Our June theme, innovation and collaboration, could not be more appropriate for the current COVID‐19 pandemic, the food safety implications of which are discussed on p14. We have seen universities, industry, government and the public collaborating on an unprecedented scale to test new drugs and digital technologies and to develop potential vaccines. Only innovative science and international collaboration will help us to move out of this crisis.

Tackling the problems of future food security, climate change and food and packaging waste also requires collaboration across the disciplines and between industry and academia. As we go forward, lessons learned and experience gained during the current crisis may produce changes in behaviour and new technologies that can be harnessed to help address some of these food system challenges.

A number of organisations and networks, some new and some well‐established, are providing a myriad of opportunities to make connections between companies, universities and institutes to build collaborations that can address the key problems facing the food system (p18, p22, p26, p29, p31, p36). Some organisations are also specifically encouraging the participation and engagement of consumers to provide input into collaborative projects (p18, p22, p36).

A variety of funding sources are available to support innovative, collaborative research from pump priming exercises through to larger scale feasibility trials (p26, p31, p36). Networking events and conferences encourage the formation of partnerships for collaboration (p18, p31, p36). The education and career development of young scientists is a focus in some programmes (p26, p36).

There is widespread recognition that scientists need to step outside the laboratory and understand the problems faced by industry. Cross disciplinary projects are bringing new fields of expertise, for example mathematics, to bear on food system issues (p31). Tackling these problems requires a holistic approach, which addresses the complex nature of the food system (p18).

Urban farming is an area where considerable advances have been made to optimise use of resources (p18, p52). The new Horticultural Quality and Food Loss Network will be addressing food waste and innovation specifically in this sector (p26). Reducing food loss and waste is a key theme for many collaborative programmes, together with alternative proteins and foods with enhanced nutritional value (p18, p26, p31).

This is an exciting time to be embarking on a career in food science as innovation has never been higher on the agenda for the food sector.

I would like to extend my thanks to Professor Tim Benton, who is stepping down from the FST Advisory Board, for all his help and support over the last few years.

email mb@biophase.co.uk

Letters to the editor about any of the articles published in Food Science and Technology are welcomed .

Research tackles challenges in the food system

The University of Reading is working across 37 new research, communication, business creation and education projects in 2020 thanks to €4.7m (around £4m) of funding from EIT Food, a European initiative to revolutionise the food system^[ 1^] (see p31).

The funding will help the University to benefit consumers, farmers and those working in the food industry by supporting collaboration with other universities, research institutes and businesses across Europe to address challenges in the food system including environmental matters.

Research being carried out by the University of Reading and partners across Europe includes innovative work, such as SeaCH4NGE, which is aiming to harness seaweed as feed supplements to reduce methane production by cattle.

Other projects include the validation of organic milk by developing methods to distinguish organic from conventional milk, enhancing consumer trust of the dairy supply chain and the integration of different data sources to help famers make informed decisions about their crop management practices.

Consumers will benefit from online courses and projects including how to demystify regulations of food labelling and why the gut microbiome could provide numerous benefits for human health as well as helping people understand the ‘truth behind the headlines’ of nutrition and health news stories.

In addition, a range of projects will help the food industry to better communicate its essential work to the public, including looking at public attitudes towards animal protein products, which will incorporate plant‐based ingredients to improve the nutrient profile, and a computer game to help farmers gain skills in precision farming in order to reduce pesticide and herbicide waste.

Feeding the future

A team of Italian scientists from Politecnico di Milano, the University of California, Berkeley and the University of Amsterdam have published a study on the global geography of agricultural water scarcity^[ 2^] . The study finds that there is enough locally available water to expand irrigation over 140 million hectares of agricultural lands, currently not irrigated due to lack of economic and institutional capacity. The study shows that 800 million more people could be fed by sustainably expanding irrigation over economic water scarce croplands.

Using data intensive global hydrological models, the researchers were able to quantify the water currently provided to crops, the type of water scarcity affecting the croplands and the regions of the world where additional water is available to expand irrigation sustainably.

The study highlights the agricultural regions where investments in the water sector are needed to sustainably increase food production. Two thirds of lands suitable for irrigation expansion are located in Sub‐Saharan Africa, East Europe and Central Asia.

In addition to increasing the production of food, the researchers believe that expansion of irrigation on lands where there is economic water scarcity could at the same time be an important strategy for adaptation to climate change, contributing to more reliable and resilient agricultural production.

