Center for Food Industry Excellence
Purpose
- To systematically develop and evaluate production, processing, and preparation methods of food products to achieve a safer, higher quality and more nutritious food supply and to take the information to the end-user. These efforts are aimed at:
- Developing pre-harvest, harvest, and post-harvest strategies and technologies to maintain a safe, high-quality, and affordable food supply while maintaining producer profitability
- Developing new food products and adding value to existing products
- Determining the functional and nutritional properties of food innovations to meet specialized nutritional needs of niche populations
- Determining consumer perceptions of, and attitudes toward, food innovations and identify techniques to positively influence acceptance
- Accomplishing technology transfer by supplying technical assistance and educational outreach programs to all segments of the food industry
- Developing research efforts and educational programs for prudent water usage in the food industry
- Developing model systems for meeting human nutritional needs locally and globally
Relevance
The International Center for Food Industry Excellence proposes to build upon the expertise available at Texas Tech University and its collaborating institutions. The Center has developed new laboratory facilities including a BSL2 pathogen processing area, two mobile laboratories, a state-of-the art product development and sensory laboratory, and a poultry processing facility. Center-affiliated researchers are developing and evaluating food innovations that improve the security, safety, functional properties, nutritional quality, eating quality, consumer acceptance, and production characteristics of food available to U.S. consumers. The Southern High Plains is in the heart of the U.S. cattle industry, rapidly growing swine and dairy industries, a large cotton production industry, and an expanding and diversifying crop production industry.
Accomplishments/Impacts
- Funding Support. The Center faculty have generated more than $9 million in research funding support during the past seven years
- E. coli Reduction. Pre-harvest interventions for dust control lowers E. coli O157 and Salmonella loads on cattle arriving at harvest facilities with potential reductions on neighboring vegetable crops. A pre-harvest food safety intervention method developed by the Center currently is being fed to more than one-half of the beef feedlot cattle in the United States
- New Lunch Program. Developed a fruit- and meat-based product for the school lunch program, which currently is being tested in elementary schools
- Extended Shelf Life. New and innovative packaging methods have added value to existing products by extending shelf life
- Better Beef. Consumer studies of beef flavor, tenderness, and juiciness have resulted in new methods for marketing leaner, better-tasting beef products to the consumer
- Spoilage-Masking. A model for “spoilage-masking” has been developed and is a key criterion to gain FDA approval
Lead Agency: Texas Tech University
Partners: West Texas A&M University
Federal Funding Request for FY 2010: $3 million