MENOMONIE — Forty-four food science students presented at UW-Stout’s Research Day, each bringing plans that could help the prevention of food contamination and illness.
Taejo Kim, UW-Stout professor in the Foods Nutrition department, said students learn many things in his Food Quality classroom, such as processes like pasteurization.
“Then they have to figure out what hazards come from those processes,” said Kim. “We have three types of hazards: first is biological, second is chemical and the other one is physical. ... Our students learn how to process, reduce, eliminate and prevent those hazards.”
One popular method researched by two students, master’s in food science and technology student Srihaasa Vempatapu and FST undergraduate senior Lainie Carlson, is a process known as Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point — or HACCP.
HACCP was first developed in the 1960s for the NASA space program, but was introduced as a potential resource for the food industry in 1971.
As the two students involved their 42 peers in Kim’s Food Quality class, students hand tested a number of foods in the lab in order to research how HACCP helps address those hazards. This allows students to see how that plan measures nearly every step to reduce the risk of foodborne illnesses like E. coli. “My goal is to make our students be qualified personnel in any area in food processing,” Kim said.
Considering how thorough it can be, Kim said working with the HACCP systematic approach and researching it can be very time consuming.
With the importance that HACCP has in the food industry, Vempatapu noted in a university news release how critical it is to discover, assess and manage possible hazards.
“HACCP assists in preventing contamination, microbial development and other hazards that could result in foodborne illnesses by concentrating on crucial control points throughout the production process,” she said in the release. “Public health and consumer confidence in the food supply chain are protected by this methodical approach, which also improves quality control and regulatory compliance and guarantees the safety of food items.”
At UW-Stout’s annual Research Day, students presented their HACCP plans and other research alongside other students, faculty and staff who also talked about the impact their studies have.
While Vempatapu gave an oral presentation on “HACCP on Low Fat Mayonnaise,” Carlson presented on “HACCP Plan for Raw Milk Cheese.”
When it comes to ensuring the safety of the consumer, Carlson observed that there is a lot that goes into it.
“They just have faith in the manufacturers,” she said in the release. “HACCP is the reason for that faith. I learned a lot more about the food industry and how important it is to keep food safe.”
At the end of Research Day, those presenting and earning awards for their work were recognized. Among the many looking at HACCP, Shuyi Zhou, a second-year student interested in going to graduate school, won first place for her poster on “Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point Process Development for Ready-to-Eat Spiced Ham.”
Alongside her, four graduate students were recognized with awards for their contributions to food science:
Priyanka Shah and Vraj Shah won first place for their oral presentation on the “Effect of Chickpea and Sweet Pea Milk on the Physicochemical, Textural and Sensory Properties of Sugar-Free Vegan Ice Cream.”
Tejasri Vanga won second place at the WiSys Quick Pitch for her presentation on “Comparative Study on the Properties of Various Thickeners for Producing Plant-Based Meat Analogs.” The Quick Pitch competition took place at Research Day, and Vanga also received the recognition for “Audience Favorite” while competing.
Areeba Ali received an Outstanding Graduate Researcher honorable mention. Ali led the presentation on the “Effect of Strawberry Powder on Physicochemical, Textural and Sensory Properties of No-Added Sugar Chewing Gum,” which was co-authored by Akshar Sunilbhai Patel, Prudhvi Sureddi and Manikanta Yadlapalli.
Kim said all the students did an excellent job of presenting. In his eight years of teaching the course, he said this was the first time he encouraged students to present their HACCP plans as it provides a good opportunity for the students to meet with professionals and community members at Research Day and talk with them about the things they are learning.
Kim said he looks forward to the students’ research next year.
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