Fundamental reforms for plastic packaging

The European Academies of Science (EASAC) is warning that current efforts to resolve the plastics crisis are ineffective and misleading. Policymakers and industry must address conflicts in the whole system, from production to end‐of‐life. EASAC's latest report Packaging Plastics in a Circular Economy ^[ 3^] shows that fundamental and systemic reforms are required along the whole value chain in order to slow and reverse damage to the environment, biodiversity and ultimately risks to human health.

Since the 1960s, global plastic production has increased from 1.5m to almost 400m tons per year. Macro and microplastics are widespread on land, in the seas and are even found in the air. For many species, plastics are deadly, through entanglement and ingestion, while microplastics are transmitted throughout the food chain.

This is the first time ever that scientists from the National Academies of Science of 28 European countries have joined efforts in taking an in‐depth look at the whole plastics value chain. Based on their findings, EASAC's scientists have issued the following seven recommendations to EU policymakers on how to transform the system:

1. Ban exports of plastic waste

Today, the majority of the EU's plastic waste is not recycled in Europe. Huge amounts of contaminated and hard‐to‐recycle plastic is being shipped out of Europe, often ending up in illegal factories and/or being leaked into the local environment and ultimately the oceans. Processing plastic waste in Europe is better from both an environmental and ethical point of view.

2. Adopt a target of zero plastic waste to landfill, minimise consumption and one‐way use

EASAC urges the European Commission to make the adoption of a target of zero plastic waste to landfill a priority, consistent with the development of a circular economy for plastics in the EU.

3. Extend producer responsibility

EASAC also requests policymakers to make sure the polluter‐pays principle applies to plastics manufacturers and retailers.

4. End misleading information about bio‐based alternatives

At present, the scientists see a very limited potential for biodegradable plastic. The report concludes that the ideal target of a plastic which breaks down naturally in the environment remains elusive since most applications of plastics require durability. There are only a limited number of products which can meet biodegradation tests in the marine environment and even these still retain their integrity for months, during which time the risks of entanglement and ingestion remain.

5. Advanced recycling and reprocessing technology

Effective recycling for much of the waste stream is exceptionally difficult and a range of options need to be developed to extract value from current low or negative value mixed plastic waste. It is essential to develop integrated recycling systems which can deal with all plastics waste.

6. Limiting additives and types of resin to improve recyclability

The report finds that the technical and economic viability of recycling would be greatly assisted by reducing the use of sometimes even toxic additives and simplifying the number of polymers that can be used for specific applications, for example in large volume applications, to the easily recyclable polymers like PET and PE.

7. Price regulations and quota for recycled content

Virgin plastic feedstock is too cheap. The cost of plastics does not include the costs on environment and society from the original oil or gas through to littering on land or the ocean. Not including environmental costs is a market failure and a fundamental barrier to a greater demand for recycled materials.

According to the report, these recommendations underpin measures currently under discussion in some Members States and at European level to either introduce a plastics tax or require minimum recycled contents.

Taste is connected to ethnicity and gender

The results of a new study published in Food Quality and Preference show that people of Asian ethnicity are not only more likely to be ‘supertasters’, but they are also more likely to be thermal tasters and low sweet likers. The study also found that men are more likely to be high sweet likers, who prefer sweeter foods^[ 4^] .

The research carried out at the University of Nottingham's Sensory Science Centre is the first to explore the association between ethnicity (Caucasian vs Asian) and different observed variations in taste perception, known as taste phenotypes.

The Sensory Science Centre has carried out extensive research looking into the impact of taste phenotypes on perceived taste intensity, including PROP taster status, Thermal Taster Status and Sweet Liking Status.

A supertaster is someone who has the ability to perceive a bitter taste from a compound called ‘6‐n‐propylthiouracil’ (known as PROP), which is linked to our genetic profile. A thermal taster is someone who can perceive a taste sensation when their tongue is heated or cooled, when no taste stimulus is actually present. A high sweet liker is someone who prefers super sweet foods.

The human tongue is wrapped in taste buds (papillae). The small, mushroom‐shaped bumps are fungiform papillae located on the anterior tip of tongue; they contain taste receptors that bind to the molecules from food so your brain can identify what you are eating.

Taste perception occurs when certain compounds released from food dissolve in saliva and interact with taste receptor cells within taste buds. Most mammals are able to detect five different types of taste: sweet, bitter, sour, salty and umami, whilst some other sensations have also been identified as potential tastes including fatty acid, metallic, kokumi and calcium.

