Effect of temperature distribution on predicting quality of microwave dehydrated food

During food drying, many other changes occur simultaneously, resulting in an improved overall quality. Among the quality attributes, the structure and its corresponding color influence directly or indirectly other properties of food. In addition, these quality attributes are affected by process conditions, material components and the raw structure of the foodstuff. In this work, the temperature distribution within food materials during microwave drying has been taken into consideration to observe its role in color modification. In order to determine the temperature distribution of microwave-dried food (apple), a thermal imaging camera has been used. The image acquired from the digital camera has been analysed using image J software in order to get the color change of fresh and dried apple. The results show that temperature distribution plays an important role in determining the quality of the food. The thermal imaging camera was deployed to observe the temperature distribution within food materials during drying. It is clearly observed from the higher value of (ERGB =102) and the uneven color change that uneven temperature distribution can influence customer perceptions of the quality of dried food. Simulation of a mathematical model of temperature distribution during microwave drying can make it possible to predict the colour and texture of the microwaved food.

Influence of drying conditions on the moisture diffusion and fluidization quality during multi-stage fluidized bed drying of bovine intestine for pet food

In order to establish the influence of the drying air characteristics on the drying performance and fluidization quality of bovine intestine for pet food, several drying tests have been carried out in a laboratory scale heat pump assisted fluid bed dryer. Bovine intestine samples were heat pump fluidized bed dried at atmospheric pressure and at temperatures below and above the materials freezing points, equipped with a continuous monitoring system. The investigation of the drying characteristics have been conducted in the temperature range −10 to 25 ◦C and the airflow in the range 1.5–2.5 m/s. Some experiments were conducted as single temperature drying experiments and others as two stage drying experiments employing two temperatures. An Arrhenius-type equation was used to interpret the influence of the drying air temperature on the effective diffusivity, calculated with the method of slopes in terms of energy activation, and this was found to be sensitive to the temperature. The effective diffusion coefficient of moisture transfer was determined by the Fickian method using uni-dimensional moisture movement in both moisture, removal by evaporation and combined sublimation and evaporation. Correlations expressing the effective moisture diffusivity and drying temperature are reported. Bovine particles were characterized according to the Geldart classification and the minimum fluidization velocity was calculated using the Ergun Equation and generalized equation for all drying conditions at the beginning and end of the trials. Walli’s model was used to categorize stability of the fluidization at the beginning and end of the dryingv for each trial. The determined Walli’s values were positive at the beginning and end of all trials indicating stable fluidization at the beginning and end for each drying condition.

Food neophobia and its association with diet quality and weight in children aged 24 months : a cross sectional study

Background Food neophobia, the rejection of unknown or novel foods, may result in poor dietary patterns. This study investigates the cross-sectional relationship between neophobia in children aged 24 months and variety of fruit and vegetable consumption, intake of discretionary foods and weight. Methods Secondary analysis of data from 330 parents of children enrolled in the NOURISH RCT (control group only) and SAIDI studies was performed using data collected at child age 24 months. Neophobia was measured at 24 months using the Child Food Neophobia Scale (CFNS). The cross-sectional associations between total CFNS score and fruit and vegetable variety, discretionary food intake and BMI (Body Mass Index) Z-score were examined via multiple regression models; adjusting for significant covariates. Results At 24 months, more neophobic children were found to have lower variety of fruits (β=-0.16, p=0.003) and vegetables (β=-0.29, p<0.001) but have a greater proportion of daily energy from discretionary foods (β=0.11, p=0.04). There was no significant association between BMI Z-score and CFNS score. Conclusions Neophobia is associated with poorer dietary quality. Results highlight the need for interventions to (1) begin early to expose children to a wide variety of nutritious foods before neophobia peaks and (2) enable health professionals to educate parents on strategies to overcome neophobia.

Service quality in Hong Kong : wet markets vs super markets

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to determine consumer perceptions of service quality in wet markets and supermarkets in Hong Kong. Design/methodology/approach – A questionnaire was developed and distributed via a convenience sample to consumers in shopping malls in Causeway Bay, Mong Kok and Tsuen Wan. Findings – The study finds that supermarkets outperformed wet markets across all aspects of service quality as measured by SERVQUAL-P. Research limitations/implications – Implications suggest that wet market vendors are not providing the level of service quality demanded by their customers. In particular, findings suggest that wet market vendors need to improve the visual attractiveness of their stalls, work on making them look more professional and start using more modern equipment. Practical implications – Wet market vendors in conjunction with government representatives need to develop standards of service quality for wet markets across Hong Kong. This is imperative if the wet market model is to survive in what is a highly competitive food retailing industry. Without action, it appears that the supermarketization of the Hong Kong food retailing industry will continue unabated. Originality/value – This paper adds to a small but growing research stream examining service quality in the food retailing industry in Hong Kong. It provides empirical results that guide suggested actions for change.

