Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University

Susan Duncan, Dairy and Sensory Evaluation

Bill Eigel,                Food Biochemistry

Joe Marcy:               Food Processing

Merle Pierson: Food Microbiology

 Sean O’Keefe: Food Chemistry

Susan Sumner:   Food Safety

Walter Hartman:    Dairy Plant Manager whartman@vt.edu

Kim Waterman:  Dairy Chemistry    Kwater@vt.edu

     updates at virginia tech

Fall Golf Outing

The fall golf outing sponsored by Supervalu Dairy and the Virginia Dairy Tech Society is scheduled for October 21 st at Brickshire Golf Club in Providence Forge, VA. For those who don't play golf, feel free to come out for the banquet afterward.

Registration begins at 10:00 a.m. Tee times begin at 11:00 a.m. with a shotgun start. Dinner will be at 4:00 p.m. with prizes being awarded following the banquet. Golf and dinner registration is $80.00.

Profits from the golf outing will be used to support scholarships for undergraduate and graduate students interested in dairy and food science programs at VA Tech. Scholarships attract potential students into the Dept. of Food Science and Technology, and many of the scholarships reward individuals on the VA Tech Dairy Products Evaluation Team, student club leaders and students who exhibit scholarship improvement and community involvement. Many of these students enter the dairy industry as plant professionals or suppliers.

For more information on the tournament, contact Dean Smith (804) 746-6206, Scott Valentine (410) 627-4170, or Gray Sherill (804) 337-0130.

  HOT TOPICS AND DAIRY ISSUES

International Symposium on the Milk Genome & Human Health

Davis , CA – Experts in nutrition, genomics, bioinformatics and milk will gather in Napa , CA this fall to establish the framework for an international consortium for milk-specific genomic research at the first International Symposium on the Milk Genome and Human Health. The event will be held November 11-12, 2004 at the COPIA Center for Wine, Food & the Arts in Napa and will be sponsored by the California Dairy Research Foundation.

The program will feature four sessions over the 2-day period that will address topics that include the state of science for milk research, milk and the process of lactation, tools of genomics, and the Milk Genome Project . The overall goal of the symposium is to produce a guiding document for the Milk Genome Project – a joint project currently underway to coordinate scientific research on the study of milk and its benefits.

Symposium organizer, Dr. Bruce German (Professor; Dept. of Food Science and Technology; UC Davis) stated that this will be the first time researchers involved with or interested in the milk genome project will be able to meet in person to discuss the tools and technologies being utilized in the effort. “The study of genomics will allow us to go beyond simply understanding that milk is beneficial and will challenge us to discover precisely how and why.”

Dr. German will be speaking at the symposium. Other invited speakers include Jim McManaman and Margaret Neville (University of Colorado Health Services Center), Stuart Patton (American Council on Science & Health/ Penn Sate University), Floyd Schanbacher (Ohio State University), Tim Smith (USDA), Matthew Lange (UC Davis), Bo Lönnerdal (UC Davis), Juan Medrano (UC Davis) and David Rocke (UC Davis).

Symposium registration is $275 and includes all program materials and meals as well as a COPIA tour and Napa wine dinner. Registration forms are available online at www.cdrf.org or by contacting symposium coordinator Jennifer Giambroni at info@cdrf.org or (510) 530-7983. Online registration can be made at www.acteva.com/go/MilkGenome .

Food Scientists Design Sensor for Listeria Detection

Dairy Reporter – Food Scientists at Purdue University have designed a new biosensor to detect the potentially deadly bacteria Listeria monocytogenes. The antibody-based fiber optic biosensor can detect Listeria bacteria in less than 24 hours at concentrations as low as 1,000 cells/mL of fluid. According to the researchers, the sensor is selective enough to recognize only the species monocytogenes. The bacteria classified as Listeria include six different species, but only L. monocytogenes can infect humans.

The sensor is made of a small piece of optical fiber – a clear, solid, plastic material that transmits light through its core. The fiber is coated with a type of molecule called an antibody, which specifically recognizes L. monocytogenes and captures it, binding it to the fiber. When the fiber is placed in a liquid food solution, any L. monocytogenes cells in the sample will stick to the fiber.

“The selectivity, sensitivity and rapidity of this sensor represent a vast improvement over the types of test kits that are currently available commercially,” said Arun Bhunia, associate professor of food microbiology and one of the sensor's developers.

Listeriosis is most often associated with consumption of foods such as soft cheese and processed meat products that are kept at refrigerated temperatures. Food safety experts estimate that 100 to 1,000 cells can cause the illness.

Dairy Vending in Virginia Schools

Farm Bureau News 9/04 – Students returning to school this fall are able to choose from a variety of flavored milks in vending machines. The city of Roanoke placed dairy vending machines in both of its high schools in 2002 and added them to its junior highs and two largest elementary schools last year. Heather Snead, assistant food services director for Roanoke schools, is very happy with the results.

Botetourt County was the first locality in Virginia to place dairy vending machines on school campuses in 2000. They now have four machines, one at each high school and middle school. Hanover, Henrico, Franklin and Wythe counties have followed suit, and Carroll County plans to introduce milk vending this school year.

Crater's Dairy in Woodlawn, campaigned to obtain a milk vending machine at Carroll County High School . The Southeast United Dairy Industry Association (SUDIA) provided a grant for $2,000. Dairy Farmers of America, Southern States, local dairy farmers and Farm Bureau provided the rest. There was no cost to the school, who will maintain the machine. The local FFA chapter will stock it and get part of the proceeds.

In 2001, the Milk Processor Education Program's Fluid Milk Strategic Thinking Initiative conducted a national test that placed 86 dairy vending machines in middle and high schools in five diverse markets in order to evaluate the vending opportunity. Testing revealed that milk, particularly flavored milk, was a popular choice among students seeking vending options, and that milk vending had the potential to be a profitable business for both processors and vending operators.

The Roanoke and Botetourt machines are both stocked with dairy goods from Roanoke 's Valley Rich Dairy, as well as with various flavored milks from Nesquick. The machines carry not only milk, but also yogurt, and Snead says options like string cheese and smoothie drinks are being explored.