Solutions for Gluten Quantification in Food
Inside Laboratory Management’s volunteer spotlight series offers a glimpse of just a few of AOAC’s many exceptional and dedicated members who give their time and expertise to the Association. From authors and special guest editors to working groups, expert review panels, and much more, AOAC is able to provide a suite of analytical solutions that give confidence in results due to the commitment of its volunteers.
This issue, we spotlight Teresa Perez Escoda, a research and product development manager at Biosystems, S.A. and a winner of the 2025 AOAC contest for first-time poster presenters. She shares her work on gluten quantification in food and the value of AOAC membership to stay abreast of the latest methods, advances in technologies, and emerging issues, particularly for gluten and food allergens.
Joining AOAC INTERNATIONAL just two years ago “to stay up to date with all the developments of the AOAC Gluten and Food Allergens (GFA) Program and its working groups,” Teresa Perez Escoda has already achieved a couple of notable milestones.
“Detection of gluten in foods is essential for public health, regulatory compliance, and consumer transparency, and accurate tools to quantify the amount of gluten in food products are critical,” she says. “Around the time I joined AOAC, Biosystems was developing a new method for gluten quantification in food, which was subsequently certified as an AOAC Performance Tested MethodSM (PTM; Biosystems Gluten Immunoturbidimetry, Certification No. 072503). This achievement was a significant milestone as AOAC PTM certification is respected worldwide.”
She adds, “PTM certification ensures that a method has been independently evaluated and meets internationally recognized standards, guaranteeing precise and reliable results. This provides confidence to the food industry and facilitates the method’s acceptance in audits and certifications.”
Not long after the method was certified, Perez Escoda shared the company’s research on ”Validation of a Novel Method Based on Immunoturbidimetry for Determination of Gluten in Food and Beverage Matrices” at the 139th AOAC Annual Meeting in San Diego, California, USA.
“Attending the AOAC Annual Meeting and Exposition is always inspiring,” she says. “It gives me the chance to learn about the latest developments in analytical methods for measuring analytes in food and to meet, in person, the members of the working groups I usually interact with online. It’s also a wonderful opportunity to connect with and learn from other researchers who are working on similar challenges.”
Not only did Perez Escoda have the opportunity to present the research at the AOAC Annual Meeting, but she also won a 2025 AOAC award for first-time poster presenters.
“Receiving this award was a great recognition of the effort and dedication invested in the work carried out over the previous years,” she says. “Having the opportunity to present our results, discuss the challenges we faced during development, and address questions was truly rewarding, especially given the interest shown by the judges and by fellow researchers who approached us to learn more. These moments create valuable opportunities to share experiences, exchange concerns, and foster meaningful scientific discussion.”
Perez Escoda joined the Association in 2024 because “AOAC provides valuable opportunities to stay abreast of the latest information on gluten and food allergen methodology, emerging issues, and analytical solutions. Biosystems continues to work on developing new allergen detection systems for food to contribute to food safety and innovation.”
Perez Escoda notes that AOAC’s GFA Program fits well in her organization’s work for gluten analysis.
“When the AOAC Working Group on Gluten was developing the new validation guidelines for gluten methods, our own validation protocol was progressively updated as new decisions were made,” she says. “A lot of time and significant effort were put into development of the guidelines, which ultimately resulted in a robust and thoroughly designed validation plan. For Biosystems, this means that the extensive set of studies included in our validations will provide reliable methods, and therefore, greater confidence to end users.”
In addition, she values AOAC membership because “It has allowed me to attend the GFA working group meetings, stay informed about updates to validation protocols for new methods, and keep pace with advances related to food safety. Being part of AOAC has helped me grow both professionally and personally. It has provided me with a strong network of experts and the latest knowledge to ensure that our products contribute to safer food for everyone.”
But perhaps one of the aspects she values the most is the opportunity to learn different perspectives of other professionals.
“Their viewpoints enrich our knowledge and encourage us to reconsider ideas we previously believed were entirely correct. This exchange of insights is essential for scientific progress.”
To members considering getting involved, Perez Escoda stresses, “Don’t hesitate to connect in order to stay informed, up to date, and in contact with researchers, companies, and experts in your field of study.”
Inspired to get involved? Visit the AOAC Call for Volunteers for more information on opportunities to participate.
