Changes in the microbiome of a human and in the simulator of human intestinal microbial ecosystem (SHIME®) in response to a diet and probiotic supplementation

Background. The Simulator of Human Intestinal Microbial Ecosystem (SHIME®) is used to study the behavior of a human microbiome in response to various factors. The aim of this study was to simultaneously demonstrate changes in the microbiome of a human volunteer and in the SHIME® system in response to a change in a diet and probiotic therapy due to a scarcity of published research with similar design. Results and conclusions. The probiotic therapy resulted in a decrease in fasting insulin and glucose (by 18 % and 13 %, respectively), while the increased fiber intake in the experimental diet seemed to reduce triglyceride, total and LDL cholesterol levels (by 27 %, 15 % and 14 %, respectively) in the volunteer’s blood. Due to the improvement of the volunteer’s metabolic status, changes in her microbiome were observed. Namely, the improvement of glucose homeostasis led to the occurrence of bacteria of the genus Akkermansia in the feces, while the improvement of lipid homeostasis resulted in an increase in the abundance of bacteria of the genus Bacteroides and Bifidobacterium (approx. two and four times, respectively). While changes in the microbiome diversity in the SHIME® luminal fluid (L-SHIME) and in the faeces microbiome were partially similar, the microbiome of SHIME’s intestinal wall (M-SHIME) behaved differently. The characteristic feature of both L- and M-SHIME was a microbiome that differed in its composition compared to the volunteer’s microbiome at parallel sampling points. The results of this study indicate that adjustments to the standard SHIME® experimental protocol should be made to enable the replication of the human microbiome diversity and its changes in the system

Analiza strat żywności generowanych w zakładach mleczarskich – badanie pilotażowe

The aim of the study was to evaluated the food losses generated in dairy establishments in terms of quantity and method of use. The study was conducted by questionnaire in the four dairy establishments belonging to one group. Products that were not intended for human consumption were included to the food losses. Total food losses in the studied establishments were estimated at 0.02% of total production. The vast majority of the losses was intended for animal feed (78.6 tonnes per year), only minor amounts of the losses were subjected to utilization (6.9 tonnes per year)

A Multifaceted Evaluation of Food Waste in a Polish Supermarket—Case Study

The objective of this paper is to evaluate the food waste generated in one Polish supermarket in terms of its mass, financial value, and wasted caloric value, and to specify ways in which to manage food that can help contribute to reducing the phenomenon of food waste in commercial facilities. The research material was a list of unsold food items in one supermarket over two weeks. The evaluation shows that in one supermarket, approximately 3.3 tonnes of food was wasted over two weeks, with a total value of €5500. The groups of products with the highest percentage share in the structure of waste were fruits and vegetables, as well as meat, cold meats, and fish. The estimated caloric value of dairy products wasted over two weeks amounts to approximately 243.8 kcal. The estimated mass of dairy products appropriated for social purposes would feed from 72 to 174 persons a day (depending on the daily reference value). As various types of food products for social purposes may be sourced from the retail sector, it constitutes an important link in the chain “from the field to the table”, from which food should be redistributed to people in need

Do Polish Consumers Take Proper Care of Hygiene while Shopping and Preparing Meals at Home in the Context of Wasting Food?

The objective of this paper is to evaluate the knowledge and practices of Polish consumers in terms of broadly defined hygiene on food preparation at home. The consequence of improper food handling may be a faster rate of food spoilage. A specially designed questionnaire was used. The study was conducted on a nationwide, random, and representative group of 1115 adult respondents. Segmentation (cluster analysis) of respondents differing in their practice and knowledge of meal preparation and personal hygiene was carried out. Several areas were diagnosed in which the respondents’ knowledge and practice were insufficient, such as storage of food products, inappropriate conduct of the thawing process, and heating of dishes. It was found that the best practice and knowledge of the issues discussed were characteristic of unemployed women over 35 years of age (cluster D). They offen gave answers that were significantly different (p < 0.05) from those given by the other clusters. The most limited knowledge and the worst practices were characteristic of mainly men with elementary and secondary education who are a part of the labor force (cluster E and A). The segmentation provided valuable information which indicates that educational programs on food safety need to be further strengthened

Effect of Pumpkin Cultivar on the Selected Quality Parameters of Functional Non-Dairy Frozen Desserts

