Efstathios Z. Panagou is a Professor of Quantitative Food Microbiology at the Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition of the Agricultural University of Athens (AUA).

He has been involved in 36 research projects funded by the EU, national authorities and the private sector. He has co-authored 132 original research papers in scientific journals of the SCI (with more than 4500 citations, h¬-index 39), 16 book chapters after invitation, co-editor in 1 book, and has more than 150 oral/poster presentations in conferences.

His research interests focus on: (a) the implementation of rapid and non-invasive instrumental techniques (Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy, multispectral imaging, electronic nose, Raman spectroscopy) in food quality assessment, during storage under different temperature regimes and packaging conditions, in tandem with multivariate data analysis and machine learning, (b) the use of mathematical models to quantify the effect of intrinsic (pH, aw, redox potential, etc.) and extrinsic (temperature, modified atmospheres, etc.) factors on the behavior (growth, survival, death) of spoilage and pathogenic microorganisms on food ecosystems, (c) the study of the population dynamics and microbial ecology of microorganisms implicated in the fermentation of plant-derived food products with main emphasis on table olive processing, and (d) the study of the ecophysiology of fungi on food ecosystems with main focus on mycotoxigenic fungi, especially black Aspergilli (Aspergillus section Nigri) in wine and vine products.