Browsing by Author "Chase, Melissa W."

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    Apples
    Chase, Melissa W.; Brooks, Austin; Boyer, Renee R.; Rafie, Carlin; Carrington, Anne-Carter (Virginia Cooperative Extension, 2015-06-16)
    Provides information about apples, including advise on storing, preparing and cooking. Also includes a recipe.
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    Assessment Of Consumer Perceptions About Food Processing Technologies For Cooperative Extension Educational Initiatives
    Arnold, Nicole Leanne (Virginia Tech, 2019-09-25)
    New food processing technologies are needed to create safe, high-quality food products that are still considered "fresh" by consumers. Despite the numerous benefits attributed to 'food processing', consumers continue to perceive the term negatively. Consumer acceptance of foods processed with different technologies generally increases when factual information is provided to the consumer. Educators working within Cooperative Extension are a resource for public dissemination of food information. By working directly in the community, Extension educators often cultivate positive relationships with local clientele. Therefore, Extension educators can dispel myths related to food processing technologies and deliver science-supported information to the general public. Consumer knowledge, perceptions, and purchasing intentions associated with both conventional and emerging food processing technologies were assessed through a nationwide telephone survey administered by Virginia Tech's Center for Survey Research Center. A similar version of the telephone survey was disseminated in an online format to Virginia Extension agents. An additional section of the online survey served as a needs assessment for educational materials related to food processing technologies. A grounded theory methodology was used for qualitative coding in both surveys. Approximately 67% of consumers expressed concerns towards the term "processed foods." The majority of Extension agents (67.4%) expressed concerns about foods that had been processed, citing additional ingredients, preservatives, and additives; safety; and health implications. Both the consumer and Extension agent groups were more likely to be supportive of light-exposed foods to enhance food safety and quality, in comparison to gas-exposed foods. Although agents may be familiar with some food processing technologies, they may not have the resources to understand the scientific mechanisms for which a technology is able to increase food safety. Consumer education regarding emerging technologies is necessary to anticipate potential consumer concerns; however, agents still lack resources and information about existing and frequently used food processing technologies. Educational interventions are needed to provide information to consumers and increase their acceptance of new and currently used processing technologies so that the food industry can effectively target emerging issues related to food.
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    Beets
    Chase, Melissa W.; Brooks, Austin; Boyer, Renee R.; Rafie, Carlin; Carrington, Anne-Carter (Virginia Cooperative Extension, 2015-06-16)
    Provides information about beets, including advise on storing, preparing and cooking. Also includes two recipes.
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    Cabbage
    Chase, Melissa W.; Brooks, Austin; Boyer, Renee R.; Rafie, Carlin; Carrington, Anne-Carter (Virginia Cooperative Extension, 2015-06-16)
    Provides information about cabbages, including advise on storing, preparing and cooking. Also includes two recipes.
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    Cauliflower
    Chase, Melissa W.; Brooks, Austin; Boyer, Renee R.; Rafie, Carlin; Carrington, Anne-Carter (Virginia Cooperative Extension, 2015-06-16)
    Provides information about cauliflower, including advise on storing, preparing and cooking. Also includes two recipes.
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    Considerations for Creating a Food Business Incubator in Virginia
    Pasquarelli, Ian (Virginia Tech, 2016-04-22)
    Due to overwhelming current demand for affordable rental commercial kitchen space in Virginia, this report was compiled in order to assess a viable Virginia model for small food business support. The incubator business model is gaining in popularity across the country, and increasing the capacity for small food business operations in many metropolitan areas. Multiple in-person interviews were conducted with food producers, food retailers, shared-use kitchen owners, city/county officials, and food business incubator managers in Virginia and along the Eastern shore of the United States in order to gain more information pertaining to the elements required for success in food business incubation. It was discovered that most successful food business incubators are located in urban areas, with access to support from existing business development infrastructure such as local universities, hospitals, and business development service centers. Each existing facility has received significant funding from philanthropic donors, or investment capitalists who were able to supply the heavy up-front costs associated with facility establishment. The needs of the interested community will be essential in determining the type of food business incubator facility, and the equipment and services that it will provide. The main limiting factors among unsuccessful operations were shortage of dry and refrigerated storage space, and lack of adequate distribution networks, both factors of which are essential for growth and aggregation of small food businesses, and ultimate success of food business incubators.
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    Control of Listeria monocytogenes in Cheese Brines: A Literature Review
    Hoffman, Mary (Virginia Tech, 2018-05-03)
    Listeria monocytogenes (L. mono.) is a top pathogen of concern in the cheese industry. The organism is prevalent in the environment and has been known to inhabit dairy manufacturing facilities, including long-term survival in brine tanks. Along with good hygiene and sanitation practices, validated L. mono. control methods must be employed to ensure extended-use brine tanks do not become reservoirs for Listeria monocytogenes, potentially leading to serious health issues in cheese consumers. Control methods considerations include L. mono. cells in suspension, cells attached to protective biofilms, and effectiveness in the presence of organic matter. This literature review investigated the availability of scientific research on effective control methods for Listeria monocytogenes in cheese brines. Research on L. mono. control in other applicable areas was considered where information related specifically to cheese brine environments was not found. Potential effective control methods were identified, including membrane filtration and oxidizing agents such as peroxyacetic acid and hydrogen peroxide. Further research is needed to fill knowledge gaps related to successful implementation of these controls in cheese brines.
