Instructor(s)

Joseph Eifert
Associate Professor, Food Science and Technology
Phone: (540) 231-3658
E-mail: jeifert@vt.edu

Susan Sumner
Professor and Head, Food Science and Technology
Phone: (540) 231-5280
E-mail: sumners@vt.edu

Description

Overview of the causes, transmission, and epidemiology of major environmental, food-, and water-borne diseases in the food industry. Detection, monitoring, and control of important environmental pathogens. Chemical, physical, and biological sanitation to control pathogens in food, water, and the environment.

Prerequisites and Co-requisites

Academic and/or professional background in microbiology, food safety, or environmental health will provide insights that greatly facilitate learning this course’s content.

Learning Objectives

Upon completion of the course, students will be able to:

1. Describe the role and impact of potential environmental contaminants on the safety of food from the origin of the food in the field to retail purchase.
2. Relate environmental pathogen transmission patterns to prevention of food-borne disease.
3. Describe the importance of sanitation and water supply for disease control in food industries.
4. Develop strategies for monitoring and control of food- and water-borne diseases in the food industry.
5. Relate microbiological methods used during routine surveillance and monitoring to the safety of food products.