Keith Steinkraus

KEITH STEINKRAUS
ITHACA - Professor Keith H. Steinkraus, 89, of Ithaca, died Tuesday, October 23, 2007, at home, cared for by his five children, especially his daughter, Anna. He was a professor of microbiology and food science at Cornell, at the New York State Agricultural Experiment Station in Geneva, NY, for 36 years. Keith was born and raised in Bertha, Minnesota. He earned a B.A. from the University of Minnesota. He served in the U.S. Army Air Corps during WWII. In 1951 he earned his Ph.D. from Iowa State and was on the faculty there for one year before coming to Cornell as an assistant professor of bacteriology in 1952.
He was internationally recognized for his research on indigenous fermented foods. He and his graduate students studied the microbiological, biochemical, and nutritional changes that occurred in fermented foods such as tempeh, soy sauce, and related products. He worked on soy milks and played a role in the growth of the soy milk industry in Asia. He also studied bacterial diseases of scarab and honey bee larvae and worked with Dr. Roger Morse of Cornell on honey wine fermentations. He published more than 180 scientific articles, including two major books on indigenous fermented foods, and held seven patents. Keith traveled extensively as part of his work to Ecuador, Vietnam, Indonesia, Burma, Japan, England, Korea, Taiwan, India, Malaysia, Thailand, and many other countries. He spent extended periods of time working in the Philippines, Singapore, Switzerland, and England. Keith was a mentor for many graduate students from the U.S. and internationally. He treated his students as members of his family, taking them on picnics, swimming, and hikes.
Keith deeply loved his profession and remained active with students, lectures, research and writing after retirement. Two weeks before he died, he gave a lecture on fermented foods at Cornell and he was actively revising one of his books. He was named a Fellow to the International Union of Food Science and Technology in 1999. He was also a Fellow in the Institute of Food Technologists (IFT), the American Academy of Microbiology, and the American Association for the Advancement of Science. In 1985 he received the IFT International Award and in 1987 the Iowa State University Alumni Merit Award.
Keith was an excellent photographer, a fine jazz pianist, a tough tennis player, and loved swimming and hiking. Keith had an incredible curiosity and interest in philosophical ideas and loved to joke. He was a loving, gentle, joyful man who will be greatly missed by his family, students, and friends.
He married Maxine Curtiss, the love of his life, on August 26, 1941. They celebrated their 65th wedding anniversary in 2006. Maxine died on December 8, 2006 after a courageous seven year battle with cancer. Keith was her major caregiver during her last year. They are survived by their five children, Bonnie, Nancy, Donald, Anna and Karen; eleven grandchildren and one great-grandchild. Keith is survived by his two brothers, Don and Cliff. He is predeceased by his parents; and his sister, Edith Fischer.
A celebration and memorial service for the lives of Keith and Maxine will be held on June 8, 2008 at 2:00 p.m. in Sage Chapel on the Cornell Campus.
Memorial contributions may be made to Second Harvest or CARE.
For further information, contact Bangs Funeral Home, Ithaca.