1979 Hotchkiss joined the Cornell faculty in 1980. He has also worked in the food industry as a research chemist. Packaging courses deal with packaging materials, their construction, manufacture, use and effect on quality and safety.
Product development focuses on the methods to develop successful new food products.
Food toxicology is team taught with other toxicology faculty. Hotchkiss' research program deals primarily with packaging, food safety and diet and cancer. He is particularly interested in the effects new food packaging materials and technologies have on safety and quality. He is a member of the field of Toxicology at Cornell and studies the relationship between food and dietary components and chronic disease, particularly cancer. The long-term objective is an understanding of how diet might influence the risks of developing certain forms of cancer.