FOOD SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGYFood Science is a discipline concerned with the technical aspects of the food beginning with harvesting, or slaughtering the live stock and ending with its cooking and consumption. It is considered one of the agricultural sciences and is usually different from the field of Nutrition.Food Science has been defined by Margaret (1968) as: The application of the basic science and engineering to study the fundamental, physical, biological and biochemical nature of foods and the principles of processing and marketing of food.Dennis R Helmand, the International Food Technologists (IFT) president in October 2006 has described Food Science as an discipline in which engineering, biological and physical science are used to study the nature of foods, the cause of deterioration, the principles underlying food processing and improvement of foods for consuming public.Food Technology: Food Technology can be defined as: science dealing with knowledge of doing things efficiently and effectively.Difference between Food Science and Food Technology: Food science and Food technology maintain a special relationship with several basic disciplines as well as with other applied specializations. Food science and food technology are not two separate subjects, the relation between Food Science and technology is subtle and complex.Food Technology deals with engineering and other scientific as well as technical problems involved in transforming edible raw materials and other ingredients into nutritious and appetizing food products. Food science is concerned with the basic scientific facts about foods where as food technology is concerned with the processing of raw materials into foods that meet the human needs and works.Objectives for the study of Food Science and Food Technology can be listed as follows:1) Food Science helps us to understand theory of foods.E.g.: The methods that can be used to store and preserve food to maintain quality and prevent spoilage2) Food science and food technology demonstrates how food is stored, preserved, processed and transported and has been responsible for development of new technique for preserving and processing food on a commercial scale and for packaging, in such a way that it can be sold conveniently.3) Food science and food technology are relatively a new field. They have begun to achieve a degree of technical maturity in its development nationally and internationally.4) Food Science deals with study of fact of physical, chemical and biological science as they influence processing and preservation of food.5) They also help to understand the nature and composition of foods including color, texture, consistency and keeping quality depending on the constituents present in it.6) They study the changes that occur in foods during storage, preparation and processing.7) They help to learn the ideal methods of food storage, preparation and processing to conserve the nutritive value and increase acceptability.8) They help to learn the selection of good quality and nutritive foods keeping into consideration the economic standard of the family.9) They help to improve the digestibility of foods. The digestibility of food is affected by the composition of food, processing and method of preparation.10) They help to maintain the safety of foods. In India, the food standards have been set by ISI, Agmark, FPO and BIS.11) Studying food science and food technology helps us to understand their importance of food in life.Sub-disciplines of Food Science: The various sub-disciplines in Food Science are as follows:(1) Food Safety is a scientific discipline which describes handling, preparation and storage of foods in ways that prevent the food borne illness. In developed countries the main issue is simply the availability of adequate and safe water as it is a critical item.(2) Food Microbiology is the study of microbes which inhabit, create and contaminate the food. Although some of the micro organisms cause food spoilage, good bacteria such as pro-biotics are becoming increasingly implying Food Science. Micro organisms also help in the production of food items like cheese, yoghurt and fermented products like bread, wine and beer.(3) Food Preservation is the process of treating and handling foods to stop or slow down spoilage (loss of quality, edibility and nutritive value) caused or accelerated by micro organisms. Some methods use benign bacteria, yeast, fungi to add specific qualities to preserved foods (cheese, wine). While maintaining or creating nutritive value, texture and flavor is important in preserving its value in foods.Common methods of applying these processes include drying, spray drying, freeze drying, freezing, vaccum packing, caning, preservation in syrup, sugar crystallization, food irradiation and adding preservatives.(4) Food Engineering is a multi-disciplinary program which combines science, microbiology and engineering education to food and related industries. It includes but is not limited to the application of agricultural engineering and chemical engineering principles to food materials. It includes research and development of new foods, biological and pharmaceutical products, development and operation, manufacturing, packing, distribution systems for drug or food products. (5) New Product Development (NPD) is used to describe the complete process of bringing new products of services to the market. It involves two parallel path ways one where in the ideas are generated, product designed as well as detailed engineering and second one involves market research and analysis.(6) Sensory Analysis / Sensory Evaluation is a scientific discipline that applies the principles of experimental design and statistical analysis to use to human senses (sight, smell, taste, touch and hearing) for the purpose of evaluating consumer products. The discipline required panel of human assessors by whom the products are tested and the responses recorded. By statistically analyzing the results possible inferences can be made.(7) Food Chemistry is a sub-division of sensory evaluation where in the study of chemical processes and interactions of all biological and non-biological components of foods are carried out. It also encompasses as to how products change under certain food processing techniques and the way to enhance or prevent them from happening.Ex.: A process to prevent browning of cut apples is the application of lime juice or salt to them.(8) Food Packing - the packing of foods require protection, tampering resistance and special physical, chemical or biological needs. It also shows the product label with nutritional information of the foods being consumed.(9) Molecular Gastronomy is a scientific discipline involving the study of physical and chemical processes that occur in cooking. It pertains to mechanics behind the transformation of ingredients in cooking and the social, artistic and technical components of culinary and gastronomic phenomena.(10) Food Technology / Food Tech is the application of food science to selection, preservation, processing, packaging, distribution and use of safe, nutritious and wholesome foods.(11) Food Physics deals with the physical aspects of foods such as viscosity, creaminess and texture

