Food science

Food science (or bromatology) is the study of food and its chemical properties. Its scope overlaps with agricultural science and nutritional science and extends to the scientific aspects of food safety and food processing, informing the development of food technology. Food science is an interdisciplinary field that integrates concepts from chemistry, physics, physiology, microbiology, and biochemistry. It evolved from early preservation practices such as salting to an organized research-driven field central to modern food production. The field includes several subdisciplines such as food chemistry, food technology, and molecular gastronomy, which examine the composition and processes used to produce and preserve food. Food scientists develop new products, design processing methods to produce these foods, select packaging materials, conduct shelf life and sensory evaluation studies of products using survey panels or potential consumers, and perform microbiological and chemical testing. They may study more fundamental phenomena that are directly linked to the production of food products and its properties.