Development of a Novel Classification System to Determine the Role of Processed and Convenience Foods in the Diets of US Households

Although excessive consumption of processed food is considered a risk factor for obesity, the caloric contribution of processed foods to US diet has not been accurately assessed, particularly for vulnerable populations. Further, conclusions about the nutritional quality of processed foods are discrepant. Using food and beverage purchases of households (n=157,142) participating in the 2000-2012 Homescan longitudinal panel, this research aimed to develop an innovative approach for defining processed foods and to determine the nutritional role of these products in US diet. In Aim 1, we developed a multidimensional classification system with explicitly defined criteria to categorize foods and beverages by level of processing and separately by level of convenience. We classified >1.2 million items using product-level information and ingredient lists. We further evaluated 13-year trends in the caloric contribution of processed and convenience foods to purchases. We found unshifting dominance of ultra-processed and ready-to-eat (RTE) foods as major calorie contributors to US diet. Aim 2 determined the longitudinal association of sociodemographic and economic household characteristics with processed and convenience food purchases. Less education and lower income were associated with higher ultra-processed food purchases, with associations strengthening across time. Non-Hispanic black households had higher ultra-processed beverage purchases yet lower ultra-processed food purchases compared to non-Hispanic whites. Non-Hispanic black and Hispanic race/ethnicities and lower education were associated with lower RTE convenience food purchases, suggesting a greater role of cooking. In Aim 3, we compared nutrient densities of foods across categories of processing and convenience. The adjusted proportion of household-level food purchases exceeding recommended maximums for saturated fat, sugar, and sodium densities was significantly higher for ultra-processed and RTE food purchases compared to purchases of less-processed foods or foods requiring cooking. In conclusion, our study suggests that ultra-processed and RTE convenience foods and beverages dominate diets in the US with remarkable stability and may contribute to sociodemographic disparities in diet. Our findings of higher saturated fat, sugar, and sodium content of ultra-processed and RTE foods support the need for future studies to examine the relationship of these products with diet and health outcomes.Doctor of Philosoph

Healthy Deliciousness': Discovering the Secret to Healthy Eating via Social Media.

Ph.D. Thesis. University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa 2018

Development of post- harvest handling technologies for the under-utilised cross-jurisdictional Royal Red Prawn fishery

The Queensland Department of Agriculture and Fisheries led this research project on improving the post-harvest quality of prawns landed from the multi-jurisdictional Royal Red Prawn fishery. The research team have studied the supply chain of Royal Red Prawns including the fishing operations, prawn handling and processing, and current market supply chains. The research team has also undertaken extensive sensory investigation to understand the specific sensory qualities of the Royal Red Prawn to better understand the potential of the species more broadly. The research team determined that the Royal Red Prawn has a clear point of difference to the majority of current commercial species of prawns in Australia, and this point of difference is not being adequately exploited by the current supply chain for the prawn. The research team determined that these unique and distinctive qualities would be worth investigating further towards directing this prawn to the fine dining and food service sector specifically

Sensory Analysis and Consumer Research in New Product Development

Sensory analysis and consumer research are relevant tools in innovation andnew product development, from design to commercialization. This Special Issuehas collected 13 valuable scientific contributions, including 1 review, 12 originalresearch articles and an editorial. The SI provides an interesting outlookand better understanding of sensorial analysis with the different techniques andconsumer research on new product development. Important practical applicationshave been reported on the development of different novel, functional andenhanced products (meat, fish, biscuits, yogurt, porridge, hybrid meat, molecularproducts, etc.), which helps increase knowledge in this field. This SI isvery useful for both present and future uses for the different players involved inthis kind of product development (industry, companies, researchers, scientists,marketing, merchandising, consumers, etc.)