For this study, 223 volunteers were invited to determine their taste phenotypes, as well as their ethnicity and gender, and understand how these factors played a part in their experience of taste. Their perceived taste intensity was measured by asking participants to indicate how intense are the taste solutions.

Asian participants were found to be more sensitive to sour and metallic taste than Caucasian participants. This is an interesting finding, as it indicates that how consumers perceive taste intensity from food and beverages can be different across different ethnic groups.

Perceived intensity of taste and other oral sensations have been shown to vary greatly among individuals and may be one of the most important determinants of food preference and consumption affecting nutritional and health status. The findings from the study could help inform new product development to appeal directly to people's taste buds, according to project leader, Qian Yang.

Growing lettuces in space

A study carried out by NASA on the International Space Station (ISS) has demonstrated that leafy vegetable crops grown in space can produce safe, edible, fresh food to supplement astronauts’ diets^[ 5^] .

The ability to grow safe, fresh food to supplement packaged foods for astronauts has been an important goal for NASA, since food crops grown in space experience different environmental conditions to those grown on Earth (e.g. reduced gravity, elevated radiation levels), which could impact safety and nutritious value.

To study the effects of space conditions, red romaine lettuce, Lactuca sativa cv ‘Outredgeous’ plants were grown in Veggie Plant Growth Chambers on the ISS and compared with ground‐grown plants. Multiple plantings were grown on the ISS and harvested using either a single, final harvest, or sequential harvests in which several mature leaves were removed from the plants at weekly intervals. Ground controls were grown simultaneously with a 24‐72h delay using ISS environmental data.

Comparison of flight and ground tissues showed some differences in total counts for bacteria and yeast/moulds, while screening for selected human pathogens gave negative results. Chemical analysis provided evidence of significant changes in elemental and antioxidant content, which may be an important factor to consider for nutritional value in future, long duration, exploration missions. The study also provided baseline data for continual operation of the Veggie Plant Growth units on the ISS.

中文翻译：

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社论和新闻

我们6月份的主题是创新与合作，它不适合当前的COVID-19大流行，有关大流行的食品安全性已在第14页上进行了讨论。我们已经看到大学，工业界，政府和公众以前所未有的规模进行合作，以测试新药和数字技术并开发潜在的疫苗。只有创新的科学和国际合作才能帮助我们摆脱这场危机。

要解决未来的粮食安全，气候变化以及食物和包装废弃物的问题，还需要跨学科以及工业界和学术界之间的合作。在我们前进的过程中，当前危机中的经验教训和经验教训可能会导致行为和新技术的变化，这些变化和新技术可用来帮助应对某些食品系统挑战。

许多组织和网络，包括一些新的和建立良好的组织，为公司，大学和研究所之间建立联系提供了无数的机会，以建立可以解决食品系统面临的关键问题的协作（p18，p22，p26， p29，p31，p36）。一些组织还特别鼓励消费者的参与和参与，以为合作项目提供投入（p18，p22，p36）。

从泵灌注练习到大规模可行性试验（p26，p31，p36），有各种资金来源可用于支持创新的协作研究。社交活动和会议鼓励建立合作伙伴关系（p18，p31，p36）。年轻科学家的教育和职业发展是某些计划的重点（p26，p36）。

人们普遍认识到，科学家需要走出实验室并了解行业所面临的问题。跨学科项目为食品系统问题带来了数学等新的专门知识领域（p31）。解决这些问题需要采取整体方法，以解决粮食系统的复杂性（p18）。

城市农业是在优化资源利用方面取得重大进展的领域（p18，p52）。新的园艺质量和粮食损失网络将专门解决该部门的粮食浪费和创新（第26页）。减少粮食损失和浪费是许多合作计划的关键主题，另外还有替代蛋白质和营养价值更高的食物（p18，p26，p31）。

这是一个从事食品科学事业的激动人心的时刻，因为创新从未在食品领域提上重要的议事日程。

我要感谢即将离开FST顾问委员会的Tim Benton教授，感谢他在过去几年中的所有帮助和支持。

电子邮件 mb@biophase.co.uk

欢迎就食品科学技术中发表的任何文章给编辑写信。

研究应对食品系统中的挑战

雷丁大学正在2020年开展37个新的研究，交流，业务创造和教育项目，这要归功于EIT Food的470万欧元（约合400万英镑）资金，这是欧洲一项旨在改革食品体系的举措^[ 1 ^]（p31 ）。

