Trends in Food Products

Sustainable Development Goals (SDG)

• 3. Good health and well-being
• 12. Responsible consumption and production

Objectives

The subject New Trends in Food Products is part of the Dietetics subject, included within the Nutrition Sciences, Dietetics, Health and Community Nutrition module, which is part of the mandatory training for the degree in Human Nutrition and Dietetics.

The general objectives of this subject are:

• Understand what a food system is and the main forces of change.
• Interpret the main problems arising from current food systems in terms of planetary health.
• Understand the main current trends and projections in the evolution of food production.
• Interpret the main environmental and health risks of current food production.
• Understand the main trends in the field of innovation in the food industry.
• Have an overview of what it means to design new products in the food industry and the main barriers to their development.
• To publicize new ingredients, foods and food products that may form part of individuals' usual diet.

Learning outcomes

• LO1. Master the basic ICT tools used in the field of food, nutrition and dietetics.
• LO2. Identify new trends in the agri-food development sector.
• LO3. Demonstrates skills for critical reflection in processes linked to the exercise of the profession.
• LO4. Collects and interprets data and information on which to base their conclusions, which include reflections on social, scientific or ethical issues in the field of human nutrition and dietetics.

Competencies

General skills

• Demonstrate commitment to the profession and its values, with continuous improvement in practice, striving for excellence in the care of individuals, families and the community.

Specific skills

• Participate in basic research, development, sales, labeling, communication and marketing of food products in a scientific manner, in response to the problems and social needs of consumers and current regulations.

Basic skills

• Students have the ability to gather and interpret relevant data (usually within their field of study) in order to make judgments that include reflection on relevant social, scientific and ethical issues.

Core skills

• Be a critical thinker before knowledge in all its dimensions. Show intellectual, cultural and scientific curiosity and a commitment to professional rigor and quality.

Content

1. Planetary health and food systems
   Planetary health. Food systems and forces of change
2. Trends in food consumption and food production
   Current trends in food consumption and production. Main environmental and health risks of current food consumption and production
3. Trends in food innovation and development by the food industry
   Main trends in innovation and development of new foods. Phases of the innovation process. New foods and food products

Evaluation

According to the Academic Regulations for undergraduate studies at UVic-UCC, there is only one official call that provides for two different evaluation periods:

• Ordinary period, which takes place as part of the training process and within the school period.
• Complementary evaluation period, in which the student can be evaluated again for the tasks, activities or tests that he or she has not passed satisfactorily within the framework of the first period.

Ordinary period

Continuous evaluation of the activities carried out by the student is carried out through:

• Active participation in class and in the proposed forums: 10% of the final grade for the subject; non-recoverable
  • Regular class attendance: 5%
  • Participation in the subject forums: 5% through the forum participation rubric
• Continuous assessment of guided and autonomous activities: 90% of the final grade for the subject
  • Exercise 1. Food systems: individual; 15%; recoverable
  • Exercise 2. Food consumption and production: individual; 15%; recoverable
  • Exercise 3. New foods: individual; 20%; recoverable
  • Coursework: development of a new food: group; 40%; non-recoverable

The final grade for the subject is the result of the weighting of the grades obtained in each of the parts.

Complementary evaluation period

Students who do not pass some of the activities considered retakeable may retake them during this period, provided that the total of failed parts of the subject does not represent more than 50% of the final grade for the subject.

The final grade for this period is obtained by taking the weighted average of the grades obtained during the ordinary period and, if some activities have been made up, in the complementary assessment. The subject is passed if a grade ≥5 is obtained.

Important

Plagiarism or copying someone else's work is penalized in all universities and, according to the UVic-UCC coexistence rules, constitute serious or very serious faults. Therefore, during the course of this subject, plagiarism or the improper appropriation of texts or ideas from other people (see What is considered plagiarism?) and the improper or undeclared use of artificial intelligence in an activity automatically result in a suspension or other disciplinary measures.

To cite texts and materials appropriately, you must consult the academic citation guidelines and guidelines available on the UVic Library website.

Methodology

The subject is structured around:

• Theoretical sessions in the classroom
• Exercise resolution seminars
• Practical sessions in the laboratory

The work sessions are dedicated to presenting the contents of the different topics, studying cases or practical scenarios, giving oral presentations, discussing and commenting on documents, holding debates and discussion groups, correcting and reviewing exercises and monitoring the work of the subject. In the case of face-to-face students, they are work sessions of the entire class group with the teacher. The group tutoring sessions are intended to monitor the work carried out throughout the semester.

The hours of independent work, which must be done outside of face-to-face sessions, are aimed at organizing the information obtained throughout the different sessions, viewing videos and lectures, preparing case studies, preparing oral presentations, reading recommended documents, researching or expanding content and preparing the individual and group work established by the teaching staff on the content of the syllabus.

Study materials are available to students in the subject's virtual classroom. At the beginning of the course, a work plan is provided with which the student can plan the study of the subject and which specifies a calendar with the contents to be worked on in each of the sessions, as well as the tasks to be done and the dates for the delivery of each task.

In line with the UVic-UCC regulations for accreditation and demonstration of knowledge and skills in third languages, this subject is included in the Plan for the Implementation and Deployment of English in the FCSB's undergraduate degrees (see the regulations and rules in the degree classroom). This implies that it includes training and assessment activities in the English language to support the achievement of this competence.

Bibliography

Key references

• Gil, G. (2017). Innovación alimentaria. Síntesis.
• Madrid Vicente, A. (2010). Nuevo manual de industrias alimentarias (4 ed.). AMV Ediciones.
• Potter Norman N., Hotchkiss J.H. (1999). Ciencia de los alimentos. Acribia.
• Steffen, Will (2021). Introducing the Anthropocene: The human epoch. Ambio 50:1784–1787. Retrieved from https://doi.org/10.1007/s13280-020-01489-4

Further reading

Teachers will provide complementary bibliography and compulsory reading throughout the course via the Virtual Campus.