#.08 ♥ my bread family ♥

Reflection: Yuen Ying

Monday, July 12, 2010

During the research, I came to know more about HACCP and GM Food. I did not realise that there are many conflicts between authorities for example the labelling rights and howit will affect trades. Working on the packages made me realise that working in addition to doing research for the subject is not easy as a whole day of work use up mpst of our time that can be use to do researching. However, if the mind is set to do, then it can be done.

Reflection Chin Yi

Sunday, July 11, 2010

Soh Chin Yi
As package 1 was involved with CCP decision and Product Specification, an area that we were familiar with from the experience obtained from FPQA and FPQAP, online discussion was comparatively less challenging compared to Package 2 where it involved a new area explored mainly on the isolation methods as well as toxin detection methods. However, our group still made it a point to meet up in school on Saturdays as we need to come up with a common agreement on matters like CCP Decision. Although it is a tiresome fact that after slogging out during the weekdays at each of our various Internship locations, meeting up to clarify doubts and uncertainty where all of our members are present gave us all a clearer picture of where we are headed in the projects. Initially as we are new to using the online discussion board, we merely used it as a platform for deciding a time and place for our meeting. However, as the workload increased and we generally get more accustomed to online discussion, our usage for the online discussion board increased. Personally I still disliked the fact that we have to check the blackboard frequently for updates, for if we do not, we will lose track of how the group have progressed.

As for self directed learning, it forms a greater portion in Package 2. I find it quite a difficult task not from searching for resources but to sift out the useful information for our project as most of the raw information found included many figures, short forms, scientific annotations and tables which required me to reread the same short paragraph to get an idea of what the writer was trying to bring forth. The more challenging ones are the toxin detection methods where their manner of explaining the principles and science behind how they carry out the tests are not easily comprehensible.

Reflection: AI TING

For package one, the knowledge and skills that I have learnt from FPQA and FPQAP such as identifying critical control point, extrinsic and intrinsic factors, product specification and HACCP plan were applied. This time, I have learnt about what product recall is and and better understanding on how to handle food poisoning/ foodborne illness. Initially we were all not used to it and had faced some difficulties in communicating on the discussion board. Hence, we arranged meeting a few times in school to complete some parts of this package.

From package two, I have a better understanding on what genetic modification is about, the advantages and disadvantages and techniques to detect foodborne pathogens. As compared to package one, I find this to be more challenging because we do not have much background knowledge on genetic modified foods.

As I am now more used to online discussion, there were a lot of self-directed learning and sharing done between my group mates and I on the discussion board. As compared to package one, I felt that I have make use of the discussion board more frequently because I realized that it is a efficient way to share our research. This time, there were no meetings face to face at all, other than looking for package two related books.

After package two was launched, I realized that we could learn more from each other from the online discussion board. By posting websites or files that were found by each of us, we can actually have a better understanding for the problem statement rather than just reading through what they have summarized from websites or files. Also, with the use of online discussion board, we do not have to fix a time or day for discussion of the package as we just needed to post what we have found and discussion can be done on the discussion board itself.

Hence, I felt that online communication is a useful skill that I have learnt. It enables my group mates and I to communicate and share our findings efficiently and effectively.

reflection: Lorelle

For package 1, I was still in school for the launch. Therefore, I was still able to participate quite a far bit in the FILA template and also the delegation of the tasks. However, as I am having my internship overseas, in China, I left Singapore 2 weeks after the launch. What was worse was that there was no internet connection here until about 1 week later. Therefore, I could not contact my group members or post anything up on black board. I felt really bad because by the time my internet was fixed and I could post things up on ole-bb, a lot of posts and researches have been done by my other team members. Therefore, I still tried to help out as much as I can by doing a larger share of the report and also helping out in research for the other members as well as my own part.

For package 2, it was worse. I was not able to be present at the launch. And therefore, unable to be present for the delegation and the rough FILA template draft. This made me feel really bad and guilty that I was not able to be present at the brainstorming session. However, I looked through the FILA draft template after it was posted on ole-bb and added for things that can be included in the blog/report. This time, my group members gave me a more crucial part to play in the research because I complained to them the other time that for package 1 I did not help much at all.

As this is a online project, teamwork is not much of an issue as we seldom have actual face to face contact with each other and in my case none at all. Therefore, there were little conflicts. However, because it is an online subject, it can cause one to be more lazy and complacent. And it is apparent that there are some who post more things online than others. And the thing with online subject is that because there is very little accountability factor, it is hard to persuade and make that person who is lacking to improve themself.

Also, one thing that I did not like was that my group did not have online discussion e.g on msn. Which leaves me out quite a bit as they usually meet in school on weekends instead. Although I have suggested quite a few times to them to have an online discussion, however, they prefer to have a face to face meeting in school as it is more convenient and efficient.

The difficulty level of the project is not hard as most of the researches can be done quite fast now with the help of internet. However, there are some parts which still needs to be done by researching the books in the library like the toxins and pathogens part. However, the one hard part about the project is the ability to sift through the plenty of information that can be found and make sure that the correct and reliable one is used. Also, with the plenty of information that can be obtained, it makes it hard to compress it to 10 pages of the report.

What I have learnt from this online subject is that I still prefer conventional projects where there are meetings face to face rather than through the computer/internet. However, it is quite useful as next time in the actual working world, not everything can be done face to face as sometimes clients are overseas or another branch overseas; just like the situation I am in right now where all my fellow team members are in Singapore and I in China.