资金将通过支持与欧洲其他大学，研究机构和企业的合作来应对食品系统（包括环境问题）中的挑战，从而帮助该大学使消费者，农民和食品行业的工作人员受益。

雷丁大学及其在欧洲各地的合作伙伴正在进行的研究包括SeaCH4NGE等创新工作，该项目旨在利用海藻作为饲料补充品，以减少牛的甲烷产量。

其他项目包括通过开发将有机牛奶与常规牛奶区分开来的方法来验证有机牛奶，增强消费者对乳品供应链的信任以及整合不同数据源以帮助农民对其农作物管理实践做出明智的决定。

消费者将从在线课程和项目中受益，包括如何使食品标签法规神秘化以及为何肠道微生物组可以为人类健康带来诸多好处，以及帮助人们了解营养和健康新闻报道的“真相”。

此外，一系列项目将帮助食品工业更好地与公众交流其重要工作，包括研究公众对动物蛋白产品的态度，其中将包含植物成分以改善营养成分，并通过计算机游戏帮助农民获得精耕细作的技能，以减少农药和除草剂的浪费。

养育未来

来自米兰理工大学，加利福尼亚大学，伯克利分校和阿姆斯特丹大学的意大利科学家团队发表了有关全球农业缺水地理的研究报告^[ 2 ^]。研究发现，当地有足够的水来灌溉超过1.4亿公顷的农田，由于缺乏经济和体制能力，目前尚未进行灌溉。该研究表明，通过在经济缺水的农田上持续扩大灌溉，可以使另外8亿人受够。

利用数据密集型全球水文模型，研究人员能够量化目前提供给农作物的水，水的短缺类型影响着农田和世界上有更多水可用于可持续灌溉的地区。

该研究突出了需要在水务部门进行投资以可持续增加粮食产量的农业地区。适合撒播的土地有三分之二位于撒哈拉以南非洲，东欧和中亚。

除了增加粮食产量外，研究人员认为，在经济缺水的土地上扩大灌溉可能同时也是适应气候变化的重要战略，有助于实现更可靠和更有弹性的农业生产。

塑料包装的根本性改革

欧洲科学院（EASAC）警告说，当前解决塑料危机的努力是无效的并且具有误导性。决策者和行业必须解决从生产到报废的整个系统中的冲突。EASAC的最新报告《循环经济中的包装塑料》^[ 3 ^]显示，需要在整个价值链中进行根本性和系统性的改革，以减缓和逆转对环境，生物多样性以及最终对人类健康的危害。

自1960年代以来，全球塑料产量已从150万吨增加到每年近4亿吨。宏观和微观塑料广泛分布在陆地，海洋中，甚至在空中。对于许多物种而言，塑料通过纠缠和食入而致命，而微塑料则在整个食物链中传播。

这是来自28个欧洲国家的美国国家科学院的科学家首次携手努力，对整个塑料价值链进行深入研究。根据他们的发现，EASAC的科学家已就如何改造该系统向欧盟决策者提出了以下七个建议：

1. 禁止出口塑料废物

如今，欧盟的大部分塑料废料都没有在欧洲回收。大量受污染且难以回收的塑料被运出欧洲，通常最终进入非法工厂和/或泄漏到当地环境，最终泄漏到海洋。从环境和道德的角度来看，在欧洲处理塑料废料都更好。

2. 采取零塑料垃圾填埋的目标，最大程度地减少消耗和单次使用

EASAC敦促欧洲委员会将零塑料废物掩埋的目标作为优先事项，这与欧盟塑料循环经济的发展相一致。

3. 扩大生产者责任

EASAC还要求政策制定者确保污染者付费原则适用于塑料制造商和零售商。

4. 终止有关生物替代品的误导性信息

目前，科学家们认为可生物降解塑料的潜力非常有限。该报告得出结论，由于大多数塑料应用都需要耐用性，因此理想的目标是在环境中自然分解的塑料仍然难以实现。只有少数几种产品可以在海洋环境中通过生物降解测试，即使这些产品仍能保持其完整性数月，在此期间仍然存在纠缠和吞食的风险。

