Obituary

Abstract

It is very hard for us to come to terms with the fact that our Professor, Jacek Kijowski is no longer with us. For our team, he was not only our supervisor and Head of the Department, but more importantly, our colleague, friend, and a highly significant figure both in our professional and private lives. He sadly died on 23 July 2013, at the height of his creative and intellectual powers. Prof. Kijowski was born on the 5th of April 1948 in Poznań. In 1966 He graduated from the renown Marcin Kasprzak Grammar School (now the Jan Kanty Grammar School) in Poznań. In 1971, He graduated from the University of Agriculture in Poznań, Faculty of Agricultural and Food Technology. He received his doctoral degree in agricultural sciences in 1978, preparing his doctoral dissertation under the supervision of Professor Adam Niewiarowicz, an outstanding scientist, considered a pioneer of food science, a researcher of exceptional knowledge, respected for his excellent manners and the organiser of the first Polish research unit working on poultry raw materials. These supervisory qualities undoubtedly influenced the scientific and personal development of a young scientist such as Jacek Kijowski at that time, who later focused on poultry meat and egg technology as principal areas of scientific interest. These issues were the subject matter of his post-doctoral dissertation, on the basis of which he received the scientific degree of Assistant Professor in technical sciences in 1987. Professor Kijowski took several fellowship sabbaticals at prestigious foreign research and scientific centres, i.e. at the German Bundesanstalt fűr Fleischforschung in Kulmbach (1978), Pennsylvania State University in the USA (1984-86), the University of Bristol in Great Britain (1991) and the Poultry Research Center Het Spelderholt, Holland (1995), which made it possible for him to become acquainted with other modern research schools and work with outstanding specialists working in poultry meat and egg technology. In 1996 he was awarded the title of Professor in agricultural sciences and, from 2006, he was working at our University on the position of full professor. He received both the title and the position for his significant research and achievements covering a wide spectrum of problems in technology of animal origin food, particularly technology, biochemistry and hygiene of poultry as well as eggs and poultry products. Specifically among the numerous areas of his scientific interest include: • Quality of poultry and poultry meat, particularly chicken PSE meat, • Processing of hot meat, • Chilling and freezing of poultry meat,