Eleven shades of food integrity: a halal supply chain perspective

Background: Food integrity is not only related to the good quality of the food product, nonetheless, it distresses closely more on the health, safety, religious and cultural matters. Weaknesses in handling, monitoring, processing and other factors along the food’s supply chain outbreaks the recent food integrity scandal. These outbreak food integrity scandals could be prevented if clear aspects that affect the food integrity were embraced along the food supply chain. This article is aiming to highlight the factors affecting food integrity in the context of the halal food supply chain and their potential for future research. Scope and approach: This review attempts to provide a wider view of supply chain management in the halal food industry. Attention is drawn to the literature on other food industries and the results there are put in the context of the halal food setting. In this review, it emphasizes the factors could be monitor or control that contributes to the problem of food integrity. Key findings and conclusions: Eleven ‘shades’ of food integrity in the halal supply chain are offered, which can be categorized into four supply chain dimensions, related to raw materials, production, service, and the consumer. Each shade is defined and aligned with the results in the literature, and areas for future research are suggested. Theoretical and managerial implications are provided. The ‘shades’ highlighted can be used and considered by managers as fundamental insights to ponder in safeguarding the integrity of halal products

High pressure phase equilibria applications involving supercritical fluids

This thesis describes the investigation of phase behaviour of binary and ternary mixtures at high pressure. The particular applications chosen to be explored in this phase behaviour investigation were supercritical fluid electrodeposition (SCFED) and carbon capture and storage (CCS). Chapter 1 introduces the phase behaviour of mixtures. Chapter 2 describes the equipment and analytical techniques used throughout this thesis including the high-pressure variable-volume view cell, electrical conductivity cell, high pressure FTIR cell, and high-pressure optical fiber phase analyser. Chapter 3 details the solubility and conductivity investigation of several supporting electrolytes in difluoromethane (CH2F2), which provided an electrochemical bath with sufficient conductivity for electrodeposition in supercritical fluids. The most effective supporting electrolyte amongst the eight ionic compounds tested was [N(nC4H9)4][Al(OC(CF3)3)4] which was found to give a moderate solubility and the highest conductivity (222 Scm2mol-1) in CH2F2. [N(nC4H9)4][Al(OC(CF3)3)4] was followed by [N(nC4H9)4][FAP] and [N(nCH3)4][FAP], , making all of them to be satisfactory potential supporting electrolytes for SCFED. Chapter 4 describes the investigation of water solubility in CO2/N2 mixtures relevant to the CCS process. The scope of the investigation covers a wide pressure range and two levels of N2 (xN2= 0.05 and xN2= 0.10). This experimental study was conducted by using the FTIR technique as described in further detail in Chapter 2. It was found that the presence of N2 in CO2 lowered the solubility of H2O in supercritical CO2 with N2 compared to pure CO2. The solubility of water also decreases significantly when the concentration of N2 is increased from 5% to 10%. Chapter 5 further explores the role of phase behaviour in the application of CCS with the investigation of the phase envelope of the ternary mixtures of CO2 and permanent gases (Ar, N2, and H2). Three ternary mixtures were measured (90% CO2 + 5% N2 + 5% Ar, 98% CO2 + 1% N2 + 1% Ar, and 95% CO2 + 3% H2 + 2% Ar) by using the fiber optic reflectometer, as described in further detail in Chapter 2. The experimental data presented in this part also have been used to validate the equation of state for the CCS applications. It was found that the phase envelope of CO2 shifted to a higher pressure and the two-phase region become broader with the presence of permanent gases. Overall, both GERG-2004 and gSAFT provide a good agreement between the predicted and experimental data for all the ternary mixtures investigated, with the exception of the bubble-point line for the 3%H2 + 2%Ar + 95% CO2 mixture. Finally, Chapter 6 summarises the research that was conducted in this thesis. It also evaluates the progress made towards achieving the aims initially set-up in Chapter

The effects of drying method and temperature on the nutritional quality of watermelon rinds