This study was conducted to investigate the influence of pumpkin cultivar as a fermented semi-product on the selected quality parameters of functional non-dairy frozen desserts, which were prepared using the potentially probiotic strain cultures L. rhamnosus Lock 0900 and L. casei O14. Microbiological status, pH, sugar and carotenoids content, antioxidant activity, color and sensory quality have been checked. Regardless of the pumpkin cultivar used, the lactic acid fermentation of pulps with selected bacterial strains decreased reducing sugar and total sugars content. Improvement in the antioxidant activity was also observed. The impact of the individual sensory attributes on the overall quality was determined. The overall quality of the investigated pumpkin sorbets was positively driven by the sweet taste, pumpkin flavor, smoothness of texture, and negatively driven by acidic flavor, pungent taste, and bitter taste, verified by PCA method. All of the final products achieved high survival of probiotics (higher than 8.4 log CFU/g) and revealed a good sensory quality (overall quality higher than 8 c.u). The treatments with the cultivar “Melon Yellow” of the Cucurbita maxima species, were characterized by significantly higher (p < 0.05) carotenoids content, total sugars and reducing sugars content and antioxidant activity, measured by two methods. It can be concluded that the pumpkin cultivar and strain culture used for the fermentation affect the count of potentially probiotic bacteria in the final products, the composition of bioactive compounds, antioxidant activity and sensory quality of the functional pumpkin frozen desserts

Segmentation of Households Taking Into Account Their Structure in Terms of Meals Waste

Not always do households manage purchased food efficiently, as evidenced by the scale of wasted food. As results from the PROM study on food waste, an average of 3.9 kg of food (including edible and inedible parts) was thrown away in a household per week. Understanding the determinants of household food waste is a key aspect to develop and implement education programs aimed at consumers. The aim of the study was to conduct segmentation and identify groups of consumers characterized by similar food handling, with particular emphasis on food waste. Segmentation conducted on a representative group of Poles over 18 years of age enabled the identification of five clusters. The identified groups of consumers differ in the following aspects: the number of adults, the number of children, a subjective assessment of the financial situation, the percentage of food expenses. It was found that cluster E, representing households with children, prepared meals at home most often. At the same time, persons from this group most often threw out wilted fruit and vegetables, as well as potatoes, rice, and pasta. Cluster D, declaring high food expenses (61-100%), at the same time much less frequently, compared to the other groups, used meat from soup, cooked potatoes, rice, and pasta to prepare other dishes. Cluster C, declaring the best financial situation, significantly more often used wilted vegetables and fruit to prepare other dishes. Cluster A, with the largest share in the sample (almost 70%), often formed the so-called homogeneous groups with other clusters. However, it also threw away cooked starch additives and wilted fruit and vegetables more often. It should be stated that it is necessary to take measures to reduce food waste in households

The Management of Meals in Food Service Establishments in the Context of Food Waste—Results of Focus Group Interviews with Employees and Owners

Food waste in the food service industry is global and affects the whole world. Despite the fact that food service establishments are significant food waste producers, they have received less academic attention than other food waste producers. The aim of this paper is to analyse the methods of management of meals in food service establishments in the context of food waste. The study was carried out using a qualitative research method in the form of a focus group interview between 24 January and 3 February 2020 in four locations. Three interviews were carried out with 23 owners and three interviews with 24 employees of six types of food service establishments, e.g., restaurants, bars, etc. In the respondents’ opinion, the amount of food thrown away is not large and most often includes perishable foodstuffs and food discarded when preparing dishes. At the same time, the respondents admitted that many foodstuffs that were thrown away were fit for further use, for example, withered fruit and vegetables or products with no signs of spoilage but whose packages had been opened. To achieve a maximum reduction of wastage of dishes prepared in advance by food service outlets, greater emphasis must be placed on the cooperation between food service establishments and charitable institutions. According to the study, caterers are reluctant to officially engage in such cooperation because they have no knowledge of the current donation law, among others

