This free online nutrition course explores the science of food to explain the principles of food safety and diet.

Do you want to know how the food industry creates a wholesome supply of food for the market? This nutrition course covers the multidisciplinary, broad-based aspects of the food we consume. We start off with an introduction to food chemistry that traces the chemical changes that occur during production, storage, preparation, cooking and consumption. We also explain how food is analysed in order to ensure that food safety is not compromised. The course discusses the role of statistical control methods in protecting the public from contaminated food.

The course delves into the processes that keep food safe and wholesome. We examine the microbiological aspects of nutrition and explain how technology can be used to ensure that only high-quality food reaches supermarket shelves. Food safety professionals must determine the physical qualities of food in order to guide their planning, production engineering and automation in today's food industry. The course relates the physical aspects of food to today’s increased concerns about additives and preservatives.

Many people want to eat the safest and most nutritious food available. Given today’s emphasis on the health and safety of food, we study the importance of food engineering and explain how it can ensure that the healthiest possible meals reach the consumer. Food science is still a new and growing discipline, brought about mainly as a result of the social changes taking place around the world. The food industry, which originally provided only primary products for final preparation in the home, finds itself responding to market demands for more refined, sophisticated and convenient products. Sign up to study the science of food and learn how it impacts diet, nutrition and food safety.