The Food and Airborne Fungi and Mycotoxins Short Course is designed to introduce participants to a basic understanding of molds, yeasts, and mycotoxins that may occur in foods and in processing environments. The short course is delivered in a classroom and laboratory environment and includes a mixture of theory, demonstrations, and laboratory activities. Participants will develop a detailed understanding of the methods used to isolate, detect, and identify food and airborne fungi and mycotoxins. The program also provides a basic understanding of the ecology of fungi in foods and processing environments.
Who Should Attend?
This short course is intended for those who work with food and environmental microbiology issues, including food scientists, microbiologists, quality management and food processing personnel, and health regulatory officials.
At the completion of the short course, participants will:
- Recognize the significance of fungi and mycotoxins in foods
- Understand the factors affecting growth of fungi in foods
- Understand how to prevent and control fungal growth in foods and food processing environments
- Become familiar with the methods for detecting, enumerating, and identifying fungi
- Become familiar with methods to analyze for mycotoxins in foods
- Become familiar with airborne fungi - Be introduced to antifungal preservatives
- Understand the role of fungi in food processing