Introduction SOFAD is an association which brings together social, career, and

academic opportunities for individuals interested in a range of food

associated disciplines. It also raises awareness of the importance of

these disciplines and provides general support for members.

Society of Food Associated Disciplines SOFAD Newsletter M A R C H 2 0 1 5 — I S S U E 4

Past Events Lightning Seminar Series

International Food Festival

Annual General Meeting

Careers Insight Evening – with

Food Safety Officer, Dietitian,

Entrepreneur

Career Talk with Fonterra

MARCH APRIL JULY MAY

Welcoming Expo

FoodBowl Tour

Fonterra Careers

Pub Quiz

Evening

NZIFST

Conference

Careers Insight

Event

Upcoming Events

Current News

M A R C H 2 0 1 5 — I S S U E 4

S O F A D N E W S L E T T E R

Eating breakfast stimulates your brain and prevents

obesity

Dopamine is a brain chemical that is engaged in food

cravings and reward. In young women, eating breakfast

initiated the release of dopamine to elicit feelings of

reward. Those skipping breakfast had blunted dopamine

response throughout the day and required more food to

elicit stimulation. In the long run, this can lead to

overeating and obesity.

By Ortinau et al., Nutrition Journal

Smart food packing material for shelf-life extension

and consumer judgment

A new smart packaging was developed to extend the shelf

life of the food and higher accuracy of shelf life estimation.

It is based on nanotechnology using non-toxic ferric

compounds and silicate sheet to provide a shielding

scavenging environment. This is coupled with sensor

strips that detect freshness of the food accurately.

By The Agency for Science, Technology and Research

Removing arsenic contaminant in drinking water

Arsenic is common pollutant in drinking water worldwide

and may lead to the development of many diseases. A

novel method was developed using iron-enhanced biochar

to remove arsenic from drinking water. Biochar may be

produced from various food waste biomass and offers an

attractive food waste management strategy

simultaneously.

By Hu et al., Water Research

Is the Gingko biloba supplement really what you think

it is?

Dietary supplements are subject to fraudulence where

they may be adulterated with inferior or toxic material and

the consumer is not getting the intended physiological

benefits. A novel DNA mini-barcode assay was developed

to authenticate Gingko biloba supplements. This offers

quality control for manufacturers and regulatory agencies.

By Little et al., Genome

New lipid in food that improves diabetes

Scientists have discovered a new lipid, fatty acyl hydroxyl

fatty acids (FAHFAs) that is present in a range of

vegetables, fruits and other foods. They found lower

FAHFA to be related to diabetes in mice and humans. The

beneficial effects of FAHFAs to diabetes are thought to be

through their anti-inflammatory effects.

By Yore et al., Cell

Research at the University of Auckland High pressure processing; improving the quality of

Manuka honey

Noor Akhmazillah Fauzi; Prof Mohammed Farid; Dr Filipa

Silva; Department of Chemical and Materials Engineering

Honey is an iconic New Zealand product with excellent

export growth potential because of its unique

antibacterial activity and antioxidant properties. The

valuable antioxidant properties of honey are known to

be compromised when raw honey goes through thermal

processing, which results in a quality reduction. High

pressure processing (HPP) of food is a non-thermal

process aiming to treat foods with minimal heating. The

determination of total phenolic content and antioxidant

activity of honey as affected by HPP was investigated.

HPP not only retained the antioxidant activity and

phenolic content of honey but actually increased them.

HPP offers an important technology to improve natural

nutritional value of honey.

Non-destructive methods of analysing apple colour

and sweetness

Xin-Yan Cheng; A/Prof Siew-Young Quek; Prof Murat

Balaban; School of Chemical Sciences

Non-destructive methods such as hyperspectral imaging

(HSI) and machine vision (MV) are increasingly being

used in food quality assessments as they offer the

advantages of being efficient, automated and allow for

successive data collection. As apples are major export

crops of NZ and confer a vast array of nutritional

benefits, my study aims to assess the feasibility of using

non-destructive methods in evaluating their sensory and

nutritional properties. Colour and sweetness are

important organoleptic properties used as indicators of

apple quality. HSI and MV data are compared with those

of conventional chemical analysis and sensory

evaluation.

