FoodPAC Issues FY 2009 Call for Proposals
FoodPAC recently issued its FY 2009 (July 1, 2008 through June 30, 2009)
Call for Proposals. Proposals are due by 5 p.m., Monday, February 4, 2008.
The Call seeks proposals that address research priorities in FoodPAC’s
three technical areas: Environmental Management, Food Safety & Health,
and Process & Product Improvement. FoodPAC has requested $1.3 million
in state funding for project funding in FY 2009 and anticipates that the Governor
will support this request in his FY 2009 budget proposal to the General Assembly.
Remember, all proposals must be electronically (Microsoft Word files
only) submitted by email to foodpac@gtri.gatech.edu.
Paper copies and computer disks will not be accepted nor will proposals
received after 5 p.m. Also, all proposal worksheets (i.e., budget, equipment,
cost-share funds) must be completed in the format provided.
The Call can also be accessed
here, in MicroSoft Word format.
For more information, contact Craig Wyvill, FoodPAC Program Proposal Coordinator,
at (404) 894-3412 or email craig.wyvill@gtri.gatech.edu.
FoodPAC Steering Committee Holds Annual Planning Meeting in Atlanta
The Steering Committee held its annual planning meeting this past September
at the Food Processing Technology Building on the Georgia Tech campus in Atlanta.
Members met to establish the FY 2009 Program Funding Plan and formulate a
funding request for submission to the Governor’s Office, while FoodPAC’s
three technical committee chairs gave an overview of their respective committee’s
FY 2009 research priorities. FoodPAC has requested approximately $1.3 million
in state funds for project funding in FY 2009 and anticipates that the Governor
will support this in his FY 2009 budget request. The priorities and other
pertinent FY 2009 program details are included in the FY 2009 Call for Proposals,
which was issued October 19 and is available online at www.foodpac.gatech.edu.
During the meeting, six project directors gave briefings on research completed
during FY 2007. These projects represented a cross section of FoodPAC’s
technical focus areas and demonstrated the successful collaboration between
university researchers and industry partners, a primary goal of FoodPAC. Craig
Wyvill, one of FoodPAC’s university coordinators, delivered a stewardship
report, noting that during FY 2007:
- 1 provisional patent and 1 record of invention were issued, while 1
system was in licensing negotiations and 4 prototype systems and 2 pilot
systems with licensing potential were developed
- 1 extended field trial of a prototype system was conducted in a commercial
plant
- 20 papers and articles were written
- 22 presentations were delivered
- 34 plant visits/client meetings were conducted
- 2 prototype systems were demonstrated at a major trade show
- 20 companies participated in FoodPAC projects
- $726,326 in cash and in-kind support was generated on FoodPAC projects
Incoming FoodPAC Steering Committee Chair Reggie Prime (pictured on right)
and Executive Co-coordinator Mike Giles (pictured on left) presented
Outgoing Chair Steve Woodruff with a glass plaque recognizing his dedicated
leadership and service over the past two and a half years.
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Other highlights of the meeting included demonstrations of two prototype
systems developed under research funding: a washdown-ready robot for packing
trays and an imaging system for screening the bottom color of baked buns.
Doug Britton, a FoodPAC researcher and group leader in Georgia Tech’s
Food Processing Technology Division, gave an overview of a proposal recently
submitted to the National Science Foundation to establish an Engineering Research
Center in Intelligent Food Processing Systems. The vision of the proposed
ERC is to create technologies, processes, and design methods that integrate
requirements for food safety, energy consumption, environmental impact, and
quality of the product. It is a joint effort between Georgia Tech, the University
of Georgia, Alabama A&M University, and Dublin City University in Ireland.
Although the proposal was not selected for funding (only 34 teams out of 140
submissions were selected), he stressed that the proposal team is awaiting
critique responses and intends to resubmit the proposal when the next submission
period is announced.
In addition, Steve Woodruff stepped down as Chair, completing a two-and-a-half-year
term, and Vice Chair Reggie Prime assumed the FoodPAC leadership role. Ann
Hollingsworth was elected as the new Vice Chair.
The meeting logistics were handled by the Georgia Tech Research Institute’s
Food Processing Technology Division. Special thanks to Kristi Spivey and Lucy
Johnson for their efforts on FoodPAC’s behalf.
Project Spotlight
Use of Antimicrobial/Modified Atmosphere Packaging Technology to Control
the Safety and Quality of Ready-to-Eat Meats
A Listeria-contaminated ham sample is placed in an antimicrobial
packaging structure.
