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Food Science and Technology

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Food Science and Technology

The Department of Food Science and Technology (FST) continued to enhance our undergraduate curriculum, advance discovery on research topics ranging from new functional food ingredients to human health, and strengthen industry partnerships. 

   Shaping
Future Talent

We launched two new courses – FST2109 Fundamentals of Food Engineering and FST2110 Food Microbiology and Fermentation – for College of Humanities and Sciences (CHS) students. In the coming year, we will offer a new Specialisation in Food Science and Technology Industrial Applications to provide students practical exposure to more specialisations that are industry-relevant.

Our Year 3 students reading FST3105 Food Product Development and Packaging had the opportunity to create novel food products, such as natto crackers and pumpkin cream puffs made using ‘flawed’ Yukigeshou pumpkins, in collaboration with food businesses from Hakodate, Japan. This enabled them to meld distinctively Japanese ingredients with local food preferences. 

We resumed our summer exchange programme, FST2204 Seafood Supply Chains in Japan and Singapore, which provides students from NUS and Hokkaido University (HU) practical and in-depth knowledge of the seafood industry and supply chains in Hokkaido, Japan and Singapore.

Hokkaido bound!

Our benefactors’ generosity enables our students to fully benefit from the holistic educational experience we offer. In 2022, five outstanding students were awarded the Prima Group Scholarship.

Providing inclusive and accessible education

Last year, we launched a Harmonisation of Food Regulation initiative to develop standardised food regulation courses for tertiary institutions in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). Thailand was chosen to be the first country for alignment.

The opening workshop, co-organised by local and Thai institutes and regulatory agencies, was held on 1 December 2022. Almost 200 participants from all sectors of the food industry attended to understand food regulations in Singapore and Thailand and discuss the challenges and potential in standardising regulations to facilitate food trade between the two countries. The second workshop focused on course materials development. This initiative led to four sets of stackable modules developed with guidance from the Food and Drug Administration, Thailand and the Singapore Food Agency (SFA), with subsequent ‘Train the Trainer’ workshops planned.

    Shaping
Future Solutions

Our faculty members continued to publish their work in prestigious journals.  

Understanding toxicity through the gut microbiome

In 2018, Assoc Prof ZHANG Guodong showed that exposure to triclosan, an antimicrobial compound used in thousands of consumer products, increases the risk of colon inflammation and cancer in mice. In his study published in Nature Communications (January 2022), he identified the mechanism behind gut toxicity of triclosan, highlighting the critical role that gut microbiota play in the metabolism and toxicity of xenobiotic compounds.

Discovering new flavones

Scientists previously struggled to recreate bioactive bi- and triflavones, complex and potentially health-promoting compounds. Prof HUANG Dejian’s team developed a catalyst-free reaction to synthesise over 40 existing and novel bi- and triflavones. His study was published in Nature Communications (October 2022).

Edible scaffolds for cultivated meat

Cell culture scaffolds provide the structural support for cells to multiply and develop into tissue. However, they are typically made of synthetic materials that are expensive and inedible, making large-scale meat cultivation difficult. Prof Huang Dejian’s team developed a plant-based cell culture scaffold, which could speed up the process of cultivating laboratory-based meat. The scaffold, which is three-dimensionally (3D) printed using widely available plant proteins, could also make laboratory-grown meat more affordable and sustainable. The team successfully cultured meat that is similar in texture and overall appearance to real animal meat. This study was published in Advanced Materials (October 2022).   

The Nestlé Sustainability Research Fund was established in August 2022 to encourage the development of novel, sustainable and healthy food concepts for Southeast Asian consumers. 

This year, two FST researchers received funds to accelerate their research projects. Prof Huang Dejian’s project is on reclaiming hordein, a plant protein, from brewer’s spent grains for structuring meat analogues, while Dr Alvin LOO investigates the use of mushroom spent substrate as an alternative source of ergothioneine, an emerging antioxidant and nutraceutical.  

   Shaping
Future Society

A gift from KSF Beverage Holding Foundation in November 2022 enabled us to set up the KSF Startup Support Fund to incubate new ventures by our young entrepreneurs. This year, we awarded four startups $12,500 each to develop their food technologies in our laboratories. The beneficiaries are AuroraFood, Mottainai Food Tech, Curated Culture and Xavoury Foods.

A new lease of life for food waste
Indulge in sweets, the healthier way

Our students continue to do us proud in international competitions and conferences.

Nicole Wong (third from left), Kenzie Tan (second from right) and Manfred Goh (right)

Our undergraduate students – Serena WONG, Nicole WONG, Kenzie TAN and Manfred GOH – were Champions in the Undergraduate Quiz Bowl Championship during the biennial International Union of Food Science and Technology (IUFoST) World Congress (2022). 

Year 4 student YEO Yong Liang was the Grand Winner of the IUFoST Rose Spiess Video Competition, which challenged students to create engaging videos showcasing the positive impact of food science in their country. 

Our postgraduate students LI Yingyue and WANG Yue also emerged Champion and First Runner-Up, respectively, in the Food Safety Without Borders Graduate Students Paper Competition held during the Congress.

WANG Xiang was awarded the Best PhD Student Oral Presentation at the 6th International Symposium on Phytochemicals in Medicine & Food, an international conference which hosted over 1,000 experts from 70 countries. 

Our students also presented their work at the Institute of Food Technologists’ (IFT) Food Improved by Research, Science, and Technology (FIRST) conference in Chicago. MI Jiaqi (left) clinched first place in the Biotechnology Division of the Graduate Student Oral Competition, while Jayne LEE (right) emerged third in the Aquatic Food Products Division.

Our alumni continue to make an impact through service and contributions in various capacities to businesses and society.  

Reimagining plant-based diets

We organised a Chinese New Year (CNY) community event, where staff and students came together to show appreciation to 68 cleaning staff from our faculty.  

Our organising committee sought sponsors and raised funds to purchase food staples for the cleaning staff, collected blemished fruits and vegetables from Pasir Panjang Wholesale Centre together with Fridge Restock Community SG, and distributed food packs with fruits, vegetables, rice, oil, soy sauce, sugar, canned drinks, grocery vouchers and coffee to the staff before CNY. 

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