Indian Processed Food Industry

Global Processed Food Industry The size of global processed food industry is estimated to be valued around US $3.6 trillion and accounts for three-fourth of the global food sales. Despite its large size, only 6% of processed foods are traded across borders compared to 16% of major bulk agricultural commodities. Indian food-processing industry is miniscule in comparison and is estimated to be US $40 billion and is likely to grow at over 10%, on the basis of an expected GDP growth rate of 8-8.5% p.a. India accounts for less than 1.5% of international food trade despite being one of the worlds major food producers. The size of global processed food industry is estimated to be valued around US $3.6 trillion and accounts for three-fourth of the global food sales. Despite its large size, only 6% of processed foods are traded across borders compared to 16% of major bulk agricultural commodities. Over 60% of total retail processed food sales in the world are accounted by the U.S, EU and Japan taken together. Japan is the largest food processing market in the Asian region, though India and China are catching up fast and are likely to grow more rapidly. Leading meat-importing countries namely Japan and South Korea have a developed processed food industry. One of the most technically advanced food-processing industry globally is Australia as the products produced are of international standards and at comparatively lower prices. Countries in the Sub-Sahara African region, Latin America and parts of Asia continue to be on the lower-end of technology competence in food items. However, Europe, North America, and Japan are on the higher-end of technology, with a sharper shift towards convenience and diet foods.

Indian Processed Food IndustryIndia has the second largest arable land of 161 million hectares and has the highest acreage under irrigation. Next to China, India ranks second largest food producer in the world and has the potential to immerge the biggest with its food and agricultural sector. India accounts for less than 1.5% of international food trade despite being one of the worlds major food producers, which indicates huge potential for both investors and exporters.INDIA is the 2nd largest in the emerging economies in the world, with a GDP growth rate of ~6.5%, 3th largest economy in the world (based on PPP) with a GDP of US $ 4.4Trillion, and according to BRIC report published by Goldman Sachs, India will be the 2 largest economy after China by the year 2035. The industry is mainly unorganized with 75% including small scale industries having 33% of part of the processing units belonging to the unorganised category, the organized category is 25% though small, is growing fast. The food production is expected to double in the next 10 years and the consumption of value added food products is expected to grow at a much faster pace.