SEGMENTACJA GOSPODARSTW DOMOWYCH Z UWZGLĘDNIENIEM ICH STRUKTURY W ASPEKCIE MARNOWANIA POSIŁKÓW

Not always do households manage purchased food efficiently, as evidenced by the scale of wasted food. As results from the PROM study on food waste, an average of 3.9 kg of food (including edible and inedible parts) was thrown away in a household per week. Understanding the determinants of household food waste is a key aspect to develop and implement education programs aimed at consumers. The aim of the study was to conduct segmentation and identify groups of consumers characterized by similar food handling, with particular emphasis on food waste. Segmentation conducted on a representative group of Poles over 18 years of age enabled the identification of five clusters. The identified groups of consumers differ in the following aspects: the number of adults, the number of children, a subjective assessment of the financial situation, the percentage of food expenses. It was found that cluster E, representing households with children, prepared meals at home most often. At the same time, persons from this group most often threw out wilted fruit and vegetables, as well as potatoes, rice, and pasta. Cluster D, declaring high food expenses (61-100%), at the same time much less frequently, compared to the other groups, used meat from soup, cooked potatoes, rice, and pasta to prepare other dishes. Cluster C, declaring the best financial situation, significantly more often used wilted vegetables and fruit to prepare other dishes. Cluster A, with the largest share in the sample (almost 70%), often formed the so-called homogeneous groups with other clusters. However, it also threw away cooked starch additives and wilted fruit and vegetables more often. It should be stated that it is necessary to take measures to reduce food waste in households.Gospodarstwa domowe nie zawsze zarządzają zakupioną żywnością w sposób efektywny, o czym świadczy skala marnowanej żywności. Z badania marnotrawstwa żywności przeprowadzonego w ramach projektu PROM wynika, że tygodniowo w gospodarstwie domowym wyrzucano średnio 3,9 kg żywności (w tym części jadalne i niejadalne). Kluczowym aspektem jest zrozumienie czynników determinujących marnotrawstwo żywności w gospodarstwie domowym, które pozwoli na opracowanie i wdrożenie programów edukacyjnych kierowanych do konsumentów. Celem badania było przeprowadzenie segmentacji w celu zidentyfikowania grup konsumentów charakteryzujących się podobnym postępowaniem z żywnością, ze szczególnym uwzględnieniem marnotrawstwa posiłków. Segmentacja przeprowadzona na reprezentatywnej grupie Polaków powyżej 18 r.ż. pozwoliła na zidentyfikowanie 5 klastrów. Zdiagnozowane skupienia konsumentów różnią się cechami, takimi jak: liczba osób dorosłych, liczba dzieci, subiektywna ocena sytuacji materialnej, odsetek wydatków na żywność. Stwierdzono, że najczęściej posiłki w domu przygotowywał segment E składający się z gospodarstw domowych z dziećmi. Jednocześnie najczęściej osoby z tego skupienia wyrzucały zwiędnięte owoce i warzywa oraz ziemniaki, ryż i makaron. Segment D, który deklarował duże wydatki na żywność (61-100%), jednocześnie zdecydowanie rzadziej, w porównaniu z pozostałymi grupami, wykorzystywał do przygotowania innych potraw mięso z zupy, ugotowane ziemniaki, ryż, makaron. Segment C, który deklarował najlepszą sytuację finansową, istotnie częściej wykorzystywał zwiędnięte warzywa i owoce do przygotowywania innych potraw. Mający największy udział w badanej próbie segment A (prawie 70%) często tworzył tzw. grupy jednorodne z pozostałymi wyodrębnionymi skupieniami. Jednak można zauważyć, że częściej wskazywał wyrzucanie ugotowanych dodatków skrobiowych oraz zwiędniętych owoców i warzyw. Podsumowując, należy stwierdzić, że konieczne jest podjęcie działań ograniczających marnotrawstwo żywności w ogniwie gospodarstw domowych

Behavior of Polish Consumers in Relation to Meals Ordered in Food Service Establishments in the Context of Plate Waste

In the food service industry, food is wasted at every stage of the process. A significant part of food wastage is the so-called plate waste, i.e., food left by the consumer on the plate. The purpose of this research was to analyze the behavior of Polish consumers in relation to meals ordered in food establishments. The following issues were taken into account: leaving an unfinished meal on a plate and reasons for it, taking an unfinished meal home, and ordering half portions. The study was conducted on a representative group of 1115 adult Polish citizens using the CAPI method. Segmentation (cluster analysis) of respondents differing in their behavior in relation to ordered meals was carried out. It turned out that about 53% of Polish citizens do not use food services at all. Men with secondary and higher levels of education and other sources of income (cluster C) less frequently declared leaving unfinished meals on a plate and taking an unfinished meal home, especially in canteens, compared to other clusters. Few respondents declared buying half portions. Excessively large portions and inadequate taste of dishes were indicated by almost 50% of respondents as the main reasons for the generation of plate waste. Measures should be promoted to encourage consumers and food service providers to reduce the generation of plate waste