Sustainability of food production. Global vs local food. Slow food. Street food. Factors influencing tourist food consumption. Awareness of the quality of food and investigation about food frauds. Classification of food: dietary principles and nutritional quality. Drinking and mineral waters. Food preservation and packaging. Assurance systems for food safety and certifications. Examples of supply chains: wine, coffee, and pasta. Sensorial properties and analytical methods for food quality.
Lecture notes and slides on Moodle (with integrative readings).
Learning Objectives
Understanding the positive and negative impacts of food globalization. From global to local food: the biodiversity, the quality and the healthy perspective and sustainability of local products. Understanding tourists’ needs and wants in terms of food consumption in the hospitality businesses.
What is food? Explain how to classify foods and dietary principles. Knowledge of the nutritional role of macro and micronutrients (including food supplements and natural compounds) in a healthy diet. Make a critical analysis of the main pyramid models of diet around the world.
Cultivate a more enquiring approach to, and awareness of, the variety and quality of food and investigate about frauds. Give examples about the main food frauds and fakes.
Describe the properties of water, as a natural resource, drinking water and mineral water. Be aware of the principal methods used in the hospitality sector to reduce the water wastage.
Categorize the main preservation methods in food industry, and describe the systems involved in the quality and safety management that ensure the food safety (HACCP plan).
Criticize the main food manufacturing processes and explain traceability system in food supply chains.
Knowledge of the main steps of the wine making process. Awareness of the importance on the wine tourism. Sustainability of wine making process.
Define the main food safety and hygiene international standards (BRC, IFS, ISO 22000).
Be able to identify mandatory indications on a food label.
Be aware on how sensory analysis is used in food industry for the food quality assessment and to investigate about consumers’ preferences.
Be aware of the main features of some food/beverages supply chains.
Prerequisites
A good knowledge and understanding of written English.
Teaching Methods
Lectures (48 h), other forms of teaching methods (as seminars and experimental lessons) suspended due to COVID19.
Further information
Exams of 2021 summer session will be taken in class room (June 10th, at time 11.30 AM, D6/0.11)
Type of Assessment
ORAL examination overall program course, with 3 questions. Each question accounts 1/3 of the final grade. Duration of the exam: 20-30 min.
IMPORTANT: If the state of emergency COVID19 ends and it is possible to take the exam in attendance, the oral exam is replaced by a written exam in the classroom. The written exam consists of 5 open questions on the course program. The duration of the written test is 50 minutes, for each question it is possible to write 10 lines of text. Each question contributes 1/5 to the final mark.
Course program
Tentative program of the lectures (subject to change):
Lecture 1: Introduction to the Course. Main topics and learning objectives. Type of assessment.
Lecture 2: Food globalization; risk and trust in the food sector; the main international actors in the food safety assessment; sustainable food production; environmental impact of food production. Food production and global warming. Sustainable food products.
Lecture 3: Efforts to promote local foods and traditional agriculture. Glocalization. The biodiversity, the quality and the healthy perspective of typical products. Slow food movement. Slow food presidia and the Ark of Taste. Farm to fork networks.
Lecture 4: Street food (TBD)
Lecture 5: FOOD FRAUDS: adulteration and misbranding. Food frauds and global scandals. Food frauds in the history
Lecture 6: The main causes of food spoilage. Example of food-borne diseases, frequently found in catering. Classification of the main techniques used by the food industry for food preservation: methods that use temperature control (refrigeration, refrigeration with MAP, pasteurization and canning); methods that use water control (concentration, drying, lyophilization); and gamma radiations. Preservation methods with physical and chemical methods: the obtaining of smoked food.
Lecture 7: Minimizing food risks along the supply chain.
Lecture 8: Food and nutrition. Food groups. Food pyramid: a model for a sustainable diet.
Lecture 9: Carbohydrates: classification, metabolism and nutritional properties. Intense sweeteners (saccharin, aspartame, cyclamates). Natural substitutes of sugars (honey, HFCS, stevia). Lipids and fats: classification and nutritional role. Fats and food supplements: lecithin, omega-3, essential fatty acids.
Lecture 10: Classification and nutritional role of proteins. Essential amino acids. Proteins from animal and vegetal sources. Diseases and intollerances linked to the protein intake. Complementary proteins.
Lecture 11: Vitamin and food supplements: classification and biological properties. Minerals in the diet. Natural compounds (antioxidants) for a healthy diet: nutraceuticals, herbal drugs and superfood.
Lecture 12: Quality management systems: ISO9001. Certification process. Other relevant certification standards: ISO14001, SA8000, fair trade.
Lecture 13: Food tourism and gastronomy, evolution of the phenomenon (Foodies, pop up restaurants). Factors influencing tourist food consumption. Tourist approach to local foods.
Lecture 14: Food quality international standards and certification.
Lecture 15: Water and tourism. Mineral waters: new trends.
Lecture 16: Italian food label legislation, mandatory requirements, traceability, and examples of label and packaging of Italian foodstuff.
FOOD SUPPLY CHAINS:
Lecture 17: COFFEE (with a remote sensory tasting)
Lecture 18: PASTA. Why Italians love to talk about food? Spaghetti & Co: the Italian Pasta. Sensory testing.
Lecture 19: HONEY (with a remote sensory tasting).
Lecture 20: WINE, with a special focus on the technique of production, territory and wine tourism (PART I).
Lecture 21: WINE, with a special focus on the technique of production, territory and wine tourism (PART II).
Lecture 22: Evolution of food TV commercials in Italy.
Lecture 23: End of the course. Final remark and questions from students.
Lecture 24: End of the course. Final remark and questions from students.