Indian agri-business: Key facts Varied agro climatic zones 2nd largest arable land (161 million hectares) in the world Largest irrigated land (55 million hectares) in the world Largest producer of wheat (72 million tones), accounting for nearly 15% of global wheat production Largest producer of pulses (15 million tones), accounting for nearly 21% of global pulse production Largest producer of milk (96 million tons), accounting for nearly 17% of global milk production Largest producer and exporter of spices 2nd largest producer of tea, accounting for nearly 28% of the global tea production 2nd largest producer of rice (92 million tons), accounting for nearly 22% of global Rice production Largest exporter of the world's best basmati rice 2nd largest producer of fruits (50 million tons) and vegetables (100 million tons) 2nd largest producer of sugarcane (296 million tons), accounting for nearly 21% of the global sugarcane production 3rd largest producer of coarse grains (31 million tons), including maize, accounting for nearly 4% of the global coarse grain production 3rd largest producer of edible oilseeds (25 million tons), accounting for nearly 7% of the global edible oilseed productionThe industry has very low processing level i.e 2.2% for fruits and vegetables, around 35% in milk, 21% in meat and 6% in poultry products, which is significantly lower by international standards. For e.g. processing of agriculture produce is around 40% in China, 30% in Thailand, 70% in Brazil, 78% in the Philippines and 80% in Malaysia. Value addition to agriculture produce in India is just 20% with wastage estimated to be valued at around US $13 billion.One of the key reasons for low levels of food processing is poor infrastructure for storage, marketing and distribution of food products. 25-40% of agri-produce is lost post harvest season. According to estimates, Indias marketable surplus is set to increase by 350 mtpa to 870 mtpa by 2012. 40% of the increase (150 mtpa) would be accounted by perishable fruits and vegetables. The need for investments in the areas of infrastructure and supply chain is evident from the fact that Indias current storage infrastructure for all food items is only 100 mtpa.Major Challenges for the Indian Food IndustryFood-processing industry is facing constraints like non-availability of adequate infrastructural facilities, lack of adequate quality control & testing infrastructure, inefficient supply chain, seasonality of raw material, high inventory carrying cost, high taxation, high packaging cost, affordability and cultural preference of fresh food.Unprocessed foods are prone to spoilage by biochemical processes, microbial attack and infestation. Good processing techniques, packaging, transportation and storage can play an important role in reducing spoilage and extending shelf life. The challenge is to retain the nutritional value, aroma, flavour and texture of foods, and presenting them in near natural form with added conveniences. Processed foods need to be offered to the consumer in hygienic and attractive packaging, and at low incremental costs.Major Challenges for the Indian Food Processing Industry are: Consumer education on nutritional facts of processed foods Low price-elasticity for processed food products Need for distribution network and cold chain Backward-forward integration from farm to consumers Development of marketing channels Development of linkages between industry, government and institutions Taxation in line with other nations Streamlining of food lawsIndian Food Processing Industry by sectorsIndia's food-processing sector covers fruit and vegetables; meat and poultry; milk and milk products, alcoholic beverages, fisheries, plantation, grain processing and other consumer product groups like confectionery, chocolates and cocoa products, soya-based products, mineral water, high protein foods etc. The most promising sub-sectors includes- soft-drink bottling, confectionery manufacture, fishing, aquaculture, grain-milling and grain-based products, meat and poultry processing, alcoholic beverages, milk processing, tomato paste, fast food, ready-to-eat breakfast cereals, food additives, flavors etc. Health food and health food supplement is another rapidly rising segment of this industry, which is gaining vast popularity amongst the health conscious.

The dairy sector has an estimated consumer demand for milk and milk products more than Rs 1,400 billion, growing at about 8% p.a. Poultry meat is estimated to have production of 1.8 million tones, growing at a CAGR of 11%. Besides, ready-to-eat (RTE) industry, still nascent in India, is estimated to be about Rs 5 billion growing at 30% p.a and had crossed by Rs. 15 billion by 2010. The wine sector, is growing at about 50% p.a had crossed to have a market size of Rs 20 billion by 2010.

DairyIndia, world's largest milk producer, accounting for more than 16% of world's total milk production, is the world's largest consumer of dairy products. The total amount of milk produced has tripled from 23 million tonnes back in 1973 to 132.0 million tonnes in 2012-13 and expected a production level of 135 million tonnes by 2015 but the projected demand for milk by 2021-22 estimated at 180 million tonnes which implies that milk production would have to be doubled.

Milk production is growing at 3.3% while consumption is growing at 5% leaving a gap between demand and supply. Inorder to meet the rapid growing demand and to increase the milk production, Union Govt has started a central scheme National Dairy Plan Phase 1, for a period of 2011-12 to 2016 17.This scheme will be implemented with a total investment of about 2242 crore. This scheme main objective is to help provide rural milk producers with greater access to the organised milk processing sector and thus to bridge the gap between the demand and supply of milk in the country. The per capita availability of milk is 281ml of milk per capita per day.

The share of the total milk processing capacity by private sector is 44%of total installed capacity of 73 MLPD (Million Litres Per Day) in the country. Therefore, the total share of the organized sector, both cooperatives as well as the private sector is barely 12%. What is, therefore, disquieting is that as much as 88% share of the total milk production is commanded by the unorganized sector. Inorder to attract promote Dairy Industry and attract more investment in this sector, govt has also reduced the excise duty of 16% to Zero on Dairy processing Machineries.

