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Books in Agricultural and biological sciences

The Agricultural and Biological Sciences collection advances science-based knowledge for the improvement of animal and plant life and for secure food systems that produce nutritious, novel, sustainable foods with minimal environmental impact. Food Science titles include not only those products from agriculture but all other aspects from food production to nutrition, health and safety, chemistry to security, policy, law and regulation. Biological Sciences address animal behaviour and biodiversity, organismal and evolutionary biology, entomology, marine biology and aquaculture, plant science and forestry.

  • Making the Most of Haccp

    Learning from Others’ Experience
    • 1st Edition
    • T Mayes + 1 more
    • English
    The Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) system has now become generally accepted as the key safety management system for the food industry worldwide. Whilst there are numerous publications on its principles and methods of implementation, there are relatively few on the experience of those who have actually implemented HACCP systems in practice and what can be learnt from that experience. Edited by two leading authorities on the subject, and with an international team of contributors, Making the most of HACCP describes that experience and what it can teach about implementing and developing HACCP systems effectively.
  • Terrestrial Global Productivity

    • 1st Edition
    • Jacques Roy + 2 more
    • English
    As the global climate changes, there are concomitant changes in global biological productivity. This book is devoted to the assessment of terrestrial Net Primary Productivity ("the total amount of energy acquired by green plants during photosynthesis, minus the energy lost through respiration"--APDS&a... pp. 1457). The book is comprised of three major sections. The first section is a review of the processes that operate globally to influence productivity--these are the initial conditions of any model of primary productivity. The second section is comprised of chapters that assess the contribution of particular ecosystems to global productivity. The final major section contains chapters of a synthetic nature that describe attempts to model global productivity. This book should appeal to both ecologists and environmental scientists.
  • Food Chemical Safety

    Volume 1: Contaminants
    • 1st Edition
    • David Watson
    • English
    Chemical contaminants in food, from pesticides and veterinary drug residues to contamination from food packaging, are a major concern for the food industry. Written by a distinguished international team of contributors, this authoritative collection describes the main chemical contaminants, their health implications, how they contaminate food products, methods of detection and how such contaminants can be controlled.
  • Biology of the Hard Clam

    • 1st Edition
    • Volume 31
    • J.N. Kraeuter + 1 more
    • English
    The hard clam, Mercenaria mercenaria, is an important commercial, recreational and ecological inhabitant of coastal bays along the east and gulf coasts of the United States. This title represents the first state of the art summary of existing knowledge of the hard clam by experts in various disciplines.Containi... a compendium of literature on the hard clam, comprehensive chapters on various aspects of its biology as well as summaries of knowledge including the gray literature on this economically important species, this volume represents a comprehensive source of biological information for managers and researchers interested in shallow marine and estuarine ecosystems. Research students and managers charged with maintaining coastal ecosystems will also find a wealth of background material.The first synthesis of available information on the mercenaria mercenaria, this title is a response to the needs of individuals involved in hard clam aquaculture and scientists interested in molluscan biology, coastal ocean ecology and similar fields. Over 2300 documents have been synthesized, and chapter authors have added unpublished information as well as new material.
  • Frying

    Improving Quality
    • 1st Edition
    • J B Rossell
    • English
    Frying is one of the oldest and most widely-used of food processes. Its popularity relates to the speed with which a food is cooked, the distinctive flavour and texture frying gives the food and its contribution to increased shelf-life. As a result the process is used for a wide range of vegetable, meat and fish products, particularly ready meals and snack foods.Edited by a leading authority in the field and with a distinguished international team of contributors, Frying provides an authoritative review of key issues in improving quality in the manufacture of fried products. Part one of the book sets the scene by looking at the differing types of fried products and their markets as well as at the regulatory context. It also includes an important discussion of the role of dietary lipids, the impact of frying on lipid intake and its influence on consumer health. Part two looks in detail at frying oils, their composition, the factors affecting frying oil quality and ways of measuring frying oil quality and authenticity. Part three looks at quality issues relating to fried products. There are chapters on two of the main types of fried product: pre-fried potato products such as French fries and the manufacture of potato crisps. Three final chapters look at effective process control of frying operations, flavour development in frying and fried foods and ways of analysing and improving the texture and colour of fried products.Frying oils are the most important common influence on fried product quality. They not only need to withstand the stresses of high temperature in frying but also maintain their quality during subsequent product storage.Frying: improving quality is a standard reference for the food industry and all those concerned with the quality of fried products.
  • Thermal Technologies in Food Processing

