Institutions of Higher Education (HEIs) faced great challenges, due to the COVID- crisis, on swiftly dealing with this unprecedented situation regarding the implementation of practical courses and interactive educational activities such as project-based courses. The aim of this work is to analyze the challenges and difficulties that arose through this process and the benefits that have emerged for both students and educators. For this reason, questionnaires were designed to study the pedagogical practices used for a project-based course, during the pandemic, and were distributed online to all students and supervisors enrolled in the course. The course entailed the design of an innovative food product, from the interactive analysis of different novel ideas to the production of a final product of high nutritional and ecological profile. Despite the concern that the enforcement of distance learning would significantly affect project-based courses, the majority of respondents confirmed that their institution adapted the curriculum successfully. They also declared satisfaction with the general format, and teaching procedures adopted, and agreed that the online modality can properly transmit educational content. Although, both faculty and students needed to adapt to the distance learning modality and become familiar with the use of new digital tools, they agreed that it can be very useful and provide benefits, when properly planned in advance and accompanied by the right technical support, equipment and class materials.

The purpose of this research was to investigate avoidable food waste among households of students studying in higher education in Sein¨ajoki. The focus was to quantify the avoidable food waste in different-sized households. The focus was also to specify food categories wasted, and the main reasons for avoidable food waste accumulated. The participating households weighed all their food waste during the one-week monitoring period recording the data on an Excel spreadsheet. The university students taking part in the study were introduced to the work by video instruction. In total 421 households with 918 persons took part in this study. It was found that the average amount of avoidable food waste was equal to 25.2 kg/person/year. In single person households, the amount was 36.6 kg/year. The amount for households with five or more persons was 80.0 kg/household i.e. 14.1 kg/person. This research showed that 25 % of the households caused 56 % of the avoidable food waste, which means that main efforts should be targeted to this ’heavy wasting’ group. One way of improving the good practices would be to share good habits related to lowering food waste among university students through peer learning. This study is aimed to awaken the ’heavy wasting’ university student to change their attitude and behaviour.

Porridge is a staple food in many developing countries and is usually used as a weaning or breakfast food. The increased preference for convenient and healthy meals has increased the desire for nutrientenriched instant flours. Jackfruit is an underutilised fruit that is rich in vitamin C and other bioactive components. This study aimed to evaluate dried jackfruit powder as an ingredient for porridge flour. Formulations were made by substituting varying levels (0, 10, 20 and 30, 40 and 50%) of an extruded maize-soy blend (MSB) constituting 70% maize and 30% soy with refractance window dried jackfruit powder. The composite flours were used to make porridges which were analysed for their sensory acceptability by a 60-member semi-trained panel. The viscosity, water holding capacity, oil holding capacity, solubility index and bulk density of the flours were also assessed. Porridge acceptability, flour proximate composition, ascorbic acid and carotenoid content for the most preferred experimental formulation were compared to commercial maize-based instant flour and plain maize-soy instant flour. The most acceptable porridge was made from the 50% MSB and 50% jackfruit flour blend. The 50% jackfruit - MSB blend and control commercial instant flours attained drinking viscosity (2,500–3,000cP) at 20% and 31% flour rates. The energy, protein, iron, calcium, β-carotene, and vitamin C densities of jackfruit - MSB porridge were 47.8 %, 48.9 %, 158.1 %, 226.5 %, 230.3 % and 125.9 % higher than those obtained from plain MSB porridge respectively. The results showed the potential of jackfruit as an ingredient for the nutritional enrichment of flours meant for making porridge.

