Towards healthier, better tasting and more sustainable foods – Masterclass on Food in SEPTEMBER 2020

LINXS is launching a Masterclass on Food to introduce researchers to the possibilities of using neutrons and x-rays to develop food and food research. The aim is to highlight how the techniques offered at MAX IV and ESS can give knowledge and insights on food structure in relation to storage qualities, uptake and nutritional value as well as texture, perception and packaging.

– We created this course because food production and food systems are at a crossroads: a growing population, climate change and the need to provide a healthy, sustainable and affordable diet for all are all key challenges of our present time. We think that some of these challenges could be solved by making use of the techniques offered by MAX IV and ESS, says Selma Maric, researcher at MAX IV and one of the people responsible for the course.

The online course is open to food researchers from both academia and industry, and will cover research questions related to the whole spectrum of food production: raw material quality, starting with seed quality and plant breeding, to food processing and the final product. This also includes packaging, and how the food interacts with packaging during storage and consumer handling to make the course as broad and interesting as possible.

It will focus on methods, available instruments and experimental environments, data evaluation tools and modeling approaches as well as limitations of the techniques. The techniques will be explained through general and wide overviews, as well as specific and detailed examples.

– We’ve tried to make the content as engaging as possible. We will have lectures on how you can use neutrons to create the perfect beer foam, how neutrons and x-rays have helped to reduce fouling in milk production, and examples of how imaging techniques have given new knowledge on enzymatic degradation processes in barley during malting in beer production.

Selma Maric believes that more knowledge on the structure of food and food components is crucial for a radical change of the food system to occur. One way to increase this knowledge is to enable more researchers to make use of neutrons and x-rays.

– To optimize a process, say by using less energy or water in food production, or by decreasing food waste, you need to have knowledge about food on an a molecular and atomic level. This is what we will try to give you in the course. We want you to come away with a feeling that you now have the tools to start exploring how could make use of new techniques to make food tastier, more sustainable and more nutritious.

The course will be online, starting in August. Please register so that you can stay updated on any changes to the format of the course.