EDUCATION NEWS

University of Guelph offers distance-learning Certificate in Food Science
The University of Guelph, Guelph, Ontario, Canada, is offering a certificate in food science through their Open Learning program. The course is designed to provide a broad understanding of food science for those with little or no formal food science education, and should be of interest to those wishing to upgrade their knowledge, such as production supervisors lacking formal education in the industry, nutritionists and dietitians wanting to know more about food science and processing, food plant managers, government-employed food and public health inspectors, food industry entrepreneurs, and others.

To qualify for the certificate, individuals must have completed post-secondary courses in basic chemistry and microbiology. Specific prerequisites vary with each of the five courses. These are:

Principles of Food Science (FOOD*2010DE)—introduces the principles involved in the processing, handling, and storage of foods, and covers the relationship of science and technology to food processing.

Introduction to Food Chemistry (FOOD*2400DE)—introduction to the chemistry of the major components of foods: lipids, proteins, carbohydrates, and water/ice; also an overview of reactions and changes in food components which occur during processing, handling, and storage.

Introduction to Food Processing (FOOD*2410DE)—introduces food processes and the relationships between chemistry, microbiology, and engineering as they apply to food processing.

Introduction to Food Microbiology (FOOD*2420DE)—introduces the major groups of microorganisms in food, including sources of contamination during production, processing and storage of foods, foodborne illness, and food fermentations.

Introduction to Food Analysis (FOOD*3430DE)—introduces quantitative analysis of foods by chemical, physical, and instrumental means; learn how to determine the major and minor constituents of foods.

Courses begin in September, January, and May and course offerings will vary with each semester. Each course requires approximately ten hours of work per week, scheduled weekly over a 12-week period. All courses have a final examination that is given at a location near you. Technical requirements include an IBM-compatible computer with Pentium processor, running Windows 95 or later, 32 MB RAM, 50 MEGS hard disk space free, SVGA monitor, 1MB video card, 256 colors, and a 14,400 modem or better with Internet access. Alternatively, you may use a MAC computer with DE030 or better processor, running MAC OS 7.1 or better, 12 MB RAM, 10 MEGS hard disk space, color graphics and monitor preferred, and a 14,400 modem or better with Internet access.

The fee is CDN$695.00 per course for Canadian citizens; non-Canadians CDN$865.00, which includes all course materials except textbooks and course readers. For more information or to obtain registration materials, contact Certificate in Food Science, Office of Open Learning, 160 Johnston Hall, University of Guelph, Guelph, Ont. N1G 2W1, Canada (call 519-767-5000; fax 519-824-1112; E-mail: [email protected]; Web site: FoodScienceCertificate.com).

Guelph wins “Challenge 2000” 
The Food Industry Suppliers of Canada Scholarship Trust and the Regional Sections of the Canadian Institute of Food Science and Technology (CIFST) recently sponsored a rousing inter-university college bowl-type contest to excite interest among Canadian universities in general food science knowledge. The concept of such a contest between teams of four students each was conceived and organized by Susan Abraham, a doctoral student at the University of Guelph, Ontario, Canada.

During Agri-Food 2000, five teams gathered Monday, July 17, 2000, at the Winnipeg Convention Centre for the first staging of this contest. The inaugural “Student Challenge 2000” was a rousing success and a knock-out competition.

In the first round, the University of British Columbia (UBC) beat Memorial University in a real cliff-hanger. Had Memorial bet more points on the “final jeopardy” question, they would have defeated their Pacific counterparts. As it was, UBC prevailed. In the other first-round match, the University of Alberta handily defeated the hosts, University of Manitoba. The captains of the two winning teams then answered a skill-testing question to determine which team would receive a bye to the final. The Alberta captain’s knowledge proved superior, and UBC was left to compete against Guelph in the semifinal.

Guelph easily beat UBC, leaving the way open to an exciting final between Alberta and Guelph. In that contest, leading up to the final jeopardy question with Guelph leading by six points, the Alberta team was forced to wager all its points, whereas Guelph only had to bet 19 points to secure victory. This final question required a written consensus from each team. As Question Masters Brian Raines and Linda Poste-Flynn read the answers, Judge Ricky Yada declared that both teams had answered incorrectly, and Guelph was declared the winner.

The University of Guelph was the first recipient of the Marvin Tung Memorial Trophy. The members of the winning team were Amy Proulx, Karl Probst, Cynthia Arsenault, and Scott Henry.

The next Student Challenge will be held on Monday, June 4, 2001, during FOODTec ‘01 in Toronto. It is hoped that many more university teams will compete in next year’s contest, and it is hoped to send next year’s winning team to New Orleans to compete in the IFT College Bowl competition.

Crawford gives Wisconsin’s Frazier Memorial Lecture
Lester M. Crawford, Professor and Director of the Center for Food and Nutrition Policy at Georgetown University, Washington, D.C., recently gave the Ninth Annual William C. Frazier Memorial Lecture at the University of Wisconsin, Madison. The lecture was given in conjunction with the Annual Meeting of the Food Research Institute.

Crawford spoke on “Food Safety Objectives: Concentrating on Disease Reduction.” In his presentation, he indicated that the “penchant for controversy, polemics, and polarization that have characterized national and international food and nutrition initiatives for at least a hundred years has left a legacy of confusion and mistrust in the public.” He continued to say that “a larger problem than the cacophony of the policy making process is the hidden agenda,” and cited examples of food inspector unions wanting to preserve jobs of members, environmental activists wanting to preserve family farms, advocacy groups opposed to food irradiation, groups spreading invective about food biotechnology, and companies attempting to get drugs approved as food supplements.

In Crawford’s view, there are six steps in establishing food and nutrition policy. They are: agitation, visioning, process, lobbying, cover, and declaration of victory. He then described what he meant by “agitation,” and said “the final stage in the agitation process is that of bringing attention to the issue.” Sometimes this means Congress or the Executive Branch will seize the issue and actually do something to solve the problem.

The Frazier Memorial Lecture was established in 1992 to bring outstanding food scientists to the campus and also to honor the life and career of William C. Frazier, a pioneering food/dairy microbiologist at the University of Wisconsin at Madison.

Kansas State receives technology gift from Procter & Gamble
Kansas State University, Manhattan, and the Mid-America Commercialization Corp., Kansas Entrepreneurial Center, Manhattan, received a technology patent donation from the Procter & Gamble Co. for a nutritional beverage. This product, invented by Procter & Gamble scientists, uses a method of allowing milk protein to remain in suspension and be shelf-stable with juice.

The donation involves patent rights and technological expertise for “Smoothies-Protein Particle Stabilization” or a milk-juice beverage known as Smoothies. The gift also allows for product formulations and rights to proprietary Procter & Gamble calcium citrate maleate fortification in the product.

Gordon Brunner, Procter & Gamble’s chief technology officer, stated that “We simply invent more products than we can develop . . . so we donate those ‘off-strategy’ technologies which require significant development to universities which have unique expertise to develop and commercialize the technology.”

The Mid-America Commercialization Corp., through its affiliation with Kansas State University’s food and nutrition programs, was the institution most qualified to advance Smoothies technology and to realize its commercial potential. The product, if marketed across multiple beverage lines, can generate more than $1 billion in sales annually. Royalties from the sales will go to Kansas State University and the Mid-America Commercialization Center, including the foods and nutrition program to facilitate additional BioNutrition activities.