Major PlayersThe packaged milk segment is dominated by the dairy cooperatives. Gujarat Co-operative Milk Marketing Federation (GCMMF) is the largest player. All other local dairy cooperatives have their local brands (For e.g. Gokul, Warana in Maharashtra, Saras in Rajasthan, Verka in Punjab, Vijaya in Andhra Pradesh, Aavin in Tamil Nadu, etc). Other private players include J. K Dairy, Heritage Foods, Indiana Dairy, Dairy Specialties, etc.

Fruits and Vegetable ProcessingFruits: The global fruit production during 2004 was 511 million MT. During the past 15 years, production of fruits in China has gone up by 246 per cent, which helped China to become the largest producer of fruits (83.24 million MT) in the world from its third largest producer position and contributes 16 per cent share in total production. India is the second largest producer of fruits with a production of 49 million MT and contributes 10 per cent share in global fruit production. Brazil occupies the third position, with 36 million MT and contributes 7 per cent in global production. India occupies first place in production of mango, banana, litchi, papaya, pomegranate, sapota and aonla; 2nd place in limes and lemons and 5th place in pineapple production of the world. The productivity of grape is highest in the world. India has higher national average productivity in banana and sapota compared to world average productivity, while in citrus, mango, apple, guava, pineapple, papaya, India has substantially low productivity in comparison to the world average. India accounts for an area of 6.876 million ha under fruit crops with a production of 11.71million MT. During the period 1998-99 to 2011-12 growth in area, production and productivity of fruits was observed at the rate of 6.7, 76.4 and 11.2 per cent while between 2001-02 and 2004-05 it was 7.37, 4.66 and -12.06 per cent for area, production and productivity respectively. Among various states, Maharashtra ranks first and contributes 27 per cent in area and 21.5 per cent production. Andhra Pradesh ranks second in area and production contributing 13 and 16 of fruits. With a horticulture production of about 30 million tone (13 % of total production) , West Bengal , led the horticulture production during 2010-11 followed by Andhra Pradesh (10%), UP (10%) & Tamil Nadu (10%). Uttar Pradesh slipped to third position from the first position in 2009-10 because its production declined by 5 million tons whereas the production of west Bengal , Andhra & Tamil Nadu increased by 5, 4 & 3 million tons respectively. Tamil Nadu led in banana production (8 million tons, 28 %), whereas UP (3.6 million tones, 24 %) & Andhra (22%) contributed significantly in production of mango.

Vegetables: India is the second largest vegetable producer after China with 11% production share in the world and Brazil is the third. It is also the largest producer of okra and second largest producer of most of the other important vegetable crops at global level, namely brinjal, cabbage, cauliflower, pea, onion and tomato and third largest producer of potato in the world. However, it falls behind in productivity in most of the crops except for tomato where India is ranked at number 1. In okra, it is at par with world productivity and in cauliflower it is quite close to the average world productivity.Total vegetable production in India before independence was 15 million MT and since independence for decades the growth rate was stabilized around 0.5%. The impetus on vegetable research and policy intervention to promote vegetable crops witnessed a sudden spurt in growth rate of 2.5%, a hike of five times during the last decade. The potential technological interventions with improved gene pool and precise management can very well take growth rate to nearby 6% per annum. The area under vegetables increased from 5.59 million ha in 1991 - 92 to 8.98 million ha during 2011-12. The production in this period increased from 58.53 to 156.32 million MT. During the same period, productivity of vegetables increased from 10.5 MT/ ha to 17.4 MT/ ha.While West Bengal continues to be the leading state in area and production, the productivity is higher in Tamil Nadu followed by Uttar Pradesh and Bihar. Potato has the highest share in total vegetable production of the country (28.8%) followed by brinjal (8.6%), tomato (8.5%), tapioca (7.8%), onion (7.4%) and cabbage (6.1%). UP (13.6 million tons) and West Bengal (3.4 million tons) each accounted for about one third (32 %) of potato production in the country. Maharashtra led in onion production with produce of about 5 million tons and accounted for about one third (32%)of total onion produced in the country .Production of tomato, however, was more evenly distributed with the highest producer Karnataka (1.7 million tons ) accounting for about 10 per cent of overall production.