Examination of social demographic status, disease status, health behaviours and quality of life in older Australians using the theory of planned behaviour model

The increase of life expectancy worldwide during the last three decades has increased age-related disability leading to the risk of loss of quality of life. How to improve quality of life including physical health and mental health for older people and optimize their life potential has become an important health issue. This study used the Theory of Planned Behaviour Model to examine factors influencing health behaviours, and the relationship with quality of life. A cross-sectional mailed survey of 1300 Australians over 50 years was conducted at the beginning of 2009, with 730 completed questionnaires returned (response rate 63%). Preliminary analysis reveals that physiological changes of old age, especially increasing waist circumference and co morbidity was closely related to health status, especially worse physical health summary score. Physical activity was the least adherent behaviour among the respondents compared to eating healthy food and taking medication regularly as prescribed. Increasing number of older people living alone with co morbidity of disease may be the barriers that influence their attitude and self control toward physical activity. A multidisciplinary and integrated approach including hospital and non hospital care is required to provide appropriate services and facilities toward older people.

Food insecurity in Brisbane : the single mother’s struggle

Using a feminist reflexive approach this paper reports on interviews with single mother’s in the Brisbane area about their experiences with food shopping and household food security. Preliminary findings suggest that most experience significant stress around the amount of money they have available for food. As the price of food and other costs of living increase, the only budget item that is flexible – groceries - is squeezed tighter. All women expressed a reluctance to ask for help from strangers at agencies instead relying on the support of family and friends to keep them food secure. Sometimes family and friends had no spare resources to help or were not aware of the extent their friend or relative might be struggling. The increased risks of poverty and food insecurity mean many go without as feeding the children takes precedence. The quality of their diets is variable with many reporting on aiming for quantity rather than being concerned with nutritional balance. Exhaustion and stress from being over-committed doing three roles, mother, father and housekeeper was self-identified as a key factor leading to mental health conditions such as depression, burnout and break down. Female single parent households are vulnerable to reducing welfare benefits as children grow or child support changes. Current policy forces single parents out to work but many can only manage part-time work for lower wages and are barely able to cope with this extra burden often resenting the reduction in benefits it brings. Public perceptions, derision and the notions of choice surrounding single parenting leave the cohort divided and silent for fear of reprisals. In my investigation issues arise about welfare policy that keep benefits low and workplace patriarchal power that can contribute to systemic poverty and the widening of the gender gap in poverty. So far analysis suggests a better support system around community food security including some hands on home help services, nutritional information, cooking classes, community gardening and other social capital building activities are needed for these women in order to avoid long-term health problems and help them better care for the next generation.

Liking vs. wanting food : importance for human appetite control and weight regulation

Current train of thought in appetite research is favouring an interest in non-homeostatic or hedonic (reward) mechanisms in relation to overconsumption and energy balance. This tendency is supported by advances in neurobiology that precede the emergence of a new conceptual approach to reward where affect and motivation (liking and wanting) can be seen as the major force in guiding human eating behaviour. In this review, current progress in applying processes of liking and wanting to the study of human appetite are examined by discussing the following issues: How can these concepts be operationalised for use in human research to reflect the neural mechanisms by which they may be influenced? Do liking and wanting operate independently to produce functionally significant changes in behaviour? Can liking and wanting be truly experimentally separated or will an expression of one inevitably contain elements of the other? The review contains a re-examination of selected human appetite research before exploring more recent methodological approaches to the study of liking and wanting in appetite control. In addition, some theoretical developments are described in four diverse models that may enhance current understanding of the role of these processes in guiding ingestive behaviour. Finally, the implications of a dual process modulation of food reward for weight gain and obesity are discussed. The review concludes that processes of liking and wanting are likely to have independent roles in characterising susceptibility to weight gain. Further research into the dissociation of liking and wanting through implicit and explicit levels of processing would help to disclose the relative importance of these components of reward for appetite control and weight regulation.