    • 1st Edition
    • P Richardson
    • English
    Thermal technologies have long been at the heart of food processing. The application of heat is both an important method of preserving foods and a means of developing texture, flavour and colour. An essential issue for food manufacturers is the effective application of thermal technologies to achieve these objectives without damaging other desirable sensory and nutritional qualities in a food product. Edited by a leading authority in the field, and with a distinguished international team of contributors, Thermal technologies in food processing addresses this major issue.Part one of the collection begins with reviews of conventional retort and continuous heat technologies. Part two then looks at the key issues of effective measurement and control in ensuring that a thermal process is effective whilst minimising any undesirable changes in a food. There are chapters on temperature and pressure measurement, validation of heat processes, modelling and simulation of thermal processes, and the measurement and control of changes in a food during thermal processing. The final part of the book looks at emerging thermal technologies which becoming more widely used in the food industry. There are chapters on radio frequency heating, microwave processing, infrared heating, instant and high-heat infusion, and ohmic heating A final chapter considers how thermal processing may be combined with high pressure processing in producing safe, minimally-processed food products.Thermal technologies in food processing provides food manufacturers and researchers with an authoritative review of thermal processing and food quality.
  • Baking Problems Solved

    • 1st Edition
    • Stanley P. Cauvain + 1 more
    • English
    When things go wrong in the bakery, the pressures of production do not allow time for research into the solution. Solving these baking problems has always been the province of ‘experts’. However, with a methodical approach, keen observation and a suitable reference book then the answers to many bakery problems are straightforward. Baking problems solved is designed to help the busy bakery professional find the information they need quickly. It also enables them to understand the causes and implement solutions. It is arranged in a practical question-and-answer format, with over 200 frequently asked questions. Individual chapters consider the essential raw materials and the main types of bakery products. This book is of invaluable use to all bakery professionals, bakery students, food technologists and product developers.
  • Edible Oleogels

    Structure and Health Implications
    • 1st Edition
    • Alejandro G. Marangoni + 1 more
    • English
    In an effort to provide alternatives to trans and saturated fats, scientists have been busy modifying the physical properties of oils to resemble those of fats. In this fashion, many food products requiring a specific texture and rheology can be made with these novel oil-based materials without causing significant changes to final product quality. The major approach to form these materials is to incorporate specific molecules (polymers, amphiphiles, waxes) into the oil components that will alter the physical properties of the oil so that its fluidity will decrease and the rheological properties will be similar to those of fats. These new oilbased materials are referred to as oil gels, or “oleogels,“ and this emerging technology is the focus of many scientific investigations geared toward helping decrease the incidence of obesity and cardiovascular disease.
  • Silicon in Agriculture

    • 1st Edition
    • Volume 8
    • L.E. Datnoff + 2 more
    • English
    Presenting the first book to focus on the importance of silicon for plant health and soil productivity and on our current understanding of this element as it relates to agriculture.Long considered by plant physiologists as a non-essential element, or plant nutrient, silicon was the center of attention at the first international conference on Silicon in Agriculture, held in Florida in 1999.Ninety scientists, growers, and producers of silicon fertilizer from 19 countries pondered a paradox in plant biology and crop science. They considered the element Si, second only to oxygen in quantity in soils, and absorbed by many plants in amounts roughly equivalent to those of such nutrients as sulfur or magnesium. Some species, including such staples as rice, may contain this element in amounts as great as or even greater than any other inorganic constituent. Compilations of the mineral composition of plants, however, and much of the plant physiological literature largely ignore this element. The participants in Silicon in Agriculture explored that extraordinary discrepancy between the silicon content of plants and that of the plant research enterprise.The participants, all of whom are active in agricultural science, with an emphasis on crop production, presented, and were presented with, a wealth of evidence that silicon plays a multitude of functions in the real world of plant life. Many soils in the humid tropics are low in plant available silicon, and the same condition holds in warm to hot humid areas elsewhere. Field experience, and experimentation even with nutrient solutions, reveals a multitude of functions of silicon in plant life. Resistance to disease is one, toleration of toxic metals such as aluminum, another. Silicon applications often minimize lodging of cereals (leaning over or even becoming prostrate), and often cause leaves to assume orientations more favorable for light interception. For some crops, rice and sugarcane in particular, spectacular yield responses to silicon application have been obtained. More recently, other crop species including orchids, daisies and yucca were reported to respond to silicon accumulation and plant growth/disease control. The culture solutions used for the hydroponic production of high-priced crops such as cucumbers and roses in many areas (The Netherlands for example) routinely included silicon, mainly for disease control. The biochemistry of silicon in plant cell walls, where most of it is located, is coming increasingly under scrutiny; the element may act as a crosslinking element between carbohydrate polymers.There is an increased conviction among scientists that the time is at hand to stop treating silicon as a plant biological nonentity. The element exists, and it matters.
  • Ecology and Classification of North American Freshwater Invertebrates

    • 2nd Edition
    • James H. Thorp + 1 more
    • English
    The First Edition of Ecology and Classification of North American Freshwater Invertebrates has been immensely popular with students and researchers interested in freshwater biology and ecology, limnology, environmental science, invertebrate zoology, and related fields. The First Edition has been widely used as a textbook and this Second Edition should continue to serve students in advanced classes. The Second Edition features expanded and updated chapters, especially with respect to the cited references and the classification of North American freshwater invertebrates. New chapters or substantially revised chapters include those on freshwater ecosystems, snails, aquatic spiders, aquatic insects, and crustaceans.