Module 6: Processing: from consumers to fork

From markets to fork

On this module, we examined places where we can find food as consumers:

-Where we can consume it

-Where we can buy so as to prepare it at home.

Knowing that in this step the important is to take care of food storage and food label we gave attendance so as students to identify that:

-when buying, we must always read the declaration on it, or find out all the information about the product based on the QR code.

-since we as customers do not always take into account the amount of food we buy, it is important to store or preserve these food items so that we do not have waste but also protect our health.

Introduction: summarizing under the umprella of food supply chain

We started our module implementation with an introduction, summarizing under the umprella of food supply chain all these we had developed so far.

In order to point out that due to the high degree of interconnectedness all drivers can influence the other parts of food system in a symbiotic way we called students to wonder about the occasion of a given example:

A political issue such as a disruption to international trade could slow food transport enough to halt existing supply chains and potentially cause food shortages.

At the end of this introduction, in order to point out that consumers are a basic part of this chain and one of the major drivers, we asked students to think about these facts:

- the majority of wasted or spoiled food is the one that could be found in cunsomers' hands, meaning after food is sold out to costomers,

-our food choices are affected by a lot of factors related to food system, such as organoleptic characteristics, price, promotion and marketing operations,

-our food choices can affect the food system as its aim is to cover consumers needs,

and told them that in this module, we'll examine some factors in order to spread more awareness on:

1. how to make informed food choices

2. what we can do so as to achieve food safety and less wasted food to that stage.

Subtopics

Where consumers can find food?

What is the key to choosing a particular food?

What to consider after buying?

Some information and links provided for each path and students were called to wonder about challenges, links and ways of interraction, having always in mind food safety and food waste but also consumers' needs.

Links:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KSluc9igxkA https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gmqYhWLK7AY https://vimeo.com/151795383?embedded=true&source=video_title&owner=47287883 https://vimeo.com/151794282

Piece of information:

Seller / Supermarket

A retail or supermarket is a place where food is sold to consumers or retail food processing chains. The raw materials at this stage are ready-made food products and ingredients from food processors or farms ready for sale, which also makes their product available on the market. In essence, supermarkets are a store for both farms and food producers. Increasingly, retailers have begun to create their own brands, producing food in their own factories.

The main challenges facing supermarkets include:

• maintaining inventory levels

• ensuring that food is suitable for consumers

• sale of food before the expiration date

Commercial Manufacturers - Restaurant / Catering

Commercial food preparation products consist of farms, food processors or retailers. These are a special but important part of the food supply chain. At this stage are included some food ingredients and some finished products. The results are ready-to-eat and waste meals.

The main challenges they face include:

• have enough food on hand to meet consumer demand without generating too much waste

• hygienic food preparation.

Consumer

This is where food ends its journey. Consumers can buy food on farms, supermarkets or from commercial food producers. The main input raw materials are either foods that the consumer will turn into ready-to-eat food, or purchased ready-made food products ready for consumption.

The main outcome is food waste.

The main challenges consumers face are:

• Just buy as much food as they can eat

• Do not pay too much money for food

• Try to eat foods rich in nutrients

CAUSES OF FOOD DETERMINATION

Students were called to think about the following statement:

"Spoilage of food significantly changes the chemical composition, physical structure and organoleptic properties, as a result of which it loses its original qualities, spoils and ultimately becomes harmful to human health, unusable for food."

and then to watch some videos:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c0En-_BVbGc&t=5s https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D0cBO5jrzCI https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w2-v5F67Pkc

Thus they developed that during the storage of food there is a change caused by the following factors:

1. Corruption in the broadest sense

- Physical factors

- Chemical agents

- By the action of pests

- Biochemical factors

2. Corruption in the narrow sense

- Microbiological factors

Then they were asked why foods are preserved;if preservation is always enough or additional measures must be taken when storing them; if packaging matters; if storage certain conditions matter so as to identify cognitive gaps.

Then we analysed the food preservation topic.

At the end students were asked to watch the following videos:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KvnWAsTp98A https://biologyreader.com/food-preservation-techniques.html

https://commonsensehome.com/home-food-preservation/

make a research and present one method of conservation in their own way and upload it to a twinboard!

