Meat scientist William Henning, left, discusses quality control procedures with Michael Strohecker of Nicholas Packing Company in Loganton. Penn State is helping small meat processors to comply with new federal food safety regulations.

Not all of the college's food-related programs take place in the food science department. In the case of muscle foods, researchers in dairy and animal science collaborate to support this large segment of the state's food industry. "We have more than 520 inspected meat-processing plants in Pennsylvania," says meat scientist William Henning, who is working with food scientist Stephen Knabel to help meat processors adapt to proposed federal food safety regulations. "Many of these plants are small or medium-sized operations that don't have the resources or expertise to comply with new regulations. Because of this, several operations go out of business every year. One of our goals is to provide these businesses with knowledge and training so they can respond to market and regulatory forces."

The meat safety regulation proposed by USDA would require all inspected meat processing plants to implement a Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point (HACCP) program for each product line to detect and prevent food-borne pathogens such as Salmonella and E. coli 0157:H7. In addition, plants would have to develop written sanitation operation procedures, perform daily microbial testing, and meet other safety requirements. "This regulation would require the same amount of microbial testing for a large meat packer processing a 20,000-pound batch as for a small processor making 100 pounds of product," says Henning. "Very few plants are equipped to conduct this type of testing, and the cost to comply would be prohibitive. Industry representatives have testified that it could cost a small plant with 15 employees $80,000 a year to comply with the regulations. Many plants don't make even close to that amount in annual net profits. Some people estimate that if the regulations are adopted as originally proposed, Pennsylvania could lose up to three-fourths of its small meat processors. We hope HACCP workshops can help these small and medium-sized companies stay on top of safety mandates."

Henning and others also have helped meat processors comply with new nutrition labeling regulations. During 1994-1995, 37 companies received assistance in developing nutrition labels for more than 400 meat products. Future programs will include workshops to help processors use computers and the latest financial and personnel management practices to become more efficient and enhance profitability.

One potential growth area for the meat industry is the production of processed and convenience foods containing precooked meat. But precooking can create manufacturing problems, including off-flavors and rancidity caused by lipid oxidation, a chemical breakdown of the fat. "Meat products tend to oxidize rapidly after cooking," says meat scientist Edward Mills. "We're looking at ways to control this oxidation process."

One traditional approach has been to add antioxidants to the meat either before or immediately after cooking. Mills has looked at an alternative method that starts farther back in the production chain. "Previous research had shown that feeding animals elevated levels of the antioxidant vitamin E can improve fresh meat color in retail display," says Mills. "Subsequently, we also found that when we feed elevated levels of vitamin E to swine, the vitamin accumulates in the membranes surrounding muscle and fat cells, where much of the oxidation occurs. The animal deposits the vitamin exactly where we want it in the meat, which causes considerable improvement in lipid stability." Improving stability of lipids also could provide a health benefit. "Although lipid oxidation isn't as serious as microbial spoilage leading to food-borne illness in humans, it could be involved in some aspects of heart disease," Mills adds.

Mills also has studied the use of fat substitutes and the best methods for processing low-fat meat products. "When you remove fat, you change the viscosity of the product as well as its capacity to respond to heat," he says. "You really have a much different material than you started with, yet manufacturers are still using traditional processing methods. Why should you expect a low-fat product to react the same way as a product that's 30 percent fat? There's a good chance that changing manufacturing procedures would improve the quality of low-fat products. For instance, we found that low-temperature processing can improve the texture of low-fat frankfurters," Mills continues. "By changing temperature and other processing parameters, we may be able to improve consumer acceptability of low-fat meats without adding binders or stabilizers such as carrageenan."

The results of meat research as well as training in recommended manufacturing methods are offered to the industry at workshops and meetings held on the University Park Campus every year. In addition, Penn State's Meats Laboratory provides a pilot plant for small-scale product and process testing. "In the lab, processors can see and feel a product and begin to visualize how they might use a particular process in their own plants," Mills says.

Outreach is critical if new technology is to reach businesses that can use it. Penn State's food science department offers 10 annual short courses, conferences, and workshops, some of which are world renowned. "Nearly every major ice cream manufacturer in the United States and many from other countries send representatives to the Ice Cream Short Course," says food scientist Arun Kilara, who coordinates the course. "We also have participants from companies that provide goods and services to the ice cream industry, such as ingredients, packaging, and transportation. In addition, the course is offered every 18 months in Australia and has been offered in Malaysia, Singapore, Mexico, Venezuela, and other countries. This initial contact with ice cream manufacturers and related businesses leads to ongoing relationships. If a company later has a problem in the plant or needs help in developing a product or trying a new ingredient, it often will come back to us for expertise. We can make small-scale samples that are representative of full-scale production, which is difficult to do in a large plant. We also provide analytical services, and through our sensory evaluation lab, we conduct expert evaluations or have consumer panels test samples."

Outreach also entails on-site research and troubleshooting. Food scientist Joseph MacNeil has worked with poultry processors to solve production-related problems in their plants. "Sometimes we discuss the problem with them to find a solution," says MacNeil. "If we still can't pinpoint the cause, research might be necessary. For instance, one poultry producer was having sporadic Salmonella and Lysteria contamination and couldn't identify the source. We took samples from different areas of the plant before it started up in the morning, and then sampled the product as it moved through the plant. We found that the contamination was occurring on the farm before birds even reached the plant. Our recommendation was to concentrate on cleaning up the growing areas."

But conducting research with individual companies is being done less and less, says MacNeil, who also chairs the food science department's outreach committee. "Our resources are shrinking all the time," he says. "Today, companies usually must cover the cost of research or testing. There are a lot of things that, in the present fiscal climate, we just don't have the resources to do. The job of the outreach committee is to take a critical look at our programs to be sure that we're meeting essential needs in a way that's efficient and consistent with the department's and the college's goals."

Industry outreach goes hand in glove with undergraduate and graduate education. The department's reputation for premier undergraduate teaching is enhanced by a strong internship program with food processing companies. "We've had students intern with a company in the summer, then return to campus to continue that firm's research," says Gregory Ziegler. Graduate students also conduct research that benefits the industry while preparing to assume leadership positions in the field. "Educated employees might be the most important resource we can provide, and having Penn State alumni working in the industry gives us more opportunities for outreach," Ziegler says.

"We want to keep the various functions of the department–undergraduate education, graduate education, research, and outreach–in proper balance," says Don Thompson. "Other food science departments around the country put less emphasis on resident education and other programs that might detract from top-quality research. We think our approach permits flexibility and innovation. Our student-centered philosophy is something we can take pride in."

Faculty referenced in this article are Robert Beelman, professor of food science; Paul Dimick, professor of food science; William Henning, associate professor of dairy and animal science; Arun Kilara, professor of food science; Stephen Knabel, associate professor of food science; Joseph MacNeil, professor of food science; Edward Mills, associate professor of dairy and animal science; Robert Roberts, assistant professor of food science; Donald Thompson, associate professor and head of food science; and Gregory Ziegler, associate professor of food science. Research has been supported in part by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the Pennsylvania Dairy Promotion Program, the Pennsylvania Department of Commerce's Ben Franklin Partnership, Teledyne Specialty Equipment-Readco Products, the Pennsylvania Manufacturing Confectioners Association, the National Dairy Promotion and Research Board/Dairy Management, Inc., Penn State's Mushroom Industry Endowment, the Pennsylvania Pork Producers Council, the National Pork Producers Council, and FMC Corporation Food Ingredients Division.