The theme of this book evolved from the idea of linking three concepts around food: traceability, ethics and informed choice. We believe that the current devel- ment and implementation of traceability in the agri-food sector offers an interesting way not only of handling food safety but also of addressing and communicating ethical issues arising from current food production practices. Practices in the agri-food sector worry food consumers (as we all are, since we need to eat and drink to stay alive). But how can consumers act upon their concerns? Paradoxically, although consumers are bombarded with information on food – from the media, the food industry, food authorities, NGOs and interest groups – details about how foods are actually produced is often hard to find. Much of the infor- tion available is superficial, conflicting or partial, and it is hard for consumers seeking to mak e informed food choices to know which information to trust. The consumers we interviewed for this project felt that information about food products was withheld and manipulated. Traceability, which provides a record of the history and journey of a given food, and which is increasingly used in the food sector for legal and commercial reasons, has the potential to communicate a more authentic picture of how food is produced.

In this first decade of the 21st century, more than 854 million people in the world are starving, while industrial nations are debating about obesity, generating energy from food plants, and a myriad of other topics many African and south Asian nations could only fathom. In this great discord, there have arisen many interdisciplinary discussions about problems in the field of applied Ethics, with regards to food, that are crossing a considerably wide spectrum of disciplines, such as: obesity, traceability, agro-food biotechnology, dairy industry, transgenic plants, novel food, bio fuels, world-trade system, etc. This book presents international discussions and information concerning food ethics in its current state. It presents a variety of important aspects in the field of food ethics with respect to positions, instruments and applications of issues surrounding nutrition. A great deal of the book will concern itself with discussing different ethical positions and problems of current interests, as explained by experts of the "food-ethics-community". The articles will focus on the reality of global food problems through two main issues: current questions of nutrition in the specific contexts of field and experience, ethical tools, ideas and suggestions concerning long-term steps for solutions. The appendix presents a collection of current declarations and political statements – visions, proposals and goals in a worth living world in general and concerning specific problems - water, healthy food, the human right to food, sustainability and food sovereignty.

Advances in Food Traceability Techniques and Technologies: Improving Quality Throughout the Food Chain covers in detail a topic of great importance to both the food industry which is obliged to provide clear and accurate labeling of their products and the government and other organizations which are tasked with verification of claims of food quality and safety. The traceability of food products is becoming ever more important as globalization continues to increase the complexity of food chains. Coverage in the book includes the wide range of technologies and techniques which have been utilized in the tracing of food products. In addition, the ways in which the misuse of food traceability will affect the quality of food is also covered throughout. The first part of the book introduces the concept of traceability in the food industry, highlighting advantages of a robust traceability and the difficulties involved in implementing them. The second part looks at the technologies used to trace products, and the third section reviews the legal requirements for food traceability in the EU, the US, and the rest of the world. The final section contains a number of case studies which evaluate how food traceability has been successfully implemented in various foods focusing on the quality of the food. - Provides a wide ranging overview of all recent advances in food traceability techniques and technologies - Presents case studies covering when food traceability techniques have been applied to a range of food stuffs - Covers the legal aspects of food traceability in the EU, the USA, and around the world

Sustainable Food Supply Chains: Planning, Design, and Control through Interdisciplinary Methodologies provides integrated and practicable solutions that aid planners and entrepreneurs in the design and optimization of food production-distribution systems and operations and drives change toward sustainable food ecosystems. With synthesized coverage of the academic literature, this book integrates the quantitative models and tools that address each step of food supply chain operations to provide readers with easy access to support-decision quantitative and practicable methods. Broken into three parts, the book begins with an introduction and problem statement. The second part presents quantitative models and tools as an integrated framework for the food supply chain system and operations design. The book concludes with the presentation of case studies and applications focused on specific food chains. Sustainable Food Supply Chains: Planning, Design, and Control through Interdisciplinary Methodologies will be an indispensable resource for food scientists, practitioners and graduate students studying food systems and other related disciplines. - Contains quantitative models and tools that address the interconnected areas of the food supply chain - Synthesizes academic literature related to sustainable food supply chains - Deals with interdisciplinary fields of research (Industrial Systems Engineering, Food Science, Packaging Science, Decision Science, Logistics and Facility Management, Supply Chain Management, Agriculture and Land-use Planning) that dominate food supply chain systems and operations - Includes case studies and applications