An investigation of the relationship between

maternal diet and Gestational Diabetes Mellitus:

using metabolomics

Jamie V de Seymour; Prof Philip Baker; Liggins Institute

An array of research has demonstrated the relationship

between maternal diet and the pregnancy disorder

Gestational Diabetes Mellitus (GDM). My research uses

metabolomics – the study of small weight molecules

(metabolites) to more objectively investigate the

association between maternal diet and GDM. By

combining dietary recall information with metabolomic

profiles from participant’s blood/hair samples, we are

able to elucidate the potential mechanisms of how

maternal diet is affecting metabolism and how these

alterations may be associated with GDM development/

progression. This work allows the informing of future

studies about potential nutritional interventions for the

prevention and/or treatment of GDM.

S O F A D N E W S L E T T E R

M A R C H 2 0 1 5 — I S S U E 4

Careers Pathway Campbell Ellison

Production Planning Capacity, Tegel Foods

My role at Tegel Foods in Henderson is in a production

planning capacity. This involves starting when the factory

starts each day and determining how much of each

product must be made that day to meet the demands of

customers and further processing. I also manage the

weight line which drops the birds into the appropriate

departments. This job requires a lot of multitasking,

communication and attention to detail as 60,000 birds are

processed every day. Therefore, a slip up can cause

tonnes of products to require dumping or rework.

Kelly Kai Jia Koor

Food Safety Consultant, Food Safety NZ

I work for a food safety consultant company, whose

clients include food business owners, manufacturers,

importing and exporting companies, government

departments, industry organisations and corporate food

retailers. During my time at Food Safety NZ, I have been

involved in providing general food safety advice to clients,

conducting audits, drafting Food Safety / Food Control /

Risk Management Programmes, investigating food

complaints in line with client requirements and delivering

various NZQA approved training courses to people

working in the food industry. I am glad to have the chance

of working in this field as food safety has always been a

crucial part in the food industry.

Ann Widanapathirana

Technical Sales Specialist, Hibiscus Solutions Ltd

After completing my Food Technology and Human

Nutrition degrees I was looking towards a role within a

food manufacturing company. I was presented with

different opportunities and had to decide which suited me

the best. Instead of heading down the lab/food

development track I was instead offered a position as

Technical Sales Specialist within a Resource Supply

Company. My role involves sourcing raw materials from

around the world, auditing the manufacturing sites, and

attending overseas exhibitions to meet with suppliers and

learning of new and immerging trends. This knowledge is

then shared with my clients both in purchasing roles and

R&D.

The Committee Laura Aprilyani – President

Brittany Sternberg – Vice President

Harshpreet Kaur - Head Events Co-ordinator

Charlotte Oelofsen – Media Design

Amanda Halim - Secretary

Doraline Lau – Secretary

Lumba Chituta – Treasurer

Natalie Villard – Treasurer

Chloe Kim– Events Co-ordinator

Kuang Chien Lee– Events Co-ordinator

Lundi Chhun – Events Co-ordinator

Marie Quayle – Events Co-ordinator

Yan Chen – Events Co-ordinator

Brianna Dean– Advisor

Vic Shao-Chih Chiang – Founder & Advisor

Editorial Team

M A R C H 2 0 1 5 — I S S U E 4

Vic Shao-Chih Chiang - Editorial Lead

Charlotte Oelofsen - Design

Brianna Dean - Reviewer Panel

Lundi Chhun - Reviewer Panel

Natalie Villard - Reviewer Panel

Contact Details E-mail: uoasofad@gmail.com

Facebook: facebook.com/uoasofad