Through research in this area, consumers will be provided with a broad selection of high quality, low cost, safe, and nutritious foods. Food production and processing to meet the needs of today's consumers will enhance citizens health and well-being and improve the nation's domestic economy and global competitiveness. Understanding the structural and functional relationships among various components of foods will allow better control and enhancement of food quality during processing, storage distribution, and preparation for consumption. There will be increased need for international quality and safety processing standards for both imports and exports. Southern industries that require special food quality focus include poultry, fish, nuts, and vegetables.
Objectives Improve quality and nutritive value of foods of animal origin.
Identify relative nutrient values of animal products and their relationships with human health, and define genetic and other mechanisms to improve and control these factors. Increase knowledge of food properties. Develop and apply new knowledge of the physical, chemical, biological, and functional properties of raw materials and food products to enhance the quality of food. Maximize nutritional value. Develop processing and packaging technologies to maximize nutritional value of foods during processing, storage, and distribution.