5. 先进的回收和后处理技术

要对大部分废物流进行有效的循环利用非常困难，因此需要开发一系列选择方案，以从当前的低价值或负价值的混合塑料废物中获取价值。开发可处理所有塑料废料的集成回收系统至关重要。

6. 限制添加剂和树脂类型以提高可回收性

该报告发现，通过减少有时甚至有毒的添加剂的使用并简化可用于特定应用（例如在大批量应用中）的聚合物的数量，简化为易于回收的聚合物，将大大有助于回收的技术和经济可行性。像PET和PE。

7. 价格规定和回收内容配额

原始塑料原料太便宜了。塑料的成本不包括从原始的石油或天然气到在陆地或海洋上乱扔垃圾的环境和社会成本。不包括环境成本是市场失灵，也是对再生材料需求增加的根本障碍。

根据该报告，这些建议是一些成员国和欧洲层面目前正在讨论的措施的基础，这些措施要么征收塑料税，要么要求最低回收量。

口味与种族和性别有关

发表在《食品质量与偏好》上的一项新研究结果表明，亚洲种族的人们不仅更有可能成为“超级味觉者”，而且他们更有可能成为热食者和低甜者。该研究还发现，男人更容易成为喜欢甜食的人，他们更喜欢甜食^[ 4 ^]。

在诺丁汉大学感官科学中心进行的研究是第一个探索种族（高加索人与亚洲人）与味觉感知的不同观察到的变化之间的关联的研究，被称为味觉表型。

感官科学中心进行了广泛的研究，研究了味觉表型对感知的味觉强度的影响，包括PROP品尝者状态，热品尝者状态和甜味状态。

超级品酒师能够从称为“ 6-正丙基硫氧嘧啶”的化合物（称为PROP）中感知到苦味，这与我们的遗传特征有关。热食者是指当舌头被加热或冷却时，实际上没有味觉刺激时，会感觉到味觉的人。最喜欢的人是喜欢超级甜食的人。

人的舌头包裹在味蕾中（乳头状）。蘑菇状的小突起是真菌状的乳突，位于舌头的前端。它们含有与食物分子结合的味觉感受器，因此您的大脑可以识别出您在吃什么。

当食物中释放的某些化合物溶解在唾液中并与味蕾内的味觉受体细胞相互作用时，就会发生味觉感知。大多数哺乳动物能够检测到五种不同的口味：甜，苦，酸，咸和鲜味，而其他一些感觉也被认为是潜在的口味，包括脂肪酸，金属，科米和钙。

在这项研究中，邀请了223名志愿者来确定他们的味觉表型，种族和性别，并了解这些因素如何影响他们的味觉体验。通过要求参与者指出味觉溶液的浓烈度来衡量他们的感知味觉强度。

发现亚洲参与者比白种人参与者对酸味和金属味更敏感。这是一个有趣的发现，因为它表明，不同种族的消费者对食物和饮料味道强度的感知方式可能有所不同。

事实表明，个人的味觉强度和其他口腔感觉差异很大，并且可能是影响营养和健康状况的食物偏爱和消费的最重要决定因素之一。项目负责人钱扬说，这项研究的发现可以帮助开发新产品，以直接吸引人们的味蕾。

在太空中生长生菜

NASA在国际空间站（ISS）上进行的一项研究表明，太空中种植的多叶蔬菜作物可以生产安全，可食用的新鲜食物，以补充宇航员的饮食^[ 5 ^]。

种植安全，新鲜食品以补充宇航员包装食品的能力一直是NASA的重要目标，因为太空中生长的粮食作物与地球上经历的环境条件不同（例如重力降低，辐射水平升高），这可能会影响安全和营养价值。

为了研究空间条件的影响，在国际空间站的素食植物生长室中种植了红色长叶莴苣，莴苣（Lactuca sativa cv） “杰出”植物，并将其与陆生植物进行了比较。在ISS上种植多种植物，并使用单次收获，最终收获或连续收获的方式进行收获，在这种收获方式中，每隔一周从植物上摘除几片成熟叶片。利用ISS环境数据，地面对照可以同时生长24-72小时。

飞行和地面组织的比较显示细菌和酵母/霉菌的总计数有些差异，而对选定的人类病原体的筛查却得出阴性结果。化学分析提供了元素和抗氧化剂含量显着变化的证据，这可能是在未来，长期，勘探任务中考虑营养价值的重要因素。该研究还为国际空间站上的素食植物生长单元的持续运行提供了基准数据。