A Novel Rheological and Chewing and Swallowing model for the Smart Design of Texture Modified Foods for Increased Aged Health. Difficulty in chewing and swallowing mean about 40% of elderly people require Texture Modified (TM) meals. Elders able to eat only very soft food textures have a 2.4 fold higher risk of mortality. However existing methods to assess the level of texture modification are poor; achieving a consistent level of TM meal is difficult; and TM meals have poor sensory properties ( ....A Novel Rheological and Chewing and Swallowing model for the Smart Design of Texture Modified Foods for Increased Aged Health. Difficulty in chewing and swallowing mean about 40% of elderly people require Texture Modified (TM) meals. Elders able to eat only very soft food textures have a 2.4 fold higher risk of mortality. However existing methods to assess the level of texture modification are poor; achieving a consistent level of TM meal is difficult; and TM meals have poor sensory properties (appearance, flavour, aroma). This work will use a novel chewing and swallowing model in conjunction with novel food flavour and property measurements to develop new texture modified foods with increased taste, ease of swallowing and nutritional value.Read moreRead less
Markers of milk quality in commercially produced UHT milks and milk powders. Efficient production of safe, wholesome food relies on the application of the best available knowledge of the food material and the processing technologies involved. This project applies proteomics, the most advanced protein analysis technique, to determine the changes that occur in milk during high heat treatment and subsequent storage of the heat-processed milk product. Armed with such knowledge, the dairy processin ....Markers of milk quality in commercially produced UHT milks and milk powders. Efficient production of safe, wholesome food relies on the application of the best available knowledge of the food material and the processing technologies involved. This project applies proteomics, the most advanced protein analysis technique, to determine the changes that occur in milk during high heat treatment and subsequent storage of the heat-processed milk product. Armed with such knowledge, the dairy processing industry will be able to make informed decisions about processing and storage conditions to ensure the final products provided to the consumer are of the highest possible quality. Read moreRead less
The Molecular Mechanism of Protein Instability in Dairy Powder Systems. Dairy is the fourth largest rural industry sectors in Australia, directly involving more than 13,000 farms and a large number of dairy factories. Most of Australia's 10 billion litre milk flow is converted to powder form for exports, with an annual value exceeding $1billion. The anticipated improvements in the performance and shelf-life of the dried dairy powder systems to be investigated in this project have the potential ....The Molecular Mechanism of Protein Instability in Dairy Powder Systems. Dairy is the fourth largest rural industry sectors in Australia, directly involving more than 13,000 farms and a large number of dairy factories. Most of Australia's 10 billion litre milk flow is converted to powder form for exports, with an annual value exceeding $1billion. The anticipated improvements in the performance and shelf-life of the dried dairy powder systems to be investigated in this project have the potential to generate significant economic impacts in both the dairy production and processing sectors. This work will also benefit the wider scientific community in dairy- and food-related areas, particularly in relation to the novel multidisciplinary approach involving a combination of material science and protein chemistry.Read moreRead less
Industrial Transformation Training Centres - Grant ID: IC160100025
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$2,259,000.00
Summary
ARC Training Centre in Food Safety in the Fresh Produce Industry. ARC Training Centre in Food Safety in the Fresh Produce Industry. This centre aims to create an innovation platform of food safety researchers and industry personnel who can significantly advance the safety of fruit and vegetables in Australia. The intended outcomes are safer food, leading to enhanced health and wellbeing; industry growth in the food/agribusiness sector; enhanced trust and international reputation; and increased a ....ARC Training Centre in Food Safety in the Fresh Produce Industry. ARC Training Centre in Food Safety in the Fresh Produce Industry. This centre aims to create an innovation platform of food safety researchers and industry personnel who can significantly advance the safety of fruit and vegetables in Australia. The intended outcomes are safer food, leading to enhanced health and wellbeing; industry growth in the food/agribusiness sector; enhanced trust and international reputation; and increased access to growing export markets. Intended benefits to industry are ready-to-use technologies for strengthened food safety, and a new generation of highly-skilled food safety scientists with experience in conducting industry-focused research.Read moreRead less
Industrial Transformation Training Centres - Grant ID: IC130100011
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$2,695,000.00
Summary
Agents of change: transforming the food industry for Australia, Asia and beyond. Agents of change: transforming the food industry for Australia, Asia and beyond. This Training Centre will train a cohort of innovation scientists who will facilitate transformation of the Australian food industry. This will include manufacturing, processing and value chain analysis, and take advantage of opportunities for Australia to meet the demand for safe, healthy and high quality foods and retail-ready ingredi ....Agents of change: transforming the food industry for Australia, Asia and beyond. Agents of change: transforming the food industry for Australia, Asia and beyond. This Training Centre will train a cohort of innovation scientists who will facilitate transformation of the Australian food industry. This will include manufacturing, processing and value chain analysis, and take advantage of opportunities for Australia to meet the demand for safe, healthy and high quality foods and retail-ready ingredients in the Asian century.Read moreRead less