Fermentation increases the functional value of food. During fermentation, chemical changes occur in organic substrates, such as carbohydrates, proteins, and fats due to enzyme activities of microorganisms. Functional foods containing unsaturated fatty acids are an alternative for preventing cardiovascular disease. The Indian mackerel (Rastrelliger kanagurta Cuvier) is rich in protein, polyunsaturated fatty acids, and non-essential and essential amino acids. Fish that are processed into sausage and fermented can be used as an alternative functional food to prevent cardiovascular disease. This study analysed the effect of fermentation time on nutritional content (carbohydrate, protein, fat, water, ash, amino acid, and fatty acid contents), physical properties, pH, and organoleptic properties in fermented mackerel sausage. This was a completely randomized experimental study with three fermentation times of 1, 2, and 3 days, and 0 days as a control. Fermentation was carried out spontaneously with 1.9% salt and sugar without adding a bacterial culture. The drying temperature was 50oC for 3 hours, and the fermentation temperature was 35oC. The fermentation duration of mackerel sausage affected the nutritional contents (carbohydrates, protein, fat, water, ash, amino acids, and fatty acids), physical properties (hardness and chewiness), pH, and organoleptic properties (colour, aroma, taste, and texture). Overall, the longer the fermentation time, the higher the carbohydrate, protein, fat, total ash content, total amino acid, total fatty acid, hardness and decreased organoleptic (colour, aroma, taste, texture), elasticity, and water contents. The best formulation for fermented mackerel sausage was 1 day of fermentation time.

To gather recipes for traditional sourdoughs used to bake traditional bread, a survey was conducted in Figuig, a town located in the southeast of Morocco. The data of this survey is collected from a random sample of 100 rural women using a structured questionnaire. The data shows a total of 17 different traditional recipes mentioned by the interviewed women. Among the ingredients used in these recipes, whole wheat flour and warm water had the highest percentage of citations (31 %). It was also observed that 9 local products were used in these sourdough recipes, including whey, locally called “leben” (19 %), dried beans (16 %) and dates (15 %). Lemon, garlic, dried figs, raisins, flax seeds and carob flour were also mentioned as ingredients (1%). The participants also stated that the sourdoughs are transferred to different shapes and types of utensils for incubation and were alive for a variable amount of time depending on climatic conditions.

This study evaluates the formation of 13 polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in chicken thighs and breasts, cooked by different methods. These methods are: madhbi, charcoal mandi, electric oven mandi, gas flame oven mandi and shawaya. Chicken samples were collected from a restaurant in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Analysis of the samples was carried out using high-performance liquid chromatography with a fluorescence detector (HPLC-FLD). The data obtained showed that madhbi chicken had higher PAHs levels than other cooking styles, with the mean concentration in chicken breast of 87.72 µg/kg and thigh of 75.56 µg/kg. Phenanthrene was the compound detected at the highest concentration in different cooking methods. There was no significant difference in concentration of PAHs between the parts of chicken cooked with the same method. However, the method of cooking had a significant impact on the formation of PHAs. Therefore, the formation of PAHs in chicken meat could be reduced by choosing appropriate cooking methods. Moreover, the margin of exposure was used to assess the health risk in adults due to madhbi chicken ingestion. The results showed that there is no serious health concern.

Slices of fresh apple, banana and strawberry were frozen at -20 oC and freeze-dried using a shelf temperature of 40 oC. Theoretical expressions were proposed to predict vapor transfer kinetics during the primary and secondary drying stages. In the former, a model that predicts the sublimation rate as a function of time, considering the increasing dried layer thickness, was used, which improves greatly the sublimation time equation offered in several textbooks without adding much complexity. In the latter, an analytical solution of the unsteady state diffusion equation was applied. Permeabilities were determined for the primary drying model at an absolute pressure of about 30 Pa, though the relevant kinetic coefficient combines permeability and the mass of ice to sublime relative to the dry matter (sublimation kinetic coefficient). In the secondary drying stage, diffusion coefficients of vapor in the dried layer were in the order of 10−09 m2s−1 for pressures of about 3-5 Pa. In both periods, agreement of predicted and experimental values was more than satisfactory. A minimum freeze-drying time of 12, 6.8 and 8.7 h, considering a final moisture content of 4% w/w, was calculated for apple, banana and strawberry, respectively. Normalized drying curves showed a faster sublimation rate for banana, intermediate for strawberry and slowest for apple. On the other hand, desorption curves showed a faster desorption rate for apple, intermediate for banana and slower for strawberry. In each period, the ordering of the relevant kinetic coefficients (sublimation and diffusion coefficients, respectively) represented the ordering of experimental curves.

