Food Technology

Dr. Toomer is employed with the USDA-ARS as a Research Chemist in the Market Quality and Handling Research Unit and as an Adjunct Professor in the Department of Food, Bioprocessing and Nutrition Sciences, North Carolina State University, Raleigh NC. She graduated from North Carolina State University with a Ph.D. in Nutrition with a minor in Biotechnology in 2005. In July 2005, Toomer began a postdoctoral fellowship in the Mucosal Immunology Laboratory of Pediatric Gastroenterology at Massachusetts General Hospital/Harvard Medical School under the supervision of Dr. Allan Walker and Dr. Hai Ning Shi. Toomer completed a second postdoctoral training program at the United States Department Agriculture (USDA)/Agricultural Research Service (ARS) in Beltsville MD with a research emphasis in differential gene expression in the reproductive tissues of turkey hens. Subsequently, Dr. Toomer was employed for over 7 years with the United States Food and Drug Administration-Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition as a Research Biologist with a research emphasis in the development and prevention of Pediatric Food Allergy and the identifying immunological biomarkers of food allergy using in vitro and in vivo models, and studying the effects of commensal microorganisms and/or probiotics on early (pre-weaning) immunological development.

Peanuts, Arachis hypogaea, are one of the most widely consumed legume globally due to its nutrition, taste and affordability. Peanuts are protein and energy-rich and have been utilized worldwide to address the nutritional needs of people and production animals in developing countries. In the United States, 85% of the American peanut production is utilized for domestic edible products, such as peanut butter, candy, confections, and snacks. Thus, our goal in MQH-ARS-USDA has been to evaluate the chemical constituents of peanuts and to investigate the usefulness of peanuts and/or peanut products as a feed and/ or food ingredient. We aimed to identify the usefulness of new high-oleic peanut cultivars as a preferable feed ingredient for poultry. Previous studies have identified normal-oleic peanuts as a suitable and economical poultry feed ingredient. However, no studies to date have examined the use of high-oleic (HO) peanut cultivars as a feed ingredient for poultry and determined the impact of feeding. HO peanuts on poultry performance or nutritive qualities of the eggs produced. To meet these objectives layer hens were fed a conventional diet (soybean meal + corn) or a HO peanut + corn diet for 10 weeks. Body and feed weights were collected weekly. Pooled egg samples were analyzed for quality and lipid analysis. There were no significant differences between treatment groups in hen performance or egg quality. Eggs produced from layer hens fed the HO peanut diet had significantly (p<0.05) greater yolk color scores (2-fold), HO fatty acid and β-carotene levels in comparison to the controls. Eggs produced from hens fed the control diet had significantly greater content of saturated fatty acids and trans fat in comparison to eggs produced from layer hens fed the HO peanut diet. This study identifies HO peanuts as an abundant commodity that could be used to support local agricultural markets of peanuts and poultry and be of economic advantage to producers while providing a potential health benefit to the consumer with improved egg nutrition. Secondly, we aimed to determine the usefulness of peanut skins, a significant waste product produced within the peanut industry, as a functional food ingredient. Numerous studies have demonstrated the health promoting benefits of phenolic compounds found in antioxidant rich plant foods such as, green tea, blueberries, broccoli, beets, seaweed, spinach and grape seeds shown to lower serum and liver low-density lipoproteins, prevent free radical DNA damage and to reduce histamine release and inflammation. To meet our objectives mice were fed a control mouse chow diet (A), an atherogenic diet (B) or an atherogenic diet supplemented with peanut skin phenolic extract (C) for 20 weeks. Bodyweights and blood samples were collected weekly and at termination, liver samples were collected for analysis. Mice fed the peanut skin phenolic extract supplemented atherogenic diet (C) had reduced hepatic inflammation and blood glucose levels in comparison to treatment B, suggesting that phenolic extracts from peanut skins like ther naturally occurring plant compounds may have health benefits when consumed in the diet.

Massimo Zonca is a Food Technologist graduated from Milan State University. He has 30+ years of experience in leading Packaging Development, Food Process and Innovation at H J Heinz, and also at Kraft Heinz Company. Since 2016, he is an Independent Consultant on Food Packaging and Food Process, based in Bergamo, Italy. He held various roles at Heinz, as Packaging Engineer & Development Manager (1987- 2006), European R&D Manager (2006-2009) and Global Packaging Innovation Efficiency Manager until February 2016, managing global initiatives on packaging and innovation and facilitate technology transfer. He gained expertise working in several international projects both in Food Packaging Development and Food Process. He managed food contact issues working together with the DG SANCO (European Commission) and the Istituto Superiore di Sanita- ISS (Italian Health Ministry). He is a member of GSICA, Italian Scientific Group for Food Packaging, does lectures in Parma University on Food Packaging and provides speech at major conferences. He served his hometown (Filago – BG) as a Mayor, from 2005 to 2015. 

