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Biotechnology and
nanotechnology
© Food – a fact of life 2009
Foundation
Learning objectives
• To define biotechnology and nanotechnology.
• To understand where increases in the use of
biotechnology and nanotechnoogy have
occurred.
• To understand areas of traditional biotechnology.
• To understand areas of modern biotechnology.
• To know the food labelling legislation about
genetically modified food products.
© Food – a fact of life 2009
What is biotechnology?
Biotechnology is the industrial use of biological
processes to make products.
Its major uses are in the production or preservation of
food.
© Food – a fact of life 2009
Biotechnology is not new.
For many centuries the process of fermentation has
used micro-organisms (yeasts and bacteria) to make
beer, yogurt and cheese. Bread making, beer brewing
and pickling all use naturally occurring microorganisms in the production of food and drink.
The basis of the fermentation process is the conversion
of glucose (sugar) to alcohol or to lactic acid by
enzymes in the micro-organisms.
© Food – a fact of life 2009
Increases in biotechnology
Increases in the use of biotechnology by the food
industry are due to:
• competition between food companies for an
increased market share;
• attempts to increase efficiency and reduce the
environmental impact of production;
• consumer demand for convenient, high quality
products at reasonable cost.
© Food – a fact of life 2009
Traditional biotechnology
Traditional biotechnology mainly involves the
production of foods, such as cheese, bread and wine.
The fermentation process:
• offers a method of preservation, e.g. by producing
acid which lowers the pH (converting a perishable
food into one that has a longer shelf-life);
• can be used to change the nutritional value of food
products, e.g. converting milk to cheese;
• can create or improve sensory characteristics of
foods (flavour, aroma and texture).
© Food – a fact of life 2009
Food production
Cheese – rennet (from the enzyme renin) is
used to coagulate milk, forming curds and
whey.
Alcoholic beverages – glucose is fermented
by yeast enzymes.
Bread – enzymes within the flour break down
starch, eventually producing glucose. This is
fermented by enzymes present in yeast
producing alcohol and carbon dioxide.
© Food – a fact of life 2009
Modern biotechnology
The emphasis of modern biotechnology is on the
production of raw materials and food ingredients.
Work is based on changing the characteristics of
plants, animals and micro-organisms, including fungi.
© Food – a fact of life 2009
Cell genetics
Every cell in plants and animals, including humans,
contains genes.
They are inherited from each parent and passed on to
future generations. They carry information about
physical characteristics and ‘qualities’.
In the past, plant and animal breeders have had to
work through many generations, and so wait for years
for improvements to be achieved, e.g. cross breeding
pigs to produce pork with more muscle and less fat.
© Food – a fact of life 2009
Deoxyribonucleic acid
Scientists, now, are able to identify which individual
gene controls a particular characteristic. These
discoveries offer a quicker and more exact way to
improve crops and livestock.
Understanding the nature of deoxyribonucleic acid
(DNA) has led the way to genetic modification. This is
the process by which biotechnologists can selectively
splice specific sequences of DNA genes together, to
produce a crop, for example, with additional or
improved characteristics.
© Food – a fact of life 2009
Improving crops and livestock
Improving varieties of crops or livestock by introducing
or modifying specific genes is fast and more accurate
than traditional breeding.
If the gene can be identified and modified the
following changes may be possible:
• plant crops may have a longer shelf-life, be more
resistant to pests or disease, be more nutritious, have a
better taste or give a higher yield;
• animals may be made more resistant to disease,
produce less fatty meat, grow faster or be more fertile.
© Food – a fact of life 2009
Genetic modification
A number of ethical and safety issues need to be
considered with genetic modification.
Some concerns expressed by consumers include fears
that the results of genetic modification could harm the
environment and pose a danger to humans.
© Food – a fact of life 2009
Genetically modified (GM) food
Foods which have been produced from genetically
modified organisms (GMOs) are likely to appear no
different from food produced by traditional means.
A series of laboratory tests would be needed to show
that genes had been changed.
The Government has set up a series of controls to
protect consumers, the environment and people who
work with genetically modified organisms (GMOs)
which take account of these concerns.
© Food – a fact of life 2009
GM food labelling
Food is labelled if it contains genes that would not be
expected to be there and which might cause concern
to some people on ethical grounds.
Labelling is not considered necessary for foods in which
the inserted gene has been destroyed by processing,
and is therefore not present in the food at the time it is
sold.
© Food – a fact of life 2009
GM food labelling
Food from genetically modified organisms needs to be
labelled if:
• if contains a copy gene originally derived from a
human being;
• if contains a copy gene originally derived from an
animal which is restricted by some religions, e.g. pigs
for Muslims or Jews;
• it is a plant or microbial food and contains a copy
gene originally derived from any animal.
© Food – a fact of life 2009
What is nanotechnology?
Nanotechnology is the manufacture and use of
materials and structures at the nanometre scale (a
nanometre is one millionth of a millimetre).
It offers a wide range of opportunities for the
development of innovative products and applications
for food packaging.
Nanotechnology and nanomaterials are a natural
part of food processing and conventional foods,
because the characteristic properties of many foods
rely on nanometer sized components (such as
nanoemulsions and foams).
© Food – a fact of life 2009
Nanotechnology
Recent technological developments lead the way for
the manufacture of nanoparticles to be added to
food. These could be finely divided forms of existing
ingredients, or completely novel chemical structures.
Nanotechnology applications in the food sector are on
the increase worldwide and are expected to grow
rapidly in the future, e.g. the use of nano carbohydrate
particles which bind with bacteria so they can be
detected and eliminated.
© Food – a fact of life 2009
Nanotechnology
The types of material produced can be at the
nanoscale in one dimension (very thin coatings), two
dimensions (nanowires) or three dimensions
(nanoparticles, such as a very fine powder
preparations).
Nanotechnologies are not new – chemists have been
making polymers based on nanoscale subunits for
many years.
© Food – a fact of life 2009
Uses for nanotechnology in food
The texture of food can be changed as food
spreadability and stability (nanoemulsions) improve
with nano-sized crystals and liquids for better low fat
foods.
The flavour of a food can be changed with bitter
blockers or sweet and salty enhancers.
Nano-enhanced bacteria keep oxygen sensitive foods
fresher.
© Food – a fact of life 2009
Issues and concerns
Certain concerns have been raised in regard to the
safety of the consumer resulting from a growing body
of scientific evidence, which indicates that some free
nanoparticles may cause harm to biological systems
because they can penetrate cellular barriers, and
induce oxyradical generation that may cause
oxidative damage to the cell.
However, the nature and extent of risk to consumer
health from ingestion of nanoparticles via food and
drink are largely unknown.
© Food – a fact of life 2009
Assessment of novel foods
The Food Standards Agency is the UK body responsible
for the assessment of novel foods and it will not assess
the safety of using nanotechnology in the food chain
unless asked to do so.
There are no specific criteria to consider particle size
under the novel Foods Regulation. However, the
assessment of the food, or food ingredient includes
details of composition, nutritional value, metabolism,
intended use and the level of microbiological and
chemical contaminants.
© Food – a fact of life 2009
Review of the learning objectives
• To define biotechnology and nanotechnology.
• To understand where increases in the use of
biotechnology and nanotechnoogy have
occurred.
• To understand areas of traditional biotechnology.
• To understand areas of modern biotechnology.
• To know the food labelling legislation about
genetically modified food products.
© Food – a fact of life 2009
For more information visit
www.nutrition.org.uk
www.foodafactoflife.org.uk
© Food – a fact of life 2009