1. Blanching is the process of exposing food stuff:

a) temperatures up to 1000 oC for 30 minutes

b) immersion of fruits and vegetables in hot water 80 - 85 oC for half to 5 minutes.

c) quickly heat to boiling temperature and maintain at that temperature for 5-10 minutes

2. Use of antibiotics in food preservation:

a) is not restricted b) limited c) prohibited

3. After canning food, the following may occur:

a) toxicoinfections b) intoxication

4. Factors that facilitate sterilization are:

a) acidity b) starch c) pectin d) globular proteins

5. Due to the crystallization of water under the action of low temperatures in the intercellular space:

a) the concentration of the solution decreases

b) the same concentration of solution remains

c) the concentration of the solution increases

6. Irrespective of the procedures and type of drying device, water evaporates on:

a) temperatures higher than the boiling point of water

b) temperature lower than the boiling point of water

c) water boiling point temperature

7. Biochemical spoilage is caused by:

a) microorganisms b) enzymes from the food itself c) light d) radiation

8. Biochemical spoilage is affected by:

a) number of microorganisms b) temperature c) pH value

9. Molds that spoil food belong to the genus:

a) Aspergillus b) Sacharomyces c) Clostridium

10. Pasterization is:

a) inactivate enzymes b) destroy all microorganisms c) slow down chemical reactions

11. Autoclave is a device that works:

a) under atmospheric pressure b) in vacuum c) at elevated pressure

12. Refrigeration is a method of canning in which food is stored at a temperature of:

a) from -4 to + 4 oC b) from + 8 to + 12 oC c) 10 oС d) - 20 oC

13. At 100 0C the enzymatic reaction is:

a) much faster than 40 oC b) much slower than at 40 oC c) no reaction

14. Oil refraction is a type of:

a) biochemical spoilage b) technological corruption c) microbiological spoilage d)chemical spoilage

15. Optional anaerobic microorganisms develop:

a) in the presence of oxygen b) in the presence and without the presence of oxygen

c) without the presence of oxygen

QUIZ TIME

FOOD SAFETY

A text about Food Safety was given introducing the basic consept of this subtopic:

Food safety is something that we should all take into account, bearing in mind that it is difficult to find someone who has not had a bad experience in this matter. Health problems and food-related diseases can be the result of consuming food contaminated with pathogenic microorganisms, toxic chemicals or radioactive substances.

Food allergy is another problem. While many foodborne illnesses can only be limiting, some can be very serious and even lead to death.

Food safety means limiting the presence of all hazards, whether chronic or acute, that can make food harmful to the health of consumers. It must be ensured in the production, handling, storage and preparation of food, in a way that prevents contamination and contamination in the production chain.

Then the 4Cs of food safety were presented so as to reinforce old knowledge and the following links were given :

https://www.cdc.gov/foodsafety/communication/food-safety-in-the-kitchen.html

https://youtu.be/FdMota7gxqk

At the end students were called to discuss in the twinspace forum the following questions:

1. How to store food in the house?

2. What to consider when shopping?

Look at the photo and take the quiz:

1. Hands should be rinsed in water for at least 5 seconds before preparing foods and after handling raw meats?

a. True b. False

2. As a rule of trumb, foods should not stay out of refrigerator for more than ___ hours. In hot weather (90oF or warmer) this time is reduced to ____ hour(s).

a. 4, 3 b. 3, 1 c. 3, 2 d. 2, 1

3. Which is the most important food safety practice?

a. Wash hand often

b. Keep raw meats and ready-to-eat foods separated

c. Cook to proper temperatures

d. Refrigerate promptly below 40 oF

e. All of the above

4. The proper temperature for a home refrigerator should be below 40 oF:

a. True b. False

5. One way to prevent cross-contamination is to use two cutting boards, one strictly for meats, poultry and seafood and another for ready-to-eat foods.

a. True b. False

6. After cutting meat on a cutting board, the best wayto clean a cutting board is to:

a. Wipe off with a clean sponge

b. Wash in hot water with soap

c. Wash in hot water with soap, then sanitize in chlorine bleach solution, then rinse with clean water

d. All of the above are acceptable

7. A meat / cooking thermometer is the only reliable way to check the doneness of meats, poultry, egg dishes and leftovers.

a. True b. False

8. Leftover foods should be reheated to __ oF

a. 140 b. 150 c. 165 d. Doesn’t matter

9. Meat, fish and poultry should be defrosted:

a. On the counter b. In the refrigerator c. In the microwave d. In the refrigerator or microwave