The present work was aimed to investigate the effect of drying methods (oven drying, foam mat drying) and temperatures (40°C, 60°C) on the nutritional characteristics of red- and yellow-watermelon rinds. It was found that foam mat drying produced the best results for preserving the most nutrients as compared to the conventional oven drying for both red- and yellow watermelon rinds. Temperature is a significant parameter that affects the nutritional characteristics of watermelon rinds powder for both methods. Finding suggests that foam mat drying at 40°C was the best method for producing watermelon rinds powder as it requires shorter treatment time and gave the best retention of protein and carbohydrate

Predicting the capability of oxidized cnw adsorbents for the remediation of copper under optimal operating conditions using rsm and ann models

Metal pollutants such as copper released into the aqueous environment have been increasing as a result of anthropogenic activities. Adsorption-based treatment technologies offer opportunities to remediate metal pollutants from municipal and industrial wastewater effluent. The aim of this work was to evaluate the capability of modified cellulose nanowhisker (CNW) adsorbents for the remediation of copper from water matrices under realistic conditions using response surface methodology (RSM) and artificial neural network (ANN) models. Considerations for design and application to remediate Cu(II) from wastewater by developing a continuous flow experiment are described in this study. However, the physical structure of modified CNW adsorbents renders them unsuitable for use in column operation. Therefore, a more detailed study of the mechanical properties of CNW adsorbents would be necessary in order to improve the strength and stability of the adsorbents. This work has demonstrated that modified CNW are promising adsorbents to remediate copper from water matrices under realistic conditions including wastewater complexity and variability. The use of models to predict the test parameter system and account for matrix variability when evaluating CNW adsorbents for remediating Cu from a real-world wastewater matrix may also provide the foundation for assessing other treatment technologies in the future

Food Technology Ascertaining Supply Chain Integrity

boo

Squalene recovery from palm fatty acid distillate using supercritical fluid extraction

The objective of this research is recovery of squalene from palm fatty acid distillate (PFAD) using supercritical fluid extraction (SFE). The extraction process was performed by using the SFE and recovered squalene was analyzed from total lipid extracts using HPLC. A central composite design was used to study the effect of SFE variables namely pressure (X1) from 200 to 400 bar and temperature (X2) from 40 to 60°C on the total lipid extracts (Y1) and squalene concentration (Y2) and optimize the SFE conditions. The nonlinear regression equations were significantly (p 0.965), which had no indication of lack of fit. The results indicated that a combined pressure (200 bar) and temperature (50°C) was predicted to provide the optimum region in terms of total lipid extracts (13.84 ± 0.52%) and squalene concentration (418.31 ± 18.40 ppm) studied

Kinetic and thermodynamic evaluation of effective combined promoters for CO₂ hydrate formation

The increase in carbon dioxide (CO2) concentration in the atmosphere raises earth's temperature. CO2 emissions are closely related to human induced activities such as burning of fossil fuels and deforestation. So, to make the environment sustainable, carbon capture and storage (CCS) is required to reduce CO2 emissions. In this study, CO2 hydrate (CO2:6H2O) formation has been explored as an approach to capture CO2 in the integrated gasification combined cycle (IGCC) conditions. The formation of hydrate was experimentally investigated in an isochoric system with high-pressure volumetric analyzer (HPVA). The solubility of CO2 in water using experimental pressure–time (P-t) curves were analyzed to determine the formation of hydrate. Additionally, the effect of newly synthesized combined promoters and various driving forces were evaluated. The experimental results demonstrated that the CO2 uptake expanded as ΔP expanded and designated combined promoters type T1-5 and type T3-2 were the two best, acquiring a uptake of 5.95 and 5.57 mmol of CO2 per g of H2O separately. Ethylene glycol mono-ethyl ether (EGME) was demonstrated to be a good option to THF when linked with SDS, with a CO2 uptake of 5.45 mmol for the designated combined promoters T1A-2. Additionally, the total sum of CO2 devoured through hydrate development maximize as the measure of water inside mesoporous silica increased. All results of the studied parameters confirmed the reliability of experiments and successful implementation

Different percentages of basil seeds (Ocimum basilicium L.) as hydrocolloid in batter coating system: effect on the physicochemical and sensory properties of breaded fish fillets