THE PLACE OF DIETARY PRACTICES IN THE LIVES OF OLDER WOMEN

Studies have supported the benefits of positive dietary behaviors in preventing or reducing morbidity and extending longevity, as well as the psychosocial function of dietary practices for quality of life. Research is needed though on the dietary behaviors of elders in general and older women in particular, for whom gender affects lifelong dietary patterns. Health behavior theory has typically focused on psychological factors, to the neglect of sociocultural processes. This investigation utilized a life course perspective, enhanced by social interactionist elements, to address aspects of development and change in behavior neglected by health behavior theories, such as temporal dimensions and social contexts. Using primarily an ethnographic approach centered on in-depth narrative interviews of 18 older women residing in a retirement community, this study explored how social milieu influences the development and progression of dietary behavior throughout life, the potential of life course transitions to modify dietary behavior, and how the retirement community environment shapes current dietary behavior. The interviews probed current dietary experiences and practices, as well as constructed histories of dietary behavior. Through the use of coding techniques and thematic analysis, themes and concepts that emerged from the data were organized for further analysis. Four levels of influence on dietary behavior were identified: 1) person factors, including psychological and physiological processes; 2) interpersonal relationships and social interaction; 3) social roles and statuses; and 4) contexts, particularly environmental, community policy and political economic contexts. Analysis additionally revealed four major food-related themes in the lives of the women: dietary morality, dietary wellness, dietary sociability and dietary duty. Interpretation of the findings, in terms of lifelong social experiences, the impact of relationships, roles and transitions, and structural characteristics of the retirement community that constrain or facilitate dietary practices, contributed to the development of a theoretical model. The research findings and model of life course influences on the nature of dietary behaviors of older women provide a more holistic understanding of dietary practices of older women and have implications for future research and practice, particularly as related to quality of life issues

A variationist analysis of modifiers in cooking shows

“[A]mong the many symbolic resources available for the cultural production of identity, language is the most flexible and pervasive.” (Bucholtz & Hall, 2003, p. 369) This study explores how food celebrities (re)produce (gender, class, cultural) identities through variant choice. The corpus (3,704 adjectival heads) derives from 20 hours of televised cooking shows from 12 food celebrities from Canada, England, and the USA. The chefs are classified in five gendered culinary personas (male: chef-artisan, gastro-sexual, environmentalist; female: pin-ups and homebodies) following Johnston, Rodney and Chong’s categorization (2014). The two linguistic variables examined are degree modifiers preceding adjectives: intensifiers (really great, pretty sticky), and attenuators (a bit cold, a little different), as well as gradable adjectives (nice, beautiful). I use multivariate analysis to measure linguistic (syntactic position and adjective type) and social (gender, country, and food) correlations, as well as qualitative methods informed by work in the growing field of Food Studies (Ashley, Hollows, Jones & Taylor, 2004; Johnston et al., 2014; Naccarato & LeBesco, 2012, Prescott, 2012). The results indicate that the intensification rates (29 %) and the three most frequently used intensifiers (really, very and so) in televised cooking shows are similar to those found by other studies (e.g., Ito & Tagliamonte, 2003; Tagliamonte, 2008; Tagliamonte & Roberts, 2005). However, different from previous findings, the nice and construction takes the fourth place of frequency, attenuators appear well distributed and with an important role as food and cooking gradators as well as markers of culinary control. The results also reveal that −ly intensifiers mark masculinity among chefs, HEDONIST VALUE adjectives indicate sensual femininity among pin-ups, and really and TASTE adjectives are instruments of adequation (Bucholtz & Hall, 2005) used by gastro-sexuals to assimilate to homebodies. Although the skew towards ‘positivity’ is unmarked and common across languages (Rozin, Berman & Royzman, 2012), the analysis suggests that it may serve a purpose in the construction of cooking shows as ‘fantasies of transformation.’ Finally, this paper exemplifies how sociolinguistic and variationist analysis can help decode social hierarchies and constructs within fields and societies

Ресторанный бизнес

This textbook "Restaurant business" is the most complete specialized textbook for training specialists in English in the restaurant business. It is based on the latest data on the main directions of the restaurant industry development. In this we see the value and timeliness of this tutorial that will help on the one hand – to improve their English language skills, and on the other hand – to make better their knowledge in the professional field. The structure of this tutorial is – seven chapters: the history of the restaurant business, restaurant service, food and meals, business and culinary, diets, cookery art, European cuisine (Russian, Ukrainian, English), the American food industry (culinary business in North America and Canada, Latin America), African and Asian cuisine. In the book there is a large number of authentic texts in English, designed exercises, dialogues, charts, coloured inserts. This tutorial allows you to learn the professional vocabulary and improve their English language skills quickly and easily.Данный учебник «Ресторанный бизнес» представляет собой самое полное специализированное учебное пособие по профессиональной подготовке специалистов по английскому языку в сфере ресторанного бизнеса. Он построен на основе самых современных данных по основным направлениям развития ресторанной отрасли. Структура данного учебника такова – семь глав: история ресторанного дела, ресторанная служба, продукты и приемы пищи, кулинарное дело и диеты, поваренное искусство, европейская кухня (русская, украинская, английская), американская индустрия питания (кулинарное дело Северной Америки и Канады, Латинской Америки), Африканская и Азиатская кухня. В учебнике большое количество аутентичных текстов на английском языке, разработанные упражнения, диалоги, схемы, цветные вкладыши. Данный учебник позволяет быстро и легко усвоить профессиональную лексику и повысить свой уровень знания английского языка