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THE CASE FOR FOOD-PROCESSING

Some people believe it is wrong to do anything to food which is “unnatural”, but it is difficult to find any unanimity as to what is a natural food or a natural process. Man exists on a very mixed diet and no one food can be considered “natural” apart from human milk for babies.

It is important to realize that all foods are constantly changing in some way. Food is a dynamic, not a static commodity. Some change very rapidly in warm weather, like milk and meat, and others, like vegetables and fruit, change only slowly, but they all change in some way. In other words, different foods have different keeping qualities. All foods become unfit for consumption in a shorter or longer time. The changes are usually due to the growth of micro-organisms which contaminate the food, but some changes are brought about by the natural enzymes in the foods. If the organisms are dangerous we get food poisoning, and there are still several thousand cases of food poisoning every year even in the United Kingdom.

It may be emphasized that the processing of foods is not merely a device of the manufacturers to use cheap foods or make higher profits. In practice only the best quality foods are used for processing, for the simple reason that the use of poor quality food often leads faulty canned and other types of processed foods. Processing and the use of additives allow the manufacturer to supply everyone with all types of food at all times of the year. Moreover, these foods are attractive in appearance, of high nutritive value and good shelf life.

Notes

Ex. 1. Put questions to the text.

Ex. 2. Give Ukrainian equivalents to the following words and word combinations.

It is important to realize, constantly changing, static commodity, mixed diet, become unfit for consumption, get food poisoning, poor quality food.

Ex. 3. Retell the text.

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Date: 2015-01-29; view: 911