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Repeated outbreaks of foodborne listeriosis in the early 1990s led the United
States Department of Agriculture (USDA) to enforce a zero tolerance policy
against Listeria monocytogenes on processed, ready-to-eat meat. Since
then, large amounts of processed meats have been recalled due to Listeria contamination.
These recalls have cost the U.S. processed meat industry millions of dollars.
A novel packaging technology that could effectively control Listeria as
well as other pathogenic and spoilage microorganisms on processed meats is
in great demand.
Antimicrobial packaging is by far the most promising application of active
food packaging technology. In an antimicrobial packaging structure, antimicrobial
substances are incorporated into meat packaging materials and in turn slowly
released into the meat products during storage and distribution. Due to the
inhibitory activity of the antimicrobial substances, the growth of pathogenic
and spoilage bacteria on packaged meat products is significantly retarded.
During FY 2007, FoodPAC researchers evaluated three different antimicrobial
packaging structures for their effectiveness in improving the microbial quality
of cooked ham. Ham samples were inoculated with a six strain mixture of Listeria
monocytogenes at 102 or 104 CFU/g. Un-inoculated
ham samples were included in the study as controls. Both the inoculated and
the control hams were packaged in three different antimicrobial packaging
structures. One of the packaging structures had an oxygen scavenging system,
while the remaining two structures utilized a carbon dioxide and allyl isothiocyanate
(AIT) generating system, respectively. Results indicated that the overall
mean populations of the sampled microorganisms on cooked ham samples packaged
under the antimicrobial packaging conditions were significantly lower (P < 0.05)
than the organisms on the ham samples that were packaged under regular, non-antimicrobial
conditions. The overall mean populations of Listeria monocytogenes were
approximately 3.37-4.03 Log CFU/g (99.95-99.99%) lower in comparison to the
controls. Among the three packaging structures evaluated, those with AIT were
the least effective. The packaging structures using the carbon dioxide generating
and oxygen scavenging system, respectively, were equally effective in inhibiting Listeria
monocytogenes, Enterobacteriaceae, as well as total aerobic
bacteria.
This project demonstrated that active packaging with sustained release of
antimicrobials to the headspace of packaging structures has great potential
in improving the safety and quality of processed, ready-to-eat meat products.
The technology, if successfully adopted, will save the processed meat industry
millions of dollars that result from meat product recalls as well as meat-associated
outbreaks of listeriosis.
Researchers recently began work on FY 2008 research activities, which include
improving the performance of the packaging structures by adjusting the amounts
of antimicrobials incorporated into the packaging structures; evaluating the
performance of antimicrobial packaging structures with more than one type
of antimicrobial component; evaluating the effectiveness of two other antimicrobial
packaging structures, involving either ascorbic acid or chlorine dioxide,
for their effectiveness in control of pathogenic and spoilage microorganisms
on ready-to-eat meats; and determining whether a ready-to-eat meat product
with an intermediate water activity will have enough moisture to trigger the
antimicrobial systems used in the packaging structures.
The research team is led by Jinru Chen, an Associate Professor in the Department
of Food Science and Technology at the University of Georgia. Team members
include A. Estes Reynolds, Ag Food Development; Aaron Brody, Packaging/Brody,
Inc.; and Malin Benicek, Wayne Farms LLC.
Researcher Profile
Jeff Hsieh
Principal Investigator of FY 2008 Project:
“Development of Environmental Process System for the Eggshells Separation
Plant in Support of Its Commercialization”
Job title: Professor and Director of the Pulp and Paper Engineering
Program, School of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Georgia Institute
of Technology.
Education: Ph.D., Chemical Engineering, Syracuse University, New
York.
Areas of research expertise: Chemical Manufacturing, Fiber Technology,
Food Processes.
What I find most rewarding about working on FoodPAC projects: Interactions
with industrial sponsors and committee members.
A talent I wish I had: To sing like Italian Opera Singer Luciano
Pavarotti.
Another occupation I’d like to try: To perform as a Conductor
in a Symphony Orchestra.
My first paid job: Senior Research Engineer with Kimberly-Clark
Corporation.
If I could meet someone famous, who would it be and why: Late Pope
John Paul because he has inspired a billion people.
Hobbies: Traveling and deep sea fishing.
One thing people may not know about me: I hike 14,000 ft. mountains.
My day would not be complete without: Knowing that I have given
complete attention to my project.
The last book I read: War and Peace.
My favorite song: America the Beautiful.
My motto: Stay focused, be physical, never quit.
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