IFT White Paper Examines How Processing Technology Can Improve Food Sustainability and Nutrition

CHICAGO — The Institute of Food Technologists (IFT), a nonprofit scientific organization committed to advancing the science of food and its application across the global food system, released a white paper that examines how existing and novel processing technologies could help improve global food and nutrition security.

“Food Science and Technology Solutions to Improve Food and Nutrition Security: Sustainable Production of Nutritious Foods Through Processing Technology” is the result of a virtual roundtable discussion organized by IFT’s Food & Nutrition Security Steering Committee (FNSSC) that focused on utilizing existing and novel processing technologies to help better preserve nutritional quality.

“With the global population expected to reach nearly 10 billion by 2050, the demand for safe, nutritious and accessible food will only continue to increase, as will the need to conserve natural resources,” said IFT Chief Science and Technology Officer Bryan Hitchcock. “Processing technology can help bridge the gap between these two necessities. This white paper highlights the important role of food processing and identifies opportunities for scaling processing technologies to improve nutrition quality.”

Some of the challenges outlined in the white paper that the global food community must address to maximize the benefits of processing technology include a lack of up-to-date and aligned regulations, limited public-private funding support, unoptimized technology and inaccurate consumer knowledge about food processing.

“Sustainable processing technologies that can be used both long-term and in emergency relief situations are especially valuable in developing countries, where the need for adequate nutrition and safe food are persistent concerns,” said Anna Rosales, IFT’s senior director of government affairs and nutrition and moderator of the virtual roundtable discussion.

FNSSC, formed in 2021, previously organized a roundtable on the biggest food loss and waste challenges, resulting in the release of a white paper earlier this year.