Reflection: Lynnette

Throughout our Food Safety Project, we encountered problems such as difficulty contacting group mates that are away from Singapore for OSIP & also difficulty with having meetings online. Not only was it difficult to understand each other using the internet, it was also difficult to have a fix date & time where we can all be online to have the meeting. But through this tough period, we have improved our team skills by depending on one another while taking responsibility in our own task. We would make sure we do our part in the project. And if there’s any problem, we would consult with one another or even ask for help to finish it up, especially Package 2 as this package is mainly about GM Food & Toxins which are very new to us. Moreover, when we search thorugh the internet, much of the research state that GM Food are still undergoing researching. Thus searching for GM Food prove us lots of difficulty. However, with the help from my group mates, we manage to find much informations we needed.

We also tried our best to finish our task as early as possible to avoid dragging down the other group mates. And when there are problems that we all couldn’t understand, we would find a time where some of us would go to the library together to search for information & also consult our teacher. Although some of us is so busy with their stuff, everyone still try their best to make some time so that we can go to the library together to search for informations.

We would also make sure to remind each other of due dates & meeting dates to avoid having any one not passing up anything or anyone missing the group meetings. We also tried our best to keep in contact with our group mate that went for OSIP to keep her inform of the stuff we are doing & what she can to help.

PATHOGENS IN POTATOES

Bacillus cereus is a bacterial that tends to grow in starchy food. Since potato is a starchy food, there may be growth of Bacillus cereus on the potatoes. Bacillus cereus is also commonly found in soil, air & water. Thus, if the potatoes are grown on contaminated soil or uses contaminated water, Bacillus cereus may transfer from these sources to the plant itself. Moreover, Bacillus cereus is a spore-forming microorganism. Therefore, there might be possibility that the pathogen survive even after heating process. (European Bioinfomatics Institute, 2010; MicrobiologyBytes, 2007)

MicrobiologyBytes. (2007). Bacillus cereus. Retrieved on 6th July 2010, from MicrobiologyBytes. Website: http://www.microbiologybytes.com/video/Bcereus.html

TOXINS IN POTATO

GLYCOALKALOIDS
-naturally occurs in potatoes and are pest resistant.
-found in mainly potato sprouts & the peel of potatoes that taste bitter. but usually found low in levels.
-produced by the plant in response to stress such as microorganisms, UV light, and damage such as bruising.
-Concentration of toxin may vary because of fungal or bacterial infection & usually increase in response to wounding, as a defense mechanism against potential diseases.
-Amount of toxins produce also depends on the type of potato and their growing conditions. -glycoalkaloid poisoning can cause severe stomach ache and even death as it is an inhibitor of choline esterase that can cause hemorrhagic damage to the gastrointestinal tract as well as to the retina. however, this is very unlikely
-glycoalkaloids are not destroyed by cooking temperatures as its decomposition temperature is about 243ºC
-it is very important that the sprout of the potato, any greening due to sunlight exposure or damage parts of the potato and the skin of the potato are remove adequately before cooking to prevent consumption of such toxins by the consumers.
-it is recommended that potatoes are to be stored in dark, cook and dry places, as levels of glycoalkaloids increases when the potatoes are exposed to bright light for long period of time and storage under 10ºC. (New Zealand Food Safety Authority, n.d.; S.S. Deshpande, 2002; FAO Corporate Document Repository, n.d.)

ARSENIC
-occurs in our food in both organic and inorganic forms.
-groundwater that are from areas with geothermal activity and rocks that are rich with arsenic will contain extremely high levels of arsenic.
-Arsenic is also naturally present in all soils, thus the arsenic content of plants is usually determined by the arsenic content of the soil, water, air, fertilizers and other chemicals.
-Arsenic level in the plant can also be affect by the use of pesticides that may contain arsenic.
-If arsenic containing water is being use accidently to water the plants, the potatoes may contain high levels of arsenic that will increase the risk of consumers getting cancers. (Zealand Food Safety Authority, n.d.)

AFLATOXIN
-a mycotoxin that has been found in many foods of animal & plant origin.
-produced by 4 species of Aspergillus: A. flavus, A. parasiticus, A. nomius & A. pseudotamarii that contain metabolites that have been implicated in carcinogenicity, mutagenicity, teratogenicity, hepatoxicity & aflatoxicosis.
-Aflatoxicosis is the major syndrome associated with aflatoxins and the liver is the primary target of the toxin.
-Moderate to high consumption of the toxin will fatty, pale & decolorized livers, derangement of normal blood clotting mechanisms, resulting in hemorrhages, reduction in total serum proteins of the liver, accumulation of blood in the gastrointestinal canal, glomerular nephritis & lung congestion. (Heredia, N., Wesley, I., Garcia, S., 2009)

PROTEINASE INHIBITOR
-protects the potato against insects and microorganisms but are not toxic because they are destroyed by heat.
-Lectins or haemogglutenins are also present in potato. These toxins are capable of agglutinating the erythrocytes of humans, but are of no significant issue as they can be destroy by heat. Thus, it is important that the potatoes are adequately cooked. (FAO Corporate Document Repository, n.d.)

New Zealand Food Safety Authority. (n.d.). Arsenic and the food we eat. Retrieved on 1st June 2010, from NZFSA. Website: http://www.nzfsa.govt.nz/consumers/chemicals-nutrients-additives-and-toxins/arsenic/
Heredia, N., Wesley, I., Garcia, S. (2009). Microbiological Safe Foods. U.S.A., New jersey: John Wiley Sons, Inc.
FAO Corporate Document Repository. (n.d.).Toxic substances and antinutritional factors. Retrieved on 1st July 2010, from FAO. Website: http://www.fao.org/docrep/T0207E/T0207E08.htm#Potato