5 - Food science education in the United States

Abstract

Food science education in the United States has been markedly influenced by guidelines developed by the Institute of Food Technologists. The most recent guidelines suggested as ‘minimum standards’ in 1977 are followed by several institutions offering food science curricula in the US. These guidelines identify five core areas, namely, food chemistry, food microbiology, food processing, food engineering, and food analysis. These courses are supplemented with a number of prerequisite courses relevant to each area, and other required and elective courses. The intent of the ‘minimum standards’ is to provide a broad educational experience to a student enrolled in the food science major. Along with the suggested courses, the available resources, faculty and number of students enrolled in the food science major play an important role in the quality of educational offering. Recently, the Educational Committee of the Institute of Food Technologists has taken an aggressive role in surveying the industry and academia for suggestions to modify the ‘minimum standards’. The initial results of the survey reveal important changes that are necessary in the current curricula to meet new challenges for educating the future students in food science.