ABSTRACT
All of the foods people eat, whether natural or fabricated, contain a bewildering arrangement of molecules. And while it would be ideal to describe what each contributes to the final qualities of foods, this simply is not possible. Certainly industrial research is impatient for novelty and will not wait for elegant description. It is therefore important to determine what matters in the food eating process, and how nature or food processors can influence human response (Hutchings and Lillford, 1988; Prinz and Lucas, 1997). This scheme shown in Figure 6-1, suggests immediately that the first questions should focus on food structure, making the microscope a vital tool in all of food science. Using this tool, it is immediately evident that heterogeneity should be the focus. Fibers, crystals, particles, gels, and fluids can be seen, and the greater the magnification, the greater the complexity. All foods are therefore composites, with several levels of hierarchy in their architecture.