Ohmic heating offers a valid alternative to conventional heating, especially for product with big particulates (up to 30 mm), because it simultaneously heats both phases by internal energy generated through electrical energy. In this process, heating rate depends upon the electrical conductivity and field strength. This technique grants a minimum structural damage to a product, which retains its nutritional value and gives excellent processed quality products in minimum operating time, as for HTST process - High Temperature Short Time. This technology was facing several issues during application in terms of process control (appropriate temperature increase control, electrical arc generation, possible burning of product, etc.): those issues discouraged food technologist and technician to promote this technology and, to date, some preconceptions still be present and often become an obstacle for a deep evaluation and adoption of Ohmic heating. The aim of this work is to demonstrate how the problems on this technology were fixed, thanks to the determination from an Italian company, focusing on electrode geometry, application of high frequency, modularity of the equipment and software control; also, the presentation will make an excursus and provide an overview of the most recent applications on food with particulates or specific food with very sensitive components/ingredients and then packed in aseptic condition. Results will be presented taking real examples from the 40 plus industrial equipment installed worldwide and the most recent applications. For each application the main process data: capacity, power and tension applied, flow rate, particulate dimensions, pumping systems, pipe diameter will be showed together with some equipment details. 

Sandra Poirier has been employed at Middle Tennessee State University, USA, since 2005. She received her BSc and MSc degrees in Family and Consumer Sciences from Florida State University and University of Arizona respectively. Her Doctorate was received in 1998 from Florida International University in Miami, Florida with her dissertation in the area of health-related quality of life. Prior to coming to MTSU, she taught for three years at Zayed University in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Additionally, she has worked at the University of Florida Cooperative Extension Service, Florida International University, Florida Atlantic University, University of Arizona Cooperative Extension Service, and the Provincial Government of Alberta, Canada. She has more than 15 years of international teaching experience working in culturally diverse environments. Her strengths include creating innovative educational programs with a focus on food and culture, identifying appropriate outreach efforts to solve community problems, and empowering students for successful careers. She has been recognized for her ability to create and teach online courses, work as an advisor for student organizations, and creating positive educational environments for optimal learning. She has published over 25 journal articles and been invited to speak in Malaysia, Switzerland, Germany, Poland, Austria, Puerto Rico, and the Andros Island in the Caribbean. 

Rising obesity, food insecurity, a lack of quality education and safe water for the poor in the developing world are some of the global society’s entrenched problems. Whose job is it any way to solve these problems? For decades, the answer to the question has been simple: government. Today we live in a different world where a new economy has emerged. The new “solutions economy” represents not just an economic opportunity, but a new strategy for solving many of the global nutrition and health problems. This presentation explores how, in today’s new “solutions economy,” solving social problems is becoming a multidisciplinary exercise that challenges businesses, governments, philanthropists, and social enterprises to think holistically about their role and their relation to others, not as competitors but as collaborators serving as many stakeholders as possible.

Yiannis Kourkoutas has completed his PhD from University of Patras, Greece, and Postdoctoral Studies from University of Ulster, Northern Ireland, UK. He is the Director of Laboratory of Applied Microbiology & Biotechnology at the Department of Molecular Biology & Genetics, Democritus University of Thrace, Greece. He has published more than 80 papers in peer-reviewed journals and has been serving as a lead Guest Editor and an Editorial Board Member in several special issues and reputed scientific journals.

Nowadays there is a growing interest in developing novel functional foods containing probiotic microorganisms. To deliver the health benefits, probiotic products need to contain an adequate amount of live bacteria capable of surviving the acidic conditions of the upper gastro-intestinal tract, as well as proliferating in the intestine, a requirement that is not always fulfilled. To overcome such deficiencies, immobilization techniques have been developed, aiming at stabilization of cells and formulation of new types of foods fortified with immobilized health-promoting bacteria that are only released upon reaching the human gut. In this vein, immobilization of probiotic cells on natural, food-grade, prebiotic dietary fibers was studied. As it is important to develop approaches that are compatible with the use of dried cultures, a technology which accommodates its use by the industrial and commercial sector, the wet immobilized cultures were then subjected to drying processes (freeze- and thermal-drying) and the survival rate after the drying procedure and during storage at room and low-temperatures (4 and -18oC) for various time periods (up to 1 year) were studied. Cell immobilization

enhanced cell viability and extended the shelf-life of pro-and pre-biotic fortified foods, as documented by microbiological and molecular analysis. The probiotic strains were encountered at levels greater than 7 logcfu/g after 2 and 12 months of storage at ambient and low temperatures, respectively, and can also withstand high temperature processing steps (up to 60oC) with no significant loses. Our process resulted in successful dried immobilized probiotic culture preparations appropriate for many food applications that maintained cell viability during storage for time periods suitable for industrial uses.