Cody Gifford, Ph.D.

Research Focus

Gifford has built a research program focused on understanding the biological and management factors that influence meat quality, eating experience and nutritional value. His work examines how production practices affect meat composition, yield, shelf life, processing characteristics and flavor development, while also exploring the role of muscle foods in healthy dietary patterns throughout different stages of life.

His research combines traditional meat science with nutritional analysis to improve both product quality and consumer confidence. In addition to investigating meat quality and livestock quality management systems, Gifford has studied muscle food nutrient composition, population-based dietary intake and the contribution of animal-source foods to human nutrition.

Complementing his academic training, Gifford is a registered dietitian through the Commission on Dietetic Registration, the credentialing agency of the Academy of Nutrition & Dietetics. The combination of expertise in meat science and human nutrition has shaped a research agenda that examines animal-source foods from production through consumption.

Background

Before joining Texas Tech, Gifford served as an assistant professor in the Department of Animal Science at the University of Wyoming. Prior to Wyoming, he held several teaching and research appointments within Colorado State University's Department of Animal Sciences, serving as a graduate research assistant and Y-Cross Teaching Fellow. Those roles provided extensive experience mentoring students while conducting research across multiple areas of animal agriculture and food science. Gifford earned bachelor's and master's degrees in animal science and food science and human nutrition, respectively, before earning a doctorate in animal sciences, all from Colorado State University.

His scholarship has earned national recognition, including the American Meat Science Association Achievement Award in 2026, University of Wyoming College of Agriculture Research & Innovation Excellence Award in 2024, the Wyoming Agricultural Experiment Station Early Career Research Achievement Award in 2023 and the Colorado Association of Meat Processors’ Sharp Cleaver Award in 2019.

Gifford is an active member of the American Society of Animal Science, American Society for Nutrition, National Cattlemen's Beef Association, Academy of Nutrition & Dietetics and the American Meat Science Association.