First State Times

WASHINGTON — U.S. Senator Chris Coons (D-Del.), Co-Chair of the Congressional Chemistry Caucus, hosted a bipartisan and bicameral caucus event on the chemistry of olive oil in the Lyndon B. Johnson Room at the U.S. Capitol, featuring a presentation by Pat O’Hara, the Amanda and Lisa Cross Professor of Chemistry at Amherst College, and her husband, Rich Blatchly, Professor Emeritus at Keene State College. The event featured a presentation by O’Hara and Blatchly on the chemistry behind the taste and health benefits of olive oil, followed by a tasting of various olive oils from around the world. The Chemistry Caucus hosts events and briefings to educate members and staff on the importance of chemistry to our economy and society.

O’Hara and Blatchly’s book, The Chemical Story of Olive Oil, has been translated into multiple languages. O’Hara also teaches an undergraduate course on the chemistry of olive oil at Amherst.

Also in attendance were Chemistry Caucus Co-Chair Congressman Sanford Bishop (D-Ga.), Congressman Scott Peters (D-Calif.), Congressman Bruce Westerman (R-Ark.), Senator Tom Carper (D-Del.), Senator Alex Padilla (D-Calif.), Senator Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), Senator Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.), Senator John Fetterman (D-Pa.), Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), 2021 Chemistry Nobel Laureate Dave MacMillan, Greek Ambassador to the United States Alexandra Papadopoulou, Italian Ambassador to the United States Mariangela Zappia, French Ambassador to the United States Laurent Bili, Spanish Ambassador to the United States Santiago Cabanas, Turkish Ambassador to the United States Hasan Murat Mercan, Ambassador of the European Union to the United States Stavros Lambrinidis, and American Chemical Society CEO Al Horvath.

“It’s a pleasure to bring Professor O’Hara, a renowned expert and my former professor, along with her husband, Dr. Rich Blatchly, also a chemist, to the Capitol complex today to share their expertise on a crucial staple that unites cultures from across the Atlantic and Mediterranean and has a rich historic and economic significance,” said Senator Coons. “As Co-Chair of the Congressional Chemistry Caucus, I’m committed to bringing together Senate and House colleagues from both sides of the aisle to learn about the chemistry underpinning our everyday life and promote science-based policymaking.” 

Senator Coons is Chair of the Senate State and Foreign Operations Appropriations Subcommittee (SFOPS) and a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. He is an alumnus of Amherst College, where he studied chemistry and political science.

In addition to Senator Coons and Congressman Bishop, Co-Chairs of the Congressional Chemistry Caucus include Senator Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.), Senator Gary Peters (D-Mich.), Senator Steve Daines (R-Mont.), and Congressman John Moolenaar (R-Mich.). The Congressional Chemistry Caucus is supported by the American Chemical Society, American Chemistry Council, National Association of Chemical Distributors, and the American Cleaning Institute.

Original source can be found here.