It would be easy to dismiss the importance of food preservation
research. After all, our mothers and grandmothers canned produce
from their gardens with few ill effects. But what happens when
you decide to make salsa for Christmas gifts and you follow the
processing time your mom used in canning tomatoes?
Your salsa could become a recipe for disaster, according to Elizabeth
Andress, associate professor of foods and nutrition who has an
appointment with the Cooperative Extension Service. “People
tend to think of canning and preserving as a home-art project,” Andress
said, “Too many people don’t think of the risks that
are involved when you’re processing food.” Those
risks include botulism poisoning, which can lead to severe illness
and even death, Andress said.
“During the 1970s, salsas suddenly became very popular
with home-canners,” she added. “But, because there
are several ingredients in salsas in addition to tomatoes, a
salsa recipe may have a much lower acidity level and need to
be processed longer than what’s called for in canning tomatoes.”
Andress has recently received a grant of $595,262 from the U.S.
Department of Agriculture to extend funding of the National Center
for Home Food Preservation, housed in the College of Family and
Consumer Sciences. The funding will allow the center's on-line
WebCT course for individuals to be expanded and the development
of an undergraduate course in home food preservation is expected
to be offered as a Maymester course. In addition, research on
home pickling will be conducted. The center also is offering
the "So Easy to Preserve" video series. The eight-show
series, which is contained on two DVDs, has the most up-to-date
recommendations for preserving fresh foods and great taste for
home preservers.
While Andress has concentrated much of her time on home preserving
and freezing, she also is involved in several other issues centering
on food safety.
Besides running the National Center for Home Food Preservation,
she also coordinates the ServSafe Program, a two-tiered program
that provides certification training for food-service managers
as well as briefer courses for food-service workers.
“Our training programs emphasize small food-service institutions,
such as small restaurants and people who run personal-care homes
and day-care centers. This is a way of ensuring these small businesses
can get the training they need without a large expense.”
Andress also writes fact sheets for FACS county agents and the
general public whenever new state or federal regulations focusing
on food are issued.
“The most important calls I receive are the ones from people
who are in the process of cooking or preserving food and they
realize they’ve done something wrong,” she said. “Sometimes
these are calls from individuals, sometimes they’re calls
from people in an institutional setting. It’s good to know
I can help them make wise decisions that prevent illness.”
Competing
in a Global Economy
The University of Georgia is at the forefront of the globalization
movement in higher education with a wealth of opportunities for
international experiences. Our students are flocking to study-abroad
programs, thriving on the challenges inherent in confronting a
new cultural environment. More and more, students on campus are
also making choices that reflect an understanding of the importance
of global awareness—from living in a residence hall-based
language community to starting a radio program in another language
to minoring in a foreign language. These experiences, whether at
home or abroad, influence how our students perceive the world and
their place in it. We’re producing graduates prepared to
be world citizens—well informed, culturally sensitive and
technologically sophisticated. They’re ready to take on the
challenges of our global society, and they’ll be equally
at home whether in the Peach State or the Republic of Georgia. |
Elizabeth
Andress, an associate professor of foods and nutrition who has an
appointment with the Cooperative Extension, recently received
federal funding to continue running the National Center for Home
Food Preservation at UGA.
