Many Stern girls can tell you a plethora of facts about various foods. Many Stern girls can tell you about the field of science. However, few Stern students know anything about the science of food. Food science, loosely defined as “the application of biological and physical sciences and engineering to food systems,” is a discipline of which few people have even heard. While this field may seem fairly specific, food science is as extensive as many other fields in the broader scientific world.
One aspect of food science is known as food microbiology. This crucial field deals with the pathogens, including bacteria, fungi and viruses that penetrate the food that we consume regularly. Food microbiology works like the human immune system in learning how to rid and slow down harmful agents. Scientists that work in this field have the vital job of keeping the food we ingest sterile and uninfected.
Another department under the larger umbrella of food science is food engineering and processing. This area is as complex as its description. The ultimate goal of a food engineer or processor is to learn how to manipulate different ingredients in food that affect its texture, taste, longevity, and appearance. For example, High Pressure Processing (HPP) or “cold pasteurization”, a technique which consists of subjecting food to a high level of hydrostatic pressure for a few minutes, falls under this category. HPP has the same effect as subjecting the food to an astounding ocean depth of roughly 37 miles deep, and is an environmentally-friendly process that helps maintain fresh food characteristics like flavor and nutrients. This relatively modern process kills bacteria without spoiling the food itself, and is a safe alternative to traditional thermal and chemical treatments. Plant innovation is a related field that is gaining popularity. Recently, the New York Times published an article about how plant innovation is progressing in the search to create a better tasting, better looking and more healthy tomato.
Nutrition is obviously central in food science. Food engineers often strive to create delicious food that are both low in calorie and fat, but will satisfy the consumer. Similarly, nutritionists study how to integrate proteins and fiber into food and how to decrease caloric content in natural ingredients. Food scientists constantly work with the growing vitamin and nutrient deficiency that is common in the population. To insert vitamin blends and raw nutrients requires extensive research, tremendous creativity, and specialization. For instance, nutritionists have recently discovered that heating tomatoes raises the level of lycopene in the body, which is a cancer-fighting phytochemical. No complaints —this kind of research gives consumers a good excuse to eat pizza!
Agricultural scientists have a pretty hands-on job. The purpose of their job is pure research. This may take place in a classic laboratory or office, or sometimes even out in the “wild”. Many agricultural scientists study live animals or crops in their natural environment to learn how to best process and package foods to ensure food safety, quality and convenience. Some food science researchers focus on ecology and how all organisms interact with each other. This is imperative, for example, in the study of water filtration.
Another fascinating area of food science is sensory analysis. According to the Penn State College of Agricultural Sciences, sensory analysis “uses human senses to consistently measure such food characteristics as taste, texture, smell, and appearance in a controlled environment.” In a nutshell, this area consists of controlled experiments with real-life consumers surveying what they would choose to eat and buy. Basically, sensory food scientists are the final stop in consumption creation. These scientists take all the information gathered by other scientists and determine how they affect the sensory components of food. Essentially, they make our food taste, feel, and smell appealing.
There are many other people that work in the food industry, such as agricultural managers, food technicians, flavor chemists, and package designers—to name a few. According to California Polytechnic University, “the demand for food science graduates exceeds the number of degrees awarded”; a consideration for students in today’s economy. Nate Armbrust, a Product Development Specialist of Pacific Foods of Oregon, described his job: “I get to do new things every day at work. I might do chemical and micro lab work, tests on new enzymes, nutritional analysis for labeling, or maybe set up a sensory test. The best part of my job is the satisfaction of seeing a new product through from start to finish.” As of September 2013, the median salary for food scientists was $64,837—not too shabby to be working with food all day long! Food science is the way of the future, so throw away your books, grab a chocolate bar and research it as your new academic goal for the upcoming semester!