9781422281345

pounds of vegetables each day, for which they get paid 220 Kenyan shillings (around $2.17). When I hear that a pack of these fancy vegetables sells in a Western store for as much as what a worker earns in a day here, I am filled with anger and am upset. How can this be right?” Food Technology Defined Every time you open a can of beans, reach into a freezer for ice cream, or buy a frozen pizza to heat in a microwave oven, you are experiencing food technology in action. Food technology is the application of science and technology to the selection, preservation, processing, packaging, distribution, and use of safe food. This includes creating food products, shipping them to stores and outlets, and selling them to consumers. Our planet supports an incredible array of plants, animals, and other living organisms. Over a period of thousands of years, humankind discovered that many species were edible and could be hunted and caught, plucked from trees, or dug out of the soil and eaten in order for people to survive and flourish. Today, few foods are eaten as they are found in the wild. Most foods that reach the plates of people, especially those in more developed nations such as the United States and UK, have been prepared and processed using food technology. Food Science versus Food Technology Food science is the use of biology, chemistry, physics, and engi- neering to study the nature of foods. Food science looks at why foods deteriorate or spoil over time, how foods can be mixed or altered to create different food products, and how they can be

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Introduction to Food Technology