This course provides the students with an overview of the quantitative microbial ecology of food and detailed insight in the development, validation and application of predictive food microbiology models. The aim is to enable students to understand the potential of predictive food microbiology models for new product development, assessment and documentation food safety and quality as well as evaluation of food losses in distribution chains. En studerende, der fuldt ud har opfyldt kursets mål, vil kunne:

• Describe environmental factors in food and their quantitative effect on microbial responses.
• Obtain relevant information from databases and literature on microbial responses in food.
• Characterise microbial kinetics in food by appropriate mathematical models.
• Develop a predictive food microbiology model of relevant complexity for a specific food.
• Evaluate the performance of predictive microbiology models for specific microorganism/food combinations.
• Evaluate food losses in distribution chains by using predictive food microbiology models.
• Describe the use of predictive food microbiology models in assessment and management of microbial food safety and quality.
• Analyse and present predictive food microbiology models and data both orally and in writing as a report.

The course is based on lectures and computer exercises to explain the development and validation of predictive food microbiology models. The students use this information in their project work to develop and/or evaluate a predictive microbiology model for a selected microorganism/food combination. This course allow students to predict microbial responses in food including effects of processing, product characteristics and conditions of storage and distribution to consumers. Mathematical models to predict growth or inactivation and the effect of constant or dynamic product characteristics and storage conditions are presented. Predictive models for the growth boundary of human pathogens are described together with their application for development of new food products and recipes. Software for development and application of deterministic and stochastic predictive models are presented in relation to assessment and management of microbial food quality and safety. The use of predictive food microbiology models to evaluate food losses in distribution chains is introduced. 27. april, 2022