MINERVA, Ohio — Minerva Dairy announces that former CEO Phil Mueller was officially inducted into the Ohio State University’s Department of Food Science and Technology Hall of Distinction on during Ohio State’s 2022 Homecoming Weekend.
Mueller, a fourth-generation Minerva Dairy family leader who led the company from 1976 to 2010, joins an elite group of Ohio State alumni in earning the hall of distinction honor.
Nominated by fellow hall of distinction awardee John Lindamood and supported by his children, fifth-generation Minerva Dairy owners Venae Watts and Adam Mueller, the induction recognizes Mueller’s outstanding career in the dairy industry and his continued service to Ohio State and the community.
Established in 2013, the hall of distinction seeks to recognize graduates and friends of the Department of Food Science and Technology — part of Ohio State’s College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences — who have “made significant contributions to the food science and technology profession.”
Previous inductees include Timothy P. Smucker, chair emeritus of The J.M. Smucker Co. and past Ohio State trustee; Dale Seiberling, a pioneer and expert in Clean-In-Place technology used in the dairy, brewing, food, pharmaceutical,and biotech industries; and Dr. W. James Harper (posthumous), an Ohio State professor whose teaching and research in food science spanned 70 years, including 20 years as the J.T. “Stubby” Parker Endowed Chair in Dairy Foods.
Along with Mueller, this year’s Hall of Distinction inductees are Martin Okos and John Richardson. For more information on the award, visit fst.osu.edu/alumni/hall-distinction-award.