GrainsIndia produces 264.38 million tones of different food grains in 2012-13 year. All major grains like rice, wheat, maize, barley and millets like jowar (great millet), bajra (pearl millet) & ragi (finger millet) are produced in India. About 15% of the annual production of wheat is converted into wheat products. There are 10,000 pulse mills in the country with a milling capacity of 14 million tones, milling about 75% of annual pulse production of 14 million tones.Rice- most processed grainIndia is the second largest rice producer in the world with a 20% share in world rice production. The total rice market in India is estimated to be worth around Rs 1,00,000 crores (growing at 3-4% annually) of which only 10% of the rice is branded. The branded rice sales have taken off in recent years and have been growing at around 15% in the domestic market compared to 5% for unbranded rice. The branded rice sales growth is an impressive 25% in the international market as compared to stagnant sales of unbranded rice. Added to this, of the Rs 3,500 crores worth of basmati rice produced, only around Rs 500 crores worth is sold in branded form.India exports around one million tones of basmati rice every year. Saudi Arabia comprises 60% of the exports. Pakistan is Indias sole basmati competitor in the international market.

Meat and poultry processingAt 485 million India has the worlds largest livestock population- accounting for over 55% and 16% of the worlds buffalo and cattle populations respectively (the worlds largest bovine population). It ranks second in goats, third in sheep and camels, and seventh in poultry populations in the world.Processing of meat products is licensed under Meat Food Products Order, (MFPO), 1973. Total meat production in the country is estimated at 10 million tones annually. Indian consumer prefers to buy freshly cut meat, rather than processed or frozen meat. A mere 6% of production of poultry meat is sold in processed form. Of this, only about 1% undergoes processing into value added products (Ready-to- eat/ Ready-to-cook). Processing of large animals is largely for the purpose of exports. This is because of low processing of value added meat products and consumer preference for fresh meat. The total processing capacity in India is over 1 million tones p.a of which 40-50% is utilized.In meat & meat processing sector, poultry meat is the fastest growing animal protein in India. The estimated production is 15,00,000 tones growing at CAGR of 13% through 1991-2012. India ranks among the top six egg producing countries and ranks among the top five chicken producing countries. Per capita consumption has grown from 870 grams in 2000 to about 1.68 kg in 2005. This is expected to grow to 2 kg in 2009. Growth in Buffalo meat production has been less rapid (CAGR of 5% in the last 6 years). The current production levels are estimated at 1.9 million mt. Of this about 21% is exported. Mutton and lamb is relatively small segment where demand is outstripping supply, which explains the high prices in domestic market. The production levels have been almost constant at 950,000 mt with annual exports of less than 10,000 mt. This has restricted large processing companies from developing business interests in this sector.India exports more than 5,00,000 mt of meat of which major share is buffalo meat. Indian buffalo meat is witnessing strong demand in international markets due to its lean character and near organic nature.The total processed meat production in India is likely to double in the next 10 years and has a huge potential with the growing number of fast food outlets in the country. With the rise in per capita incomes and busy lifestyles, the demand for processed meat products, which can be quickly cooked, has been rising. Most of the production of meat and meat products continues to be in the unorganised sector. Branded products like Venkys and Godrejs Real Chicken are, however, becoming popular in the domestic market.Fish ProcessingIndia is the third largest fish producer in the world and is second in inland fish production. Fish production in the country has increased from 0.75 mt in 1950-51 to 90.62 lakh tonnes in 2012-13. The geographic base of Indian marine fisheries has 8,118 km. coastline, 2.02 million sq.km. of exclusive economic zone including 0.5 million sq. km. of continental shelf, and 3,937 fishing villages. India is endowed with rich fishery resources and has vast potential for fishes from both inland and marine resources.Processing of fish into canned and frozen forms is carried out almost entirely for the export market. It is widely felt that Indias substantial fishery resources are under-utilised and there is tremendous potential to increase the output of this sector. The potential could be gauged by the fact that against fish production potential in the exclusive economic zone of 3.9 million tones, actual catch is to the tune of 2.87 million tones. Harvesting from inland sources is around 2.7 million tones. In last six years there was substantial investment in fisheries to the tune of Rs 3,000 crores of which foreign investments were of the order ofRs 700.