Distance Education

SSA MODULE DEVELOPMENT CO-ORDINATORS NEEDED - JOIN US!

If you are involved in food industry management or R & D sector, in the classroom or in other areas of food science and technology in Sub-Saharan Africa, we invite you to partner with us to provide expert resource by reviewing the modules being developed, identifying location-specific examples and by working alongside us as a Module Development Co-ordinator. As SSA coordinator, you will be asked to review the modules, according to your areas of expertise, to identify location-specific examples of agricultural and agri-food practices, to arrange for video of examples of these in operation and to commit to active engagement throughout the delivery of the pilot project. With this invitation, IUFoST offers you the opportunity to be involved in an important and needed project and to work with other food scientists and technologists of international reputation.

Click here for more information from the latest issue of Newsline

If you are interested in the opportunity, please contact:
Prof. Emeritus Daryl Lund, DETF Chair dlund@cals.wisc.edu or
Judith Meech, IUFoST jmeech@iufost.org
Please state "DETF Module Development" in subject line

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A Distance Education Approach to Food Science Training in Sub-Saharan Africa

Mercer, D.G.1, Lund, D.B.2, Meech, J.S.3

  1. Department of Food Science, University of Guelph c/o Kemptville Campus, Kemptville, Ontario, K0E 1X0, Canada.
    Corresponding Author: E-mail: dmercer@uoguelph.ca
  2. North Central Regional Association of Agricultural Experiment Station Directors, Madison, Wisconsin, U.S.A.
  3. International Union of Food Science and Technology (IUFoST), Oakville, Ontario, Canada

Abstract:

A safe, nutritious, and dependable food supply is essential for any society to support and sustain its development. The food processing sector relies upon quality raw food stocks for conversion into affordable marketable products that can reach the consumer through a reliable distribution system. It is the purpose of this paper to outline the development of instructional material for the distance education of food industry workers in sub-Saharan Africa, which is critical at each stage of the food production continuum.

Proposed Training Modules:

The IUFoST Distance Education Task Force has proposed the development of a set of nine teaching modules in Food Science, Technology and Nutrition for use in training food industry employees. These modules include:

Food Safety
Dehydration/Drying
Thermal Processing
Food Freezing
Food Packaging 		Quality Assurance (including HACCP)
Food LAws and Regulations
Shelf-Life of Foods (including food losses)
Practical Human Nutrition

Each training module will be developed to suit the needs of the region and will employ examples of representative materials relevant to the agricultural and agri-food practices of sub-Saharan Africa. Members of the International Academy of Food Science and Technology (IAFoST) would be asked to serve as a resource of expertise for module development and content identification.

The FAO and World Health Organization directives for "Food Safety in Africa" were set out at their October 2005 meeting to reaffirm the need for this type of training and education in agri-food industry.

Proposal on Enhancing Human Capital in sub-Saharan Africa in Food Science and Technology through Distance Education
2003 (in Acrobat .pdf format)

Pilot Project

DETF Annual Report

Survey Results to date

Outcomes of the Distance Education Roundtable, Seoul, April 2001

Download Needs Assessment Survey Form (in Acrobat .pdf format)

Download Survey Form for Distance Education Courses (in Acrobat .pdf format)

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