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    Cooperative Extension’s Capacity to Address Food Insecurity by Supporting Food Recovery Organizations
    Schonberger, H. Lester; Yang, Lily; Chase, Melissa W.; Drape, Tiffany A.; Misyak, Sarah A.; Boyer, Renee R. (Clemson University, 2022-06-01)
    Virginia Cooperative Extension (VCE) educators are uniquely positioned to support the food recovery organizations (FROs) which address hunger-related needs resulting from food insecurity. Based on an online survey to measure how VCE educators have engaged with FROs and their experiences, respondents who previously supported FROs did so across multiple programming areas, and those who had not indicated an interest while also experiencing barriers. Respondents also reported the need for context and audience-specific resources particular to the spectrum of food recovery. Addressing barriers and resource needs through a transdisciplinary eXtension Food Recovery Community of Practice may support educators in doing this work.
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    Corn on the Cob
    Chase, Melissa W.; Brooks, Austin; Boyer, Renee R.; Rafie, Carlin; Carrington, Anne-Carter (Virginia Cooperative Extension, 2015-06-16)
    Provides information about corn on the cob, including advise on storing, preparing and cooking. Also includes two recipes.
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    Creating, Implementing, and Evaluating the Use of a Food Science and Technology 5E Based Curriculum Impact on Underrepresented Minority Youth Engagement in Science
    Junious, Britteny Y. (Virginia Tech, 2016-09-26)
    Increasing underrepresented minority youth (URMY) engagement in STEM education remains at the forefront of our Nation's educational battle. The aim of this study was to create, implement, and evaluate the impact of innovative food science and technology (FST) lesson plans on URMY engagement in, and attitudes towards science, and their awareness of the field of FST. The 2011 United States census recalls that URMY make up only 13.3% of the STEM workforce. This study identifies URMY as individuals representing one or more of the following demographics: Low income, African American, Latino(a) American, and Indian American. Eight 5th-6th grade youth participated in a seven-week program, The Enliven Program (TEP), which is a STEM education program created for the purpose of this. The Enliven Program focuses on youth engagement in science learning through the implementation of a FST curriculum. The lessons delivered in TEP utilized the Biological Sciences Curriculum Study (BSCS) 5E instructional model as its foundation. This model focuses on five phases of student centered learning: engagement, exploration, explanation, elaboration, and evaluation. Data was collected using a fixed-mixed methods design. A qual-quan approach was employed to measure youths' positive behavioral and cognitive engagement in science learning. Measures of positive behavioral and cognitive engagement demonstrated that youth were positively behaviorally and cognitively engaged in the science learning activities. Furthermore, relationship building played an instrumental role in maintaining youth participants' positive attitudes towards and engagement in TEP activities. The results display an overall increase in youth's desire to do science and self-concept in science.
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    Developing a Master Food Volunteer Continuing Education Program: A Model for Volunteer Capacity Building
    Jiles, Kristina A.; Chase, Melissa W.; Hosig, Kathy L.; Wenzel, Sophie; Schlenker, Eleanor; Rafie, Carlin (2019-04-30)
    We developed a master food volunteer (MFV) continuing education program (CEP) for MFVs assisting Extension agents with a diabetes self-management program. Our development process included two phases of pilot testing. First, seasoned MFVs tested and provided formative feedback on the first iteration of the MFV CEP modules. After revising the modules in response to their feedback, we evaluated program effectiveness by comparing pretraining/posttraining score change between MFVs who had completed the training (intervention group) and those who had not (comparison group). All test scores increased for intervention group members, whereas half declined for comparison group members. Our process of developing enhanced education to address program-specific volunteer capacity building has broad applicability.
