Food Systems and Management MSc

Cranfield University

This module aims to provide a comprehensive understanding of food diagnostic tools to monitor and analyse food quality and safety, as well as their impact on the management of the supply chain.

This module will provide you with an overview of the main hazards encountered along the food chain and the food safety and quality regulatory framework. Special attention will be paid to microbiological hazards (bacteria, viruses and fungal pathogens) relevant to food.

The first part of the module aims to provide you with a thorough understanding of the ecology and physiology of bacteria, yeasts and moulds in key food chains and the methods for detecting and controlling spoilage, mycotoxin contamination, and the use of hurdle technology for improving shelf-life. The second part of the module will focus on the current food policy and legislation and the implementation of quality and safety standards in the food industry. This part contains examples of their application to industrially relevant cases.

The teaching will be supported by practical work that will complement the theory covered during the lectures.

Global sustainability challenges are shaping the way business operates in the 21st century. Businesses are under increasing pressure from multiple stakeholders (for e.g. shareholders, customers, employees, society) to manage their positive and negative impacts with clear responsibility and strategic intent. Leading firms are choosing to respond to these challenges by generating sustainable value propositions to ultimately drive competitive advantage. For many this has meant re-engaging at the level of purpose and re-addressing their role in wider society and for human well-being.

This module outlines the major sustainability challenges and explores the capabilities organisations require to respond positively to them. It will engage you in gaining a better understanding of how corporate action can be best configured to promote responsible and sustainable business strategies. In doing so, it will demand management students (as future business managers and leaders) to reflect on the long-standing debate about whether or not ‘the business of business, is still business? This module is 10 credits.

To provide an understanding of how quality (e.g. colour, shape, aroma, taste, texture, nutrition) and value are evaluated in foods and beverages, and how this is influenced by genetic, environmental and management factors.

This module provides you with the principles behind the processes affecting the postharvest physiological and functional quality and to apply this knowledge in ‘real-world’ industrial strategies.

During this module you will be introduced to key aspects of supply chain (SC) management which are critical to improving the overall resilience of the global food supply network.

This module will be delivered in collaboration with our industrial partners and Agrifood MSc alumni with successful careers in the industry. External speakers will deliver presentations to you with regard to their main challenges and innovation projects in different industrial sectors. The aim is to provide you with a direct contact with industrial challenges explained and solved by the industry themselves. Emphasis is also given to the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the role of industry in achieving these.