"Food has emerged as a political topic par excellence. It is increasingly involved in controversies at a transnational level, in relation to issues of access, dominance, trade and control in a shared global environment. At the same time, innovations in biotechnology and animal domestication have brought ethics to the forefront of food debates. Thus, we live in an era when the ethics and the politics of food must come together. This book addresses the ethics and the politics of food from a broad range of academic disciplines, including sociology, philosophy, nutrition, anthropology, ethics, political science and history. The chapters expose novel problem areas, and suggest guidelines for approaching them. Topics range from fundamental issues in philosophy to sustainability, from consumer trust in food to ethical toolkits. Transparency, power and responsibility are key concerns, and special attention is given to animal welfare, emerging technologies in food production and marine domestication. Together, the chapters represent a wide range of academic responses to the fundamental dilemmas posed by food production and food consumption in the contemporary world."

The book is divided in 3 sections, each containing several chapters: Section 1 includes chapters that identify and discuss several ethical issues along the food chain, with particular detail of issues in the food industry and in consumer behavior; Section 2 includes chapters that present the basis of a code of conduct in the food profession as well as the description of existing codes of conduct of food industry and food scientist professionals, including ethics of publishing, and also ethics in risk communication; Section 3 includes chapters based on case studies with examples of teaching approaches currently used in teaching food ethics, easy to implement and already tested and confirmed as successful examples that engage students in this topic. Although professional ethics in food supply chain is claimed as an essential topic to be addressed in any degree program, few higher education institutions that currently include a module on ethics in their study programs. In g eneral, it is argued that ethics is a topic addressed along the curriculum and embedded in the contents of the modules. However, ethics, for its importance, needs a different teaching and educational approach, and this book achieves that..

Innovative Food Analysis presents a modern perspective on the development of robust, effective and sensitive techniques to ensure safety, quality and traceability of foods to meet industry standards. Significant enhancements of analytical accuracy, precision, detection limits and sampling has expanded the practical range of food applications, hence this reference offers modern food analysis in view of new trends in analytical techniques and applications to support both the scientific community and industry professionals. This reference covers the latest topics across existing and new technologies, giving emphasis on food authenticity, traceability, food fraud, food quality, food contaminants, sensory and nutritional analytics, and more. - Covers the last ten years of applications across existing and new technologies of food analytics - Presents an emphasis on techniques in food authenticity, traceability and food fraud - Discusses bioavailability testing and product analysis of food allergens and foodomics

This book is designed to integrate the basic concepts of food safety with current developments and challenges in food safety and authentication. The first part describes basics of food safety, classification of food toxins, regulation and risk assessment. The second part focuses on particular toxins like mycotoxins, aromatic amines, heavy metals, pesticides, and polycyclic hydrocarbons. Recent developments and improvements in the detection of these contaminants are described. The third part deals with the authenticity and adulteration of food and food products, a topic which affects food trade on a national and international level.

The transformation of food chains towards sustainability in food consumption and food security is a global issue, connected with the global challenges of poverty reduction, employment and urbanization. Combating malnutrition—undernutrition and micronutrient deficiencies—as well as overweight and obesity is an increasing problem. The main topics to be examined are the following: Ensuring sustainable food production (land and sea), sustainable diets and sustainable communities, including issues for agricultural transformation in face of increasing competition for land use; promoting healthy food systems and increasing the focus on nutrition, with multiple implications for diet quality, vulnerable groups, and informed choice; biotechnology could play an important role in climate change mitigation (e.g., nutrient-efficient plants) and adaptation (e.g., drought-tolerant plants), renewable energies, biodegradable products, rural development, and global food security; identifying the means to promote resilience, including resilience in ecosystems and in international markets; responding to climate change and other environmental and social change. The focus should also cover issues for vulnerable groups such as mothers and children, the elderly, patients, and migrants to understand the general aspects of consumer behavior. Sustainability related to product standards and reactions of consumers to these standards are also of great importance.