B021369 - FOOD QUALITY AND ANALYTICAL CONTROL

English

Classification of food and dietary principles. Water as a natural resource; drinking water process and properties; mineral waters characteristics and classification. Food preservation by physical, chemical and biological methods. Assurance systems for food safety (HACCP). Standard BRC and IFS. ISO 22000. Fakes and fraud in commercial food products. GMO and food. Knowledge of the main food manufacturing processes (food chain). Food supplements and novel foods. Analytical detection methods for food quality: densitometry, refractometry, viscometry, microscopic and spectrophotometric analysis. Elements of chromatographic techniques

Lecture notes (to be requested by sending an email to patrizia.pinelli@unifi.it)

Knowing how to classify foods and dietary principles. Knowing the properties of water as a natural resource, drinking water and mineral water. Knowledge of the main preservation methods in food industry, and about systems ensuring the safety of food. Gain knowledge on major fraud and fakes of food. Knowing how to define a GMO. Knowing the main food manufacturing processes and be able to identify and classify novel foods and dietary supplements. Be aware of some test methods for the evaluation and quality control of food.

not provided

Classroom teaching: 30 hours
Laboratory activity: 12 hours
Seminars: 2 hours
Guided tours: Eventually

The examination consists in a paper drawn up on a food product chosen by the student. The oral examination is a discussion about the presented paper and the study material.

FOOD AND DIETARY PRINCIPLES - Foods. Source of food. Lipid substances. Carbohydrates. Proteins. Vitamins. Components biodynamic and other substances. Presence of foreign chemicals in food. Daily energy requirements.
COMMERCIAL FRAUD - Alteration, denaturation, commercial fraud. Packing: glass, paper, cardboard and laminated materials, wood, ceramic, plastic, metal.
WATER AS A RESOURCE - Properties of water. Hydrosphere and water cycle. Classification of waters. Hardness of water. Water desalination. Classification of water: drinking water, mineral water, industrial water, water for agricultural uses.
FOOD PRESERVATION - Main causes of food spoilage. Food preservation at low temperatures (refrigeration, refrigeration in a controlled atmosphere, freezing). Preservation methods with the heat (pasteurization and sterilization). Treatments based on dehydration (drying and freeze-drying). Electromagnetic and ionizing radiation. Preservation by smoking. Notes on food preservation by chemical and biological methods.
FOOD SAFETY - The agro-food industry and the quality and safety management. HACCP plan and self-sanitation. Internationalization of food and standardization. BRC and IFS standards. ISO 22000 and the food chain. Traceability. Provision of technical specifications and data sheets for sale. Food labeling.
PRODUCTS AND FOOD CHAINS - GMOs on our table. Description of the main food supply chains: milk and dairy products; alcoholic beverages. The chain of extra virgin Tuscan olive oil - olive growing. The oil quality: the quality orientation of firms olive; organic farming; olive production subject to discipline; Examples of DOP oils from Tuscany; Olive oil and its relationship with the market; differentiation strategies. Functional foods and novel food.
EXPERIMENTAL - Definition of density and its commodity science importance for the quality assessment of food products. Density constant weight (aerometers) and fixed volume (pycnometers). Measurement of the density of the milk and alcoholic beverages. Definition and classification of viscosity of the main viscometers. Measurement of the viscosity of some food products (mayonnaise, yogurt, etc.). Definition of refraction index and description of the Abbe refractometer. Refractometers field for measuring the sugar content of fruits and products thereof. Measurement of the refractive index in commercial beverages, jams and honey. Microscopic analysis for the evaluation of quality and origin of starch, flour and spices. Basics of UV-VIS spectrophotometric analysis. How to construct a calibration curve, as is an analysis and quantitative.