Food technologist · Quality assurance
Mattia Di LucaFood technologist & quality assurance professional
I work where product, science and quality meet: making sure food and drinks are safe, compliant, honestly labelled and consistent – from the first idea in R&D to the product on the shelf. Today I’m in quality assurance at Red Bull. This site is my small corner of the web: who I am, what I’ve learned so far and what keeps me curious.
- Based in Vorarlberg, Austria
- FSSC 22000 v7 Lead Auditor
- MSc Food Engineering
- CDTM Honors Degree
- IT · ES · EN · FR · DE
What I do
From idea to shelf, safely
My work sits where food science, product development, audits and data meet. Four things I care about most:
Quality & food safety
Audits, GMP and HACCP, supplier and co-packer standards, non-conformances and CAPA that really close the loop. Quality is a system, not a checklist.
Product development & R&D
Taking an idea from the first brainstorm to a stable, safe product: formulation, shelf life, lab testing and the trade-offs between taste, cost and process.
Labelling & compliance
A label is a promise. Ingredients, allergens, nutrition declarations and claims have to be accurate, readable and in line with EU food law.
Data-driven quality
Turning quality data into decisions: clear KPIs, dashboards in Power BI and SAP Analytics Cloud, and traceability you can rely on.
Experience
Where I’ve been working
From gastronomy in Valencia to food engineering, research and beverage quality at a global scale.
2024 — today
QA Beverage Professional · Red Bull
Quality assurance in an international beverage environment: supplier and co-packer compliance, audits, traceability and quality data, working closely with production, logistics and R&D.
2023 — 2024
Research Intern · IATA-CSIC, Valencia
Laboratory research at the Institute of Agrochemistry and Food Technology of the Spanish National Research Council, funded by a JAE Intro scholarship.
2018 — 2022
Culinary Manager Assistant · Calma Hotels, Valencia
Gastronomy on the business side: raw-material and supplier quality, traceability and HACCP, plus food cost and waste reduction for the opening of a new gastronomic venue.
2017 — 2026
Coach & co-founder · JA Italia, Startupper for a Day
Coaching student teams for JA Italia (2017–2022, two national first prizes) and co-founding Startupper for a Day (2022–2026), a nonprofit that lets students spend a day inside a startup – I led its expansion to Spain.
Education & credentials
Always learning, on purpose
In plain words: two university degrees in food science and engineering with top grades and awards as the best student of my class, an Erasmus year at the world’s leading university for agriculture and food, and a selective honours programme in innovation and entrepreneurship at CDTM, the institute of LMU and TUM Munich.
University · Spain
Bachelor’s + Master’s, both 9/10
A four-year BSc in Food Science & Technology and an MSc in Food Engineering at the Universitat Politècnica de València. A master’s is the second level of university education in Europe (EQF level 7), and 9/10 sits in the top grade band of the Spanish scale.
Honours programme · CDTM
CDTM Honors Degree
Selected in 2023 for the first international class – just 16 students – of CDTM’s honours programme in Technology Management: product development, innovation and entrepreneurship. CDTM is the joint institute of LMU and TUM Munich; in Munich only about 5% of applicants get in, and its alumni have founded companies such as Personio and Trade Republic.
Erasmus · Netherlands
Wageningen University
A year of the MSc Food Technology at Wageningen University & Research, ranked number one in the world for Agriculture & Forestry in the QS subject rankings.
Awards · UPV & Generalitat Valenciana
Top of my class
Best student of my year three years in a row, best graduate of my class and the Academic Excellence Award of the Valencian regional government (Generalitat Valenciana) for the best academic record in my degree.
Education
- MSc Food EngineeringUniversitat Politècnica de València · 2023–2024 · 9/10
- Erasmus – MSc Food TechnologyWageningen University & Research · 2022–2023
- Honors Degree in Technology ManagementCDTM – honours programme of LMU & TUM Munich · 2023–2024
- BSc Food Science & TechnologyUniversitat Politècnica de València · 2019–2023 · 9/10
- Master in Gastronomy & Culinary ManagementGASMA · CEU Cardenal Herrera, Valencia · 2017–2018
Credentials & tools
- FSSC 22000 v7 Lead AuditorSGS
- Quality Management SpecialistTÜV SÜD
- Six Sigma Yellow Belt
- Food safety systemsHACCP · GMP/GHP · ISO 9001 · FSSC 22000 · NC & CAPA · supplier audits
- Data & systemsSAP ERP · SAP Analytics Cloud · Power BI · Minitab · Excel
Languages: Italian (native) · Spanish (bilingual) · English (C1) · French (B1) · German (A2)
Highlights
A few things I’m proud of
2021 · Product design
Ricese – Ecotrophelia
With the Fornejant Ciència team we designed Ricese and took third place in the Spanish national round of Ecotrophelia, the European student food-innovation competition.
2023 · Innovation
Gennera 5U – 1st prize
First prize at Gennera 5U Valencia, an innovation challenge run together with HP.
2017–2022 · Mentoring
Coaching future founders
As a JA Italia coach I helped high-school teams win two national first prizes in entrepreneurship.
Beyond the lab
Curiosities, experiments and other side quests
A food technologist never really clocks out. Some of the things that keep me busy – and curious – outside work:
Home lab
Bread in the oven, a first home-made mozzarella (the curd taught me more about temperature than any textbook) and the occasional kombucha. The kitchen is the cheapest pilot plant there is.
Hydroponics & sensors
A small hydroponic garden at home, watched by ESP32 sensors and Home Assistant. Monitoring is a quality habit – I just can’t switch it off.
Games & music
Tinkering with Unreal Engine and Blender, and producing a few beats. Mostly for fun, always to learn something new.
Football & stage
Four years as a football referee (AIA) and four years in amateur theatre: two great schools for staying calm under pressure.
This website is my playground too: I rebuild it, test new tools on it and learn from it. If something looks broken, tell me – I’ll probably enjoy fixing it.
Let’s talk food quality.
A question about food safety, a project idea, a talk – or just a ciao from a fellow food person? I read every message.
English 
Spanish 
Italian