Basil seed (Ocimum basilicium L.) has the potential to improve the characteristics of food products when added to the batter for coating but the amount could result in different qualities. This study investigates the physicochemical and sensory properties of tilapia fish fillets coated with batter added with different percentages of basil seeds (0%, 3%, 6% & 9%). The viscosity, coating adhesion, cooking yield, frying loss, moisture and fat contents, colour, texture and sensory properties were analyzed. As the basil seeds percentages added increased, the viscosity was improved and strongly correlated with the coating adhesion, cooking yield, frying loss and moisture content. The hardness, chewiness and fracturability of the fish fillet were also improved. The treated samples were darker and redder, which contributed to the golden colour. Panellists rated the crispness and overall acceptability of the treated samples higher than the control (0% of basil seed), while other parameters such as colour, appearance, fishy smell level, taste and juiciness were not different between the control and the treated samples. In conclusion, the quality of the coated fish fillet with added 3% of basil seed to the batter was not much different compared to the control (0%), while, the 9% had negatively influenced the oil adsorption and sensory characteristics of the samples. Therefore, 6% is suggested as the most suitable percentage to be used in the batter

Role of virgin coconut oil VCO as co-extractant for obtaining xanthones from mangosteen Garcinia mangostana pericarp with supercritical carbon dioxide extraction

Virgin coconut oil (VCO) was used as co-extractant with supercritical carbon dioxide (scCO2) extraction for obtaining xanthones from mangosteen pericarp (MP) without organic co-solvents. In each experiment, 120 g of dried MP that had median particle sizes of 0.85 mm was used. Extraction of MP with 40% VCO co-extractant using scCO2 (1.08 kg/h) for 420 min at 430 bar and 70 °C gave α-mangostin (32.2 mg/g), γ-mangostin (7.2 mg/g), xanthones (28.2 mg/g) in extract and an extraction yield of 31%. The role of VCO is that it promotes dissolution of xanthones and mass transfer into the scCO2 phase as elucidated with the Pardo-Castaño model. The Lentz equation was generalized in terms of (P, T, %VCO, ρCO2) to correlate all extraction curve data to within 7.4% and to estimate extraction yield crossover regions. Xanthones can be separated from mangosteen pericarp with VCO and scCO2 extraction without organic co-solvents

Socializing One Health: an innovative strategy to investigate social and behavioral risks of emerging viral threats

In an effort to strengthen global capacity to prevent, detect, and control infectious diseases in animals and people, the United States Agency for International Development’s (USAID) Emerging Pandemic Threats (EPT) PREDICT project funded development of regional, national, and local One Health capacities for early disease detection, rapid response, disease control, and risk reduction. From the outset, the EPT approach was inclusive of social science research methods designed to understand the contexts and behaviors of communities living and working at human-animal-environment interfaces considered high-risk for virus emergence. Using qualitative and quantitative approaches, PREDICT behavioral research aimed to identify and assess a range of socio-cultural behaviors that could be influential in zoonotic disease emergence, amplification, and transmission. This broad approach to behavioral risk characterization enabled us to identify and characterize human activities that could be linked to the transmission dynamics of new and emerging viruses. This paper provides a discussion of implementation of a social science approach within a zoonotic surveillance framework. We conducted in-depth ethnographic interviews and focus groups to better understand the individual- and community-level knowledge, attitudes, and practices that potentially put participants at risk for zoonotic disease transmission from the animals they live and work with, across 6 interface domains. When we asked highly-exposed individuals (ie. bushmeat hunters, wildlife or guano farmers) about the risk they perceived in their occupational activities, most did not perceive it to be risky, whether because it was normalized by years (or generations) of doing such an activity, or due to lack of information about potential risks. Integrating the social sciences allows investigations of the specific human activities that are hypothesized to drive disease emergence, amplification, and transmission, in order to better substantiate behavioral disease drivers, along with the social dimensions of infection and transmission dynamics. Understanding these dynamics is critical to achieving health security--the protection from threats to health-- which requires investments in both collective and individual health security. Involving behavioral sciences into zoonotic disease surveillance allowed us to push toward fuller community integration and engagement and toward dialogue and implementation of recommendations for disease prevention and improved health security