Food Technology

Examinations

Answering extended response questions for the option strand

The options section of the syllabus has two alternatives:

Contemporary Food Issues: Nutrition
Contemporary Food Issues: Marketplace

This section of the paper is worth 15 marks.

This section is often the most poorly answered section of the examination paper. Perhaps this is because it is often answered last and candidates are tired mentally and physically.

The most popular option chosen in the last two HSC examinations (2001 and 2002) has been Contemporary Food Issues: Nutrition. The Marketplace, however is an exciting alternative. One of the questions in this section from the 2002 HSC examination paper asked students to discuss the relationship between specific marketplace trends and developments in the food industry.

Question 21

Discuss the relationship between specific marketplace trends and developments in the food industry.

To answer this question students needed to identify a market trend and discuss its development, giving a range of examples. Evidence of how or why the food industry had responded to the trend was also needed to show the relationship between the trend and the food industry. Excellent answers would have needed to give a variety of trends from all sections of the Australian Food Industry. An example of how to answer the question follows.

Trend identified: An increase in health enhancing foods.

Discussion of development of the trend: People wishing to improve their health and a desire to avoid lifestyle diseases. People trying to manage lifestyle issues such as juggling work commitments, families and preparation of healthy foods. Therefore, the food industry has responded by producing a range of functional foods.

Range of examples: Fortified foods, e.g. breakfast cereals with iron; calcium enriched foods, e.g. milk, orange juice; probiotics, e.g. Yakult; omega 3 fatty acids, e.g. margarines.

Evidence of a relationship: The community perception of the link between healthy eating and good overall health has provided the food industry with a motive to widen market share by designing products to meet the perceived needs for improved health. It is likely that this trend will continue for some time and that functional foods will be a larger part of our diet as the food industry produces new products. To address consumer damands for healthy foods the industry has not only designed foods but widely marketed the good health aspects of foods that have been developed.

There are many more examples you could use. Try and list at least another five.

Other trends that could be included are:

Emerging technologies in production, e.g. robotic machinery; packaging, e.g. modified atmosphere packaging (MAP); food products, e.g. co-extrusions; value added convenience foods, e.g. shake-a-cake; food product marketing practices, e.g. symbols such as the heart tick.
Ecologically sustainable production, e.g. aquaculture
Expansion of generic brands/cheaper brands/Australian products, e.g. Dick Smith
Multicultural foods, e.g. Asian sauces, noodles
Homestyle comfort foods, e.g. rice puddings
Vegetarian foods, e.g. wider variety of salads etc
Changing eating patterns, e.g. breakfast options to eat on the run (Up and Go)
Shopping habits, e.g. lnternet, growers' markets.

Activity

There are many other trends you could include. Take a selection of these trends and using the example above, try to show the links between the trends and the food industry. To answer this question in the excellent range you would need to demonstrate a detailed and extensive knowledge of the relationship between marketplace trends and developments in the food industry. You would also need to show a high level of analysis and interpretation, use a wide range of examples and structure your response clearly using appropriate terminology.

This question should take about 30 minutes to answer.