Good nutrition for good surgery: clinical and quality of life outcomes

Undernutrition is common in patients admitted for surgery and is often unrecognised, untreated and worsens in hospital. The complex synergistic relationship between nutritional status and the physiological responses to surgery puts patients at high nutritional risk. There are clear prospective associations between inadequate nutritional status and the risk of poorer outcomes for surgical patients, including infection, complications and length of stay. However, practically and ethically evidence that nutritional interventions can significantly reduce these poor outcomes is difficult to obtain. Nevertheless health professionals have a duty of care to ensure our patients are properly fed, by whatever means, to meet their physiological requirements.

Contribution of take-out food consumption to socioeconomic differences in fruit and vegetable intake : a mediation analysis

Lower fruit and vegetable intake among socioeconomically disadvantaged groups has been well documented, and may be a consequence of a higher consumption of take-out foods. This study examined whether, and to what extent, take-out food consumption mediated (explained) the association between socioeconomic position and fruit and vegetable intake. A cross-sectional postal survey was conducted among 1500 randomly selected adults aged 25–64 years in Brisbane, Australia in 2009 (response rate = 63.7%, N = 903). A food frequency questionnaire assessed usual daily servings of fruits and vegetables (0 to 6), overall take-out consumption (times/week) and the consumption of 22 specific take-out items (never to ≥once/day). These specific take-out items were grouped into “less healthy” and “healthy” choices and indices were created for each type of choice (0 to 100). Socioeconomic position was ascertained by education. The analyses were performed using linear regression, and a bootstrap re-sampling approach estimated the statistical significance of the mediated effects. Mean daily serves of fruits and vegetables was 1.89 (SD 1.05) and 2.47 (SD 1.12) respectively. The least educated group were more likely to consume fewer serves of fruit (B= –0.39, p<0.001) and vegetables (B= –0.43, p<0.001) compared with the highest educated. The consumption of “less healthy” take-out food partly explained (mediated) education differences in fruit and vegetable intake; however, no mediating effects were observed for overall and “healthy” take-out consumption. Regular consumption of “less healthy” take-out items may contribute to socioeconomic differences in fruit and vegetable intake, possibly by displacing these foods.

Negative affect-induced food intake in non-dieting women is reward driven and associated with restrained-disinhibited eating subtype

In humans the presence of negative affect is thought to promote food intake, but there is widespread variability. Susceptibility to negative affect-induced eating may depend on trait eating behaviours, notably ‘emotional eating’, ‘restrained eating’ and ‘disinhibited eating’, but the evidence is not consistent. In the present study, 30 non-obese, non-dieting women were given access to palatable food whilst in a state of negative or neutral affect, induced by a validated autobiographical recall technique. As predicted, food intake was higher in the presence of negative affect; however, this effect was moderated by the pattern of eating behaviour traits and enhanced wanting for the test food. Specifically, the High Restraint-High Disinhibition subtype in combination with higher scores on emotional eating and food wanting was able to predict negative-affect intake (adjusted R2 = .61). In the absence of stress, individuals who are both restrained and vulnerable to disinhibited eating are particularly susceptible to negative affect food intake via stimulation of food wanting. Identification of traits that predispose individuals to overconsume and a more detailed understanding of the specific behaviours driving such overconsumption may help to optimise strategies to prevent weight gain.

Simultaneous voltammetric determination of three herbicides in food and water samples with the aid of chemometrics

Differential pulse stripping voltammetry method(DPSV) was applied to the determination of three herbicides, ametryn, cyanatryn, and dimethametryn. It was found that their voltammograms overlapped strongly, and it is difficult to determine these compounds individually from their mixtures. With the aid of chemometrics, classical least squares(CLS), principal component regression(PCR) and partial least squares(PLS), voltammogram resolution and quantitative analysis of the synthetic mixtures of the three compounds were successfully performed. The proposed method was also applied to the analysis of some real samples with satisfactory results.

Development of a high-speed sensing and detection system for automatic removal of packages with leaky seals from a high-speed food processing and packaging line