Tomato is a fruit rich in vitamins and minerals, contains vitamin C and flavonoids, which prevent heart disease, strokes, chickenpox and cancer. In the world, tomato is considered as one of the main popular fresh products. Inappropriate storage can cause high losses in quantity and quality. Storage mechanisms, as well as, conservation methods can play a significant role to reduce postharvest losses by maintaining products and ingredients in an environment that protects their integrity. Drying, curing and freezing are some methods of conservation. The study evaluated the physicochemical quality of tomato, variety CAL J, exposed to different conservation techniques and environment. This study used a 2x3 factorial design with 6 treatments: A, tomato stored at room temperature (25±1 °C) without acidification; B, acidified tomato (pH=3.2) stored at room temperature (25±1 °C); C, tomato stored in a refrigerator (8°C) without acidification; D, acidified tomato (pH=3.2) stored in a refrigerator (8 °C); E, tomato stored in an underground silo (19±1°C) without acidification; and F, acidified tomato (pH=3.2) stored in an underground silo (19±1 °C). They were evaluated over 60 days, for moisture, titratable acidity soluble solids (oBrix), and lycopene content Data were analysed with R at the 95% confidence level. Moisture ranged from 29.7% to 82.8%, °Brix 1.9 to 7.1, pH 3.17 to 4.02, titratable acidity 0.2 to 1.9% and lycopene 15.41 to 51.74 µg/g. All treatments of the tomatoes showed stability of its properties. The greatest conservation was with treatments A and B.

Ice cream is a frozen dairy product that includes healthy and nutritious aspects. To improve the value of the health benefits, it is necessary to develop functional ice cream products. One such addition is horn plantain bananas, which have the benefit of having a high dietary fibre and pectin content. In order to make ice cream, gelatin must be used as a stabilizer. The increase of non-halal gelatin has led to improvements in the production of halal gelatin derived from fish. This study was performed to evaluate the effect of adding fish gelatin to the characteristics of plantain banana (Musa paradisiaca fa. Corniculata)-based ice cream. This study used a pre-experimental design with a fully randomized design and one component, the addition of varying quantities of fish gelatin (A1: 0 %, A2: 0.25 %, and A3: 0.5 %) with three replicates. The characteristics (taste, fragrance, texture, and colour), melting time, and overrun were evaluated. The Duncan Multiple Range Test as post-hoc test was used to continue ANOVA-based data analysis. The results demonstrated that the inclusion of fish gelatin at various levels did not significantly alter the degree of preference for colour, fragrance, flavour, or overrun. Texture and melting time were different (p <0.05). According to this study, the ice cream that the panellists preferred had an average overrun value of 52.67 ± 9.87, a melting time of 26.0 ± 0.1 minutes, and was made using the A3 formulation with 0.5 % fish gelatin.

The European Association for Integrating Food Science and Engineering Knowledge Into the Food Chain (Iseki-Food) conference is a biannual event that presents an opportunity for a discussion in education, research and engagement in the food science and technology area. The organising committe aims to provide an environment to exchange ideas and experiences, establish bussiness and research relations and create collaborations. On behalf of the Editorial Team we are announcing an special issue of the International Journal of Food Studies (IJFS) that will receive relevant applications from the conference. We are cordially inviting applications to become Editor and manuscript submissions for this Issue. Applications to become a Special Issue Editor are open for Iseki-FOOD associates. Please email your interest and details to the editor.in.chief@iseki-food.net by the 5th of July 2023.