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    Discovery and dissemination of new knowledge in food science: Analytical methods for quantification of polyphenols and amino acids in fruits and the use of mobile phone-based instructional technology in food science education
    Ma, Sihui (Virginia Tech, 2019-06-11)
    The discovery and dissemination of new knowledge are essential in food science. To advance our understanding of fruit chemistry, analytical methods were compared and applied. Polyphenols are secondary metabolites in fruits of particular importance in food science, as they contribute to the sensory attributes and health benefits of the products. Evaluation of common analytical methods for the quantification of polyphenols, including the Folin-Ciocalteu (F-C), Lowenthal permanganate (L-P), 4-dimethylaminocinnamaldehyde (DMAC) and the bovine serum albumin (BSA) precipitation methods, was conducted using analytical method validation procedures. The F-C method was not specific to polyphenols, and the L-P method had the widest working range but lacked accuracy. The DMAC method was the most specific to flavanols, and the BSA method was not suitable for quantification of smaller flavanols. Quantitative performance of these four methods was evaluated using a broad range of fruit-derived samples. Variation in quantitative results obtained using these four methods was explained by differences in polyphenol and matrix composition of these samples and differences in operating principles of the methods. The reactivity of individual polyphenol compounds (catechin, epicatechin, PC B2, PC pentamer, chlorogenic acid, phloretin, and quercetin) to the polyphenol and flavanol quantification results using Prussian blue (P-B), F-C, DMAC and BSA precipitation methods were also assessed and determined to differ by up to thirteen-fold, depending on the assay. Furthermore, the contribution and interactions of polyphenol compounds (catechin, PC B2, and chlorogenic acid) and potentially interfering compounds likely to be found in fruit and fruit products (ascorbic acid, glucose, and SO2) to the quantitative results of these methods were evaluated using a full factorial design. Significant interactions among polyphenol compounds, and among the interfering compounds were found. The standardized coefficient (β) for all factors and interactions of polyphenol compounds varied from 0.347 to 129, and from near 0 to -46.8 for all factors and interactions of interfering compounds. Our findings indicate that the choice of standards, polyphenol and matrix composition of the sample may cause disparity among the quantitative results of these methods. Amino acids in apple (Malus × domestica Borkh.) juice not only influence the quality of fermented cider through fermentation kinetics but also impact the flavor of the cider through yeast metabolism. Due to recent advances in analytical instrumentation, amino acids profiles in apple juice were determined much faster and more accurately than by previously applied methods. Twenty amino acids were quantified by UPLC-PDA in juices from 13 apple cultivars grown in Virginia. The relative amino acid profile was significantly different among the apple juices evaluated. The total amino acid concentration ranged from 18 mg/L in Blacktwig juice to 57 mg/L in Enterprise juice. L-Asparagine, L-aspartic acid and L-glutamine are the principal amino acids observed in most apple juices. These results will inform future research on yeast metabolism and nitrogen management during cider fermentation. To better disseminate knowledge gained through research to the next generation of food scientists, the effectiveness of new instructional technology—a cellphone-based personal response system—in food science education was evaluated. Students' academic performance was improved by the incorporation of this technology into lectures, and its use was well perceived by the students (easy to use and positively impacted their learning). This finding contributes to the scholarship of teaching and learning in food science by providing useful insight into the potential for application of such tools with improved student engagement and learning outcomes. Advances in food chemistry research will enable the development of value-added food products, and the pedagogical advancement in food science education will better convey new and existing knowledge to students, who will apply this knowledge to promote a safe and nutritious food supply that enhances human health and increases the value of specialty crops.
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    Eat Smart, Move More at Farmers Markets: Black-eyed Peas
    Chase, Melissa W.; Brooks, Austin; Boyer, Renee R.; Rafie, Carlin; Carrington, Anne-Carter (Virginia Cooperative Extension, 2021-02-09)
    Black-eyed Peas: Key Points, Quick Tips, Recipes
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    Eat Smart, Move More at Farmers Markets: Black-eyed Peas
    Chase, Melissa W.; Brooks, Austin; Boyer, Renee R.; Rafie, Carlin; Carrington, Anne-Carter (Virginia Cooperative Extension, 2015-11-18)
    A factsheet for using black-eyed peas as a source of food, including quick tips for use and preparation and two recipes.
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    Eat Smart, Move More at Farmers Markets: Blackberries
    Chase, Melissa W.; Brooks, Austin; Boyer, Renee R.; Rafie, Carlin; Carrington, Anne-Carter (Virginia Cooperative Extension, 2021-02-09)
    Blackberries: Key Points, Quick Tips, Recipes
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    Eat Smart, Move More at Farmers Markets: Blackberries
    Chase, Melissa W.; Brooks, Austin; Boyer, Renee R.; Rafie, Carlin; Carrington, Anne-Carter (Virginia Cooperative Extension, 2015-11-18)
    A factsheet for using blackberries as a source of food, including quick tips for use and preparation and two recipes.
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    Eat Smart, Move More at Farmers Markets: Blueberries
    Chase, Melissa W.; Brooks, Austin; Boyer, Renee R.; Rafie, Carlin; Carrington, Anne-Carter (Virginia Cooperative Extension, 2015-11-19)
    A factsheet for using blueberries as a source of food, including quick tips for use and preparation and two recipes.
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    Eat Smart, Move More at Farmers Markets: Blueberries
    Chase, Melissa W.; Brooks, Austin; Boyer, Renee R.; Rafie, Carlin; Carrington, Anne-Carter (Virginia Cooperative Extension, 2021-02-09)
    Blueberries: Key Points, Quick Tips, Recipes
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    Eat Smart, Move More at Farmers Markets: Cantaloupe
    Chase, Melissa W.; Brooks, Austin; Boyer, Renee R.; Rafie, Carlin; Carrington, Anne-Carter (Virginia Cooperative Extension, 2015-11-19)
    A factsheet for using cantaloupe as a source of food, including quick tips for use and preparation and two recipes.
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    Eat Smart, Move More at Farmers Markets: Cantaloupe
    Chase, Melissa W.; Brooks, Austin; Boyer, Renee R.; Rafie, Carlin; Carrington, Anne-Carter (Virginia Cooperative Extension, 2021-02-10)
    Cantaloupe: Key Points, Quick Tips, Recipes