Food made with human bacteria exists
New and inventive ways of getting probiotics into what we eat are being developed!
CRISPR-Cas9 | How it works
CRISPR stands for clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats. Quite a mouthful to say, isn’t it?
Animal Vaccination (Meat Safety) | How it works
Animals are exposed to diseases just like us, and can also be protected by vaccines.
Insect Crop Combat: Beetles vs Aphids
Why do farmers want predatory insects in the middle of their field?
You didn't know?Things you didn't know
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When Honey is Good & Ready
Most of us enjoy honey and know the basics of the production. The bees produce the honey in their colonies, beekeepers take the honey (in their fancy suits) and centrifuge it to get to the sweet goodness.
Tea bags | Where do they come from?
What is the first thing you think of when you hear the word tea? Chinese tea, British tea, green tea, black tea, or Starbucks tea? Or maybe you’re more of a tea expert if you thought of Assam tea, Oolong tea or any other specialties. Then as a tea drinker, do you buy loose leaf tea, or do you buy tea bags?
How Flies Make Farming More Sustainable
You’ve probably heard that eating insects can be a more sustainable alternative for protein. But, maybe you’re like me and love seeing sustainable changes, but just can’t bring yourself to eat them. Well, you can still have best of both worlds with insects as food for agricultural livestock.
Cheese—to pasteurise or not to pasteurise?
Since its discovery in the nineteenth century, the process of pasteurisation has helped preserve food and made it safe to eat for longer.
Can you throw away a microwave?
So, it’s been a while since you last bought a new microwave. It’s probably super greasy inside from all the pasta explosions that have built up over the years. The buttons are probably faded and sticky, and you start thinking it might be a good idea to buy one now that there’s a big Spring sale going on.
Did GMOs save papayas in Hawaii?
I’m not the biggest fan of papayas. But I know some people love it. Would you believe me if I told you that GMOs have saved papayas in Hawaii from going instinct? Of course, there’s controversy around GMOs, but its technology was intended to help crop production. Read on to learn about how GMO tech saved one of the world’s favourite fruits.
How it worksHow it works
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Chickpeas | How It’s Grown
One of our favourite beans. Well, actually it is a legume. And to be scientifically correct, it is part of the Fabaceae family, in the subfamily Faboideae called Cicer arietinum.
Olive Oil | How it’s made
Olive oil - you can use it for cooking, with salad, or even on bread with some balsamic vinegar. YUM! Have you ever wondered how it’s made? And what’s the difference between extra virgin, virgin and plain old olive oil anyway? Find out how the humble olive becomes the precious oil we all love and admire.
Frozen Peas | How It’s Made
I typically use frozen peas when cooking things like fried rice, pea soup, or mashed peas. But how are pre-packaged peas frozen? Take a look at how frozen peas are produced!
Flour | How It’s Made
So how does wheat go from grass to flour? How are some flour mixes fortified with certain vitamins? How are there different types of flour? Well, take a quick look here to see how flour is made!
Canned Tomatoes | How It’s Made
Canned tomatoes can be used to make salsa, pasta sauce, soup and more. But how’s it made? Here are the steps food producers typically use to can tomatoes.
How Flies Make Farming More Sustainable
You’ve probably heard that eating insects can be a more sustainable alternative for protein. But, maybe you’re like me and love seeing sustainable changes, but just can’t bring yourself to eat them. Well, you can still have best of both worlds with insects as food for agricultural livestock.
GMO | How it works
G-M-O. You probably know what it stands for: genetically modified organism. I know there’s been a lot of controversy around it. You might think it’s unnatural, that’s it’s bad for your health. Others say that it’s actually a cool technique to make crop production more efficient. So, is it good or is it bad? Well, GMO has its pros and its cons. Maybe learning how it actually works might help you make up your own mind about it.
CRISPR-Cas9 | How it works
CRISPR stands for clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats. Quite a mouthful to say, isn’t it? Frankly, the acronym is a lot nicer.
Animal Vaccination (Meat Safety) | How it works
Animals are exposed to diseases just like you and me. And just like us, they can be protected by vaccines. For example, a human disease that was eradicated through vaccination is smallpox. For animals, Rinderpest (the cattle plague) was a disease that was completely eradicated through vaccines.
Food revolutionThe evolution of food
Selective breeding sounds like something out of the 21st century, but it dates back to 10,000 B.C.E.
The oldest fishing-net (Antrea) was discovered in modern-day Karelian Isthmus, and dates back to 8540 B.C.E.
People have been practicing fermentation since 6000 B.C.E.! Today, fermented foods (like sauerkraut) are a great source of probiotics.
Irrigation has been used since 6000 B.C.E., when the Egyptians and Mesopotamians used the Nile, Tigris and Euphrates rivers during their flood seasons
The early ploughs that were driven by oxen were actually adapted from Egyptian hand-held hoes, first invented around 4000 B.C.E.
The earliest ovens date back to the Indus Civilization around 3200 B.C.E. and were made of mud and brick.
Baking is one of the oldest forms of food processing. The first intentional use of leavening in baking was by the Egyptians in 2600 B.C.E.
In 1700 B.C.E, the first ice houses were built near the Euphrates river. Food refrigeration as a preservation technique dates back to ancient times.
For millennia people had to grind down grains through hand operations. The first hand-driven milling machines appeared around 500 B.C.E.
Agricultural biocontrol's first premeditated use can be traced back to China in 304 CE, where weaver ants were used to protect citrus plants.
When the threshing machine was invented in 1778 by the Scottish engineer Andrew Meikle, it made the processing of grains a whole lot easier.
Canning was originally invented in 1810 by Nicolas Appert, a Parisian confectioner and chef, to preserve food.
The pasteurisation process was invented in 1865 by the French chemist Louis Pasteur while studying microorganisms.
Freeze-drying dehydrates food to preserve its texture and quality. It was invented in 1906 by the French physicist Jacques-Arsène d'Arsonval to help preserve blood serum.
Food fortification is the process of enriching foods with extra micronutrients or supplements. It was first initiated in 1924.
American engineer Percy Spencer invented the microwave in 1945 (by accident). Microwaves melted a candy bar in his pocket, and there the microwave was born.
The first genetically modified crop was harvested in 1982 to be resistant to antibiotics.
Cultured meat is grown from animal cells in a cool scientific vessel, instead of the actual animal livestock. The technique was first explored by NASA to find a new food source for long space voyages.
The CRISPR technique was accidentally discovered in 1987 by Yoshuzumi Ishino, but Cas9 wasn’t discovered until 2005 by Alexander Bolotin.
While 3D printing had been used for years with other material, such as plastic and metal, it was first used with edible material in 2006. The first 3D food printer was created by researchers at Cornell University.