Contamination of packaged foods due to micro-organisms entering through air leaks can cause serious public health issues and cost companies large amounts of money due to product recalls, consumer impact and subsequent loss of market share. The main source of contamination is leaks in packaging which allow air, moisture and microorganisms to enter the package. In the food processing and packaging industry worldwide, there is an increasing demand for cost effective state of the art inspection technologies that are capable of reliably detecting leaky seals and delivering products at six-sigma. The new technology will develop non-destructive testing technology using digital imaging and sensing combined with a differential vacuum technique to assess seal integrity of food packages on a high-speed production line. The cost of leaky packages in Australian food industries is estimated close to AUD $35 Million per year. Contamination of packaged foods due to micro-organisms entering through air leaks can cause serious public health issues and cost companies large sums of money due to product recalls, compensation claims and loss of market share. The main source of contamination is leaks in packaging which allow air, moisture and micro-organisms to enter the package. Flexible plastic packages are widely used, and are the least expensive form of retaining the quality of the product. These packets can be used to seal, and therefore maximise, the shelf life of both dry and moist products. The seals of food packages need to be airtight so that the food content is not contaminated due to contact with microorganisms that enter as a result of air leakage. Airtight seals also extend the shelf life of packaged foods, and manufacturers attempt to prevent food products with leaky seals being sold to consumers. There are many current NDT (non-destructive testing) methods of testing the seal of flexible packages best suited to random sampling, and for laboratory purposes. The three most commonly used methods are vacuum/pressure decay, bubble test, and helium leak detection. Although these methods can detect very fine leaks, they are limited by their high processing time and are not viable in a production line. Two nondestructive in-line packaging inspection machines are currently available and are discussed in the literature review. The detailed design and development of the High-Speed Sensing and Detection System (HSDS) is the fundamental requirement of this project and the future prototype and production unit. Successful laboratory testing was completed and a methodical design procedure was needed for a successful concept. The Mechanical tests confirmed the vacuum hypothesis and seal integrity with good consistent results. Electrically, the testing also provided solid results to enable the researcher to move the project forward with a certain amount of confidence. The laboratory design testing allowed the researcher to confirm theoretical assumptions before moving into the detailed design phase. Discussion on the development of the alternative concepts in both mechanical and electrical disciplines enables the researcher to make an informed decision. Each major mechanical and electrical component is detailed through the research and design process. The design procedure methodically works through the various major functions both from a mechanical and electrical perspective. It opens up alternative ideas for the major components that although are sometimes not practical in this application, show that the researcher has exhausted all engineering and functionality thoughts. Further concepts were then designed and developed for the entire HSDS unit based on previous practice and theory. In the future, it would be envisaged that both the Prototype and Production version of the HSDS would utilise standard industry available components, manufactured and distributed locally. Future research and testing of the prototype unit could result in a successful trial unit being incorporated in a working food processing production environment. Recommendations and future works are discussed, along with options in other food processing and packaging disciplines, and other areas in the non-food processing industry.

Achieving quality improvement in the mask manufacturing industry by using Six Sigma technique

The Six Sigma technique is one of the quality management strategies and is utilised for improving the quality and productivity in the manufacturing process. It is inspired by the two major project methodologies of Deming’s "Plan – Do – Check – Act (PDCA)" Cycle which consists of DMAIC and DMADV. Those two methodologies are comprised of five phases. The DMAIC project methodology will be comprehensively used in this research. In brief, DMAIC is utilised for improving the existing manufacturing process and it involves the phases Define, Measure, Analyse, Improve, and Control. Mask industry has become a significant industry in today’s society since the outbreak of some serious diseases such as the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS), bird flu, influenza, swine flu and hay fever. Protecting the respiratory system, then, has become the fundamental requirement for preventing respiratory deceases. Mask is the most appropriate and protective product inasmuch as it is effective in protecting the respiratory tract and resisting the virus infection through air. In order to satisfy various customers’ requirements, thousands of mask products are designed in the market. Moreover, masks are also widely used in industries including medical industries, semi-conductor industries, food industries, traditional manufacturing, and metal industries. Notwithstanding the quality of masks have become the prioritisations since they are used to prevent dangerous diseases and safeguard people, the quality improvement technique are of very high significance in mask industry. The purpose of this research project is firstly to investigate the current quality control practices in a mask industry, then, to explore the feasibility of using Six Sigma technique in that industry, and finally, to implement the Six Sigma technique in the case company to develop and evaluate the product quality process. This research mainly investigates the quality problems of musk industry and effectiveness of six sigma technique in musk industry with the United Excel Enterprise Corporation (UEE) Company as a case company. The DMAIC project methodology in the Six Sigma technique is adopted and developed in this research. This research makes significant contribution to knowledge. The main results contribute to the discovering the root causes of quality problems in a mask industry. Secondly, the company was able to increase not only acceptance rate but quality level by utilising the Six Sigma technique. Hence, utilising the Six Sigma technique could increase the production capacity of the company. Third, the Six Sigma technique is necessary to be extensively modified to improve the quality control in the mask industry. The impact of the Six Sigma technique on the overall performance in the business organisation should be further explored in future research.