Prepared Foods

Ashtown Food Research Centre has a user-friendly research and technical development programme in place for the Prepared Foods sector of the Irish food industry. The Prepared Foods Department (Head: Gerard Downey) has circa 25 staff (including post-graduate students) (see more...) and has 24 ongoing projects (see more...). The Department is involved in the areas of product/process/package technology, cereals & bakery products, bioactive compounds in fruit & vegetables, functional foods, seafoods, biospectroscopy & food quality, and the key follow-on areas of innovation, technology transfer and dissemination. There is major focus on: bioactive components in foods; functional foods; gluten-free and low glycaemic index bakery products; added value seafood products; and applications of biospectroscopy to food quality measurement. Activity in the follow-on areas of innovation, technology transfer and dissemination are a particular focus as they represent the translation of R & D outcomes to practice by end-users and especially by SMEs. The programme is part-funded by the Food Institutional Research Measure (FIRM) of the Department of Agriculture and Food, the European Union (EU), and other institutions, agencies and food companies.