Industrial Transformation Training Centres - Grant ID: IC140100027
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$2,150,000.00
Summary
ARC Training Centre for Functional Grains. ARC Training Centre for Functional Grains. The Training Centre aims to improve the profitability of the Australian grains industry. It plans to achieve this by adding value to rice, canola and pulses through: the development of a better understanding of market opportunities; improving storage technologies; the development of products which improve returns to the industry and result in better health outcomes for consumers; and improving processing method ....ARC Training Centre for Functional Grains. ARC Training Centre for Functional Grains. The Training Centre aims to improve the profitability of the Australian grains industry. It plans to achieve this by adding value to rice, canola and pulses through: the development of a better understanding of market opportunities; improving storage technologies; the development of products which improve returns to the industry and result in better health outcomes for consumers; and improving processing methods to generate these products.Read moreRead less
Industrial Transformation Research Hubs - Grant ID: IH120100005
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$5,000,000.00
Summary
Dairy Innovation Hub: transformational research to underpin the future of the Australian dairy manufacturing industry. Dairy Innovation Hub: transformational research to underpin the future of the Australian dairy manufacturing industry. The University of Melbourne, The University of Queensland and Dairy Innovation Australia will join in this Research Hub to address significant technical challenges facing the dairy manufacturing industry. The Research Hub will develop transformational processing ....Dairy Innovation Hub: transformational research to underpin the future of the Australian dairy manufacturing industry. Dairy Innovation Hub: transformational research to underpin the future of the Australian dairy manufacturing industry. The University of Melbourne, The University of Queensland and Dairy Innovation Australia will join in this Research Hub to address significant technical challenges facing the dairy manufacturing industry. The Research Hub will develop transformational processing technologies and innovative products to enhance productivity, growth and sustainability.Read moreRead less
Development of solvent extraction systems for improved sugar quality and yield. The recent collapse in the international sugar price and increased competition amongst producers have highlighted the vulnerability of Australian sugar mills and the regional communities reliant on sugar cane growing to variation in the price of this commodity. Hence, the development of new, more efficient means to produce raw sugar of high quality is of paramount importance to maintain Australia as a low cost produ ....Development of solvent extraction systems for improved sugar quality and yield. The recent collapse in the international sugar price and increased competition amongst producers have highlighted the vulnerability of Australian sugar mills and the regional communities reliant on sugar cane growing to variation in the price of this commodity. Hence, the development of new, more efficient means to produce raw sugar of high quality is of paramount importance to maintain Australia as a low cost producer. This project aims to investigate the use of unique solvent extraction methods to remove deleterious impurities from the raw cane juice in sugar mills with the consequent improvement in both sugar yield and quality.Read moreRead less
Design rules for nutritionally-functional grains. Design rules for nutritionally-functional grains. This project aims to design the most comprehensive specifications yet for nutritionally enhanced and health-modulating starch in grain-based foods. Why starch resists small intestinal digestion is not understood; this limits plant breeders and food (ingredient) manufacturers’ ability to tailor starch structures for optimal human nutritional value. This project will study how resistant starch survi ....Design rules for nutritionally-functional grains. Design rules for nutritionally-functional grains. This project aims to design the most comprehensive specifications yet for nutritionally enhanced and health-modulating starch in grain-based foods. Why starch resists small intestinal digestion is not understood; this limits plant breeders and food (ingredient) manufacturers’ ability to tailor starch structures for optimal human nutritional value. This project will study how resistant starch survives digestion in the small intestine and passed to the large intestine using a model for the large intestine to define the microbial fermentation of resistant starch fractions. This research is expected to improve breeding programmes and food ingredients and promote the nutritional value of grain-based foods.Read moreRead less
Expectations and commitments in the Australia-USA alliance. This project aims to investigate the gap between the high expectations of mutual support and the lack of detailed security commitments in the Australia-US Alliance. The project intends to use a focused approach that captures thematic aspects of the alliance through project frames and historical slices across time. Expected outcomes can advance understanding of how alliances operate as security institutions. The outcomes can help to prom ....Expectations and commitments in the Australia-USA alliance. This project aims to investigate the gap between the high expectations of mutual support and the lack of detailed security commitments in the Australia-US Alliance. The project intends to use a focused approach that captures thematic aspects of the alliance through project frames and historical slices across time. Expected outcomes can advance understanding of how alliances operate as security institutions. The outcomes can help to promote a more informed national conversation about the costs and benefits of Australia's security relationship with the United States of America (USA) and contribute to debates over the future of the Australia-USA Alliance during a period of strategic uncertainty.Read moreRead less