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NU-Food

Our unique facilities aid research insight into attitudes and decisions related to food.

About NU-Food

We are able to bring the latest knowledge to address research questions about food. We look at attitudes to food and decisions made about it from the perspective of:

  • consumers
  • food producers
  • retailers
  • processors

We look at people’s physiological and psychological responses to foods and ingredients. We analyse the decisions they make in these contexts.

Drawing on academic expertise and excellent facilities

We draw on academic expertise provided by internationally respected experts. NU-Food offers unique facilities for your research needs. We can provide the latest research facilities and equipment including:

  • an industry-standard pilot kitchen and sensory testing suite
  • assessment rooms for human intervention studies
  • fully equipped laboratory facilities
  • 'virtual' food choice environments
  • cognitive testing facilities

All of these facilities are in our NU-Food brochure (PDF: 1.12MB).

Contact us for further details.

Telephone: +44 (0)191 208 6900
Email: NU.Food@ncl.ac.uk

Follow NU-Food on twitter

Facilities

We help enhance knowledge of the impact of different environments on food choices.

NU-Food helps you to measure consumer perceptions, attitudes and values, using:

  • virtual reality
  • sensory assessment
  • other cutting-edge technologies

Industrial kitchen and sensory testing suite

Our kitchen meets all your needs for intervention trials and other food-related research.

It's to industry-standard specifications for preparation and storage of foods and food supplements. Here we look at food production methods and other treatments of foods and raw food materials.

Facilities include:

  • 10-booth sensory suite for:
  • consumer testing of foods from research projects
  • product development using consumer panels or trained panels
  • industry-standard pilot kitchen with adjacent changing room
  • food preparation room
  • temperature-monitored walk-in chillers and freezers
  • food storage room
Booking our facilities

For all enquiries regarding booking our facilities, contact:

Dr Anthony Watson

Email: NU.Food@ncl.ac.uk

Telephone +44 (0)191 208 3592

Research

Our academic staff will help you address key questions about:

  • consumer food choices
  • food health claims
  • food labelling
  • food quality and nutritional
  • cognitive and sensory responses to food

Their research experience can help you understand consumer behaviours. We use knowledge generated within the University to test the public’s responses to:

  • nutrition
  • food safety
  • sustainability

We address the questions you want answered.

We have built up expertise in human nutrition research over many years. We can help you:

  • investigate factors affecting food quality
  • design and carry out studies into mental and physical health benefits of products
  • gather consumer sensory responses to food products
Publications
  • Jones AR, Mann KD, Kuznesof SA, Richardson DP, Seal CJ. The whole grain content of foods consumed by the UK population. Food Chemistry2017, 214, 453-459.
  • Kendall H, Brennan M, Seal C, Lahda C, Kuznesof S. Behind the Kitchen Door: A novel mixed method approach for exploring the food provisioning practices of the older consumer. Food Quality and Preference 2016, 53, 105-116.
  • Srednicka-Tober D, Baranski M, Seal CJ, Sanderson R, Benbrook C, Steinshamn H, Gromadzka-Ostrowska J, Rembialkowska E, Skwarlo-Sonta K, Eyre M, Cozzi G, Larsen MK, Jordon T, Niggli U, Sakowski T, Calder PC, Burdge GC, Sotiraki S, Stefanakis A, Yolcu H, Stergiadis S, Chatzidimitriou E, Butler G, Stewart G, Leifert C. Composition differences between organic and conventional meat: a systematic literature review and meta-analysis.British Journal of Nutrition 2016, 115(6), 994-1011.
  • Lake AA, Smith SA, Bryant CE, Alinia S, Brandt K, Seal CJ, Tetens I. Exploring the dynamics of a free fruit at work intervention. BMC Public Health 2016, 16, 839.
  • Srednicka-Tober D, Baranski M, Seal CJ, Sanderson R, Benbrook C, Steinshamn H, Gromadzka-Ostrowska J, Rembialkowska E, Skwarlo-Sonta K, Eyre M, Cozzi G, Larsen MK, Jordon T, Niggli U, Sakowski T, Calder PC, Burdge GC, Sotiraki S, Stefanakis A, Stergiadis S, Yolcu H, Chatzidimitriou E, Butler G, Stewart G, Leifert C. Higher PUFA and n-3 PUFA, conjugated linoleic acid, α-tocopherol and iron, but lower iodine and selenium concentrations in organic milk: a systematic literature review and meta- and redundancy analyses. British Journal of Nutrition 2016, 115(6), 1043-1060.
  • Mendonça NMP, Mathers JC, Adamson AJ, Martin-Ruiz C, Seal CJ, Jagger C, Hill TR. Intakes of Folate and Vitamin B12 and Biomarkers of Status in the Very Old: The Newcastle 85+ Study. Nutrients 2016, 8(10), 604.
  • Mendonça N, Hill TR, Granic A, Davies K, Collerton J, Mathers JD, Siervo M, Wrieden WL, Seal CJ, Kirkwood TBL, Jagger C, Adamson AJ. Micronutrient intake and food sources in the very old: Analysis of the Newcastle 85+ Study. British Journal of Nutrition 2016, 116(4), 751-761.
  • Hill TR, Granic A, Davies K, Collerton J, Martin-Ruiz C, Siervo M, Mathers JC, Adamson AJ, Francis RM, Pearce SH, Razvi S, Kirkwood TBL, Jagger C. Serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D concentration and its determinants in the very old: The Newcastle 85+ study. Osteoporosis International 2016, 27(3), 1199-1208.
  • Hill TR, Mendonca N, Granic A, Siervo M, Jagger C, Seal CJ, Kerse N, Wham C, Adamson AJ, Mathers JC. What do we know about the nutritional status of the very old? Insights from three cohorts of advanced age from the UK and New Zealand. Proceedings of the Nutrition Society 2016, 75(3), 420-430.
  • Mendonça N, Hill TR, Granic A, Davies K, Collerton J, Mathers JD, Siervo M, Wrieden WL, Seal CJ, Kirkwood TBL, Jagger C, Adamson AJ. Micronutrient intake and food sources in the very old: Analysis of the Newcastle 85+ Study. British Journal of Nutrition 2016, 116(4), 751-761.
  • Tan KYM, van der Beek EM, Kuznesof SA, Seal CJ. Perception and understanding of health claims on milk powder for children: A focus group study among mothers in Indonesia, Singapore and Thailand. Appetite2016, 105, 747-757.
  • Hill TR, Mendonca N, Granic A, Siervo M, Jagger C, Seal CJ, Kerse N, Wham C, Adamson AJ, Mathers JC. What do we know about the nutritional status of the very old? Insights from three cohorts of advanced age from the UK and New Zealand. Proceedings of the Nutrition Society 2016, 75(3), 420-430.
  • Seal CJ, Nugent AP, E-Siong T, Thielecke F. Whole-grain dietary recommendations: the need for a unified global approach. British Journal of Nutrition 2016, 115(11), 2031-2038.
  • Green MH, Ford JL, Green JB, Berry P, Boddy AV, Oxley A, Lietz G. A Retinol Isotope Dilution Equation Predicts Both Group and Individual Total Body Vitamin A Stores in Adults Based on Data from an Early Postdosing Blood Sample. Journal of Nutrition 2016, (ePub ahead of print).
  • Tanumihardjo SA, Russell RM, Stephensen CB, Gannon BM, Craft NE, Haskell MJ, Lietz G, Schulze K, Raiten DJ. Biomarkers of Nutrition for Development (BOND)-Vitamin A Review. Journal of Nutrition 2016, 146(9), 1816-1848.
  • Okello EJ. Traditional Herbal Medicines Research Methods: Identification,Analysis, Bioassay, and Pharmaceutical and Clinical Studies,Willow J.H. Liu, John Wiley & Sons (2011). Hardback pp. 466,ISBN: 978-0470149362. £105. Journal of Herbal Medicine2016, 6(3), 160-161.
  • Lietz G, Furr HC, Gannon BM, Green MH, Haskell M, Lopez-Teros V, Novotny JA, Palmer AC, Russell RM, Tanumihardjo SA, Van Loo-Bouwman CA. Current Capabilities and Limitations of Stable Isotope Techniques and Applied Mathematical Equations in Determining Whole-Body Vitamin A Status. Food and Nutrition Bulletin 2016, 37(2), S87-S103.
  • Green MH, Ford JL, Oxley A, Green JB, Park H, Berry P, Boddy AV, Lietz G. Plasma Retinol Kinetics and β-Carotene Bioefficacy Are Quantified by Model-Based Compartmental Analysis in Healthy Young Adults with Low Vitamin A Stores. Journal of Nutrition 2016, (ePub ahead of print).
  • Mberama CHH, Lietz G, Kyriazakis I. The effects of gender and muscle type on the mRNA levels of the calpain proteolytic system and beef tenderness during post-mortem aging. Livestock Science 2016, 185, 123-130.
  • Lake AA, Smith SA, Bryant CE, Alinia S, Brandt K, Seal CJ, Tetens I. Exploring the dynamics of a free fruit at work intervention. BMC Public Health 2016, 16, 839.
  • Manning DAC, Baptista J, Sanchez-Limon M, Brandt K. Testing the ability of plants to access potassium from framework silicate minerals. Science of the Total Environment 2016, 574, 476-481.
  • Brandt K. Vegetables and Fruit in the Prevention of Chronic Age-Related Diseases. In: Malavolta, M; Mocchegiano, E, ed. Molecular basis of nutrition and aging. London, UK: Elsevier, 2016, pp.707-722.
  • Bauer JM, Verlaan S, Bautmans I, Brandt K, Donini LM, Maggio M, McMurdo MET, Mets T, Seal C, Wijers SL, Ceda GP, DeVito G, Donders G, Drey M, Greig C, Holmbäck U, Narici M, McPhee J, Poggiogalle E, Power D, Scafoglieri A, Schultz R, Sieber CC, Cederholm T. Effects of a Vitamin D and Leucine-Enriched Whey Protein Nutritional Supplement on Measures of Sarcopenia in Older Adults, the PROVIDE Study: A Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Trial. Journal of the American Medical Directors Association 2015, 16(9), 740-747.
  • Chattuwatthana T, Okello E. Anti-collagenase, anti-elastase and antioxidant activities of Pueraria candