New strategies to combat biofilm formation in the food industry to enhance food safety

24-Sep-2024 - A research team reveals that biofilm formation onfood-contact surfaces in thefoodsupply chain poses a significant challenge, providing an environment for harmful bacteria that can lead to foodborne illnesses and degradefoodquality. This review highlights the critical need for innovative ...

Bottled water can contain hundreds of thousands of previously uncounted tiny plastic bits

A new microscopic technique zeroes in on the poorly explored world of nanoplastics, which can pass into blood, cells and your brain

11-Jan-2024 - In recent years, there has been rising concern that tiny particles known as microplastics are showing up basically everywhere on Earth, from polar ice to soil, drinking water and food. Formed when plastics break down into progressively smaller bits, these particles are being consumed by humans ...

Brazilians create sensor to monitor levels of widely used antibiotic in water and food

08-Dec-2023 - The device, which combines magnetic fluorescent nanoparticles, was designed at the Center for Development of Functional Materials, a research center supported by FAPESP and hosted by the Federal University of São Carlos. Researchers at theCenter for Development of Functional ...

Oregon State researchers receive $2M to look for new ways to prevent organic potatoes from spoiling

17-Nov-2023 - Oregon State University researchers have been awarded $2 million from the U.S. Department of Agriculture to develop improved ways of preventing stored potatoes from sprouting, particularly in the organic sector. This research is pivotal given the rapid rise of the organic market in U.S. ...

Research group develops biodegradable film that keeps food fresh for longer

The material was designed by Brazilian researchers and includes a derivative of limonene from citrus rind, blended with chitosan, a biopolymer from exoskeletons of crustaceans.

19-Jul-2023 - Indiscriminate use of packaging materials derived from petroleum has led to a huge buildup of plastic in landfills and the ocean, as these materials have low degradability and are not significantly recycled. To mitigate this problem and meet growing demand for products that are safe for human ...

Bioplastic bottles also keep cooking oil fresh for a long time

No transfer of compounds from the bottle material into the oil detected

22-Feb-2023 - Bottles made of bioplastic protect cooking oil from oxidative spoilage (rancidity) to a similar extent as PET bottles. In addition, even less taste- and odor-impairing substances were formed. This is the result of a recent study published in the journal "Food Packaging and Shelf Life" by ...

Fast-food rubbish solution in sustainable seaweed-based wrapper

17-Oct-2022 - Flinders University materials researchers and pioneering German biomaterials developer one • fıve are using seaweed extracts to develop next-generation biopolymer coating materials that could solve packaging waste dilemmas for the fast-food industry. The new non-pollutive biomaterials are ...

White, red, and blue signals alert you to dangerous germs!

A simple, rapid method to simultaneously identify multiple food poisoning bacteria

01-Sep-2022 - Osaka Metropolitan University scientists have developed a simple, rapid method to simultaneously identify multiple food poisoning bacteria, based on color differences in the scattered light by nanometer-scaled organic metal nanohybrid structures (NHs) that bind via antibodies to those bacteria. ...

Wind turbine blades could someday be recycled into sweet treats

New turbine material by combining glass fibers with a plant-derived polymer and a synthetic one

25-Aug-2022 - Wind power is an increasingly popular form of renewable energy. However, when it’s time to replace the huge turbine blades that convert wind into electricity, disposal is a problem. Now, scientists report a new composite resin suitable for making these behemoths that could later be recycled into ...

It’s all about the sausage

Choosing the right proteins can improve the mouthfeel of vegetarian sausages

25-Jul-2022 - The right crack of the sausage is, not least, a matter of physics. A team from the Max Planck Institute for Polymer Research in Mainz has investigated how the properties of plant proteins influence the mouthfeel of vegetarian and vegan sausages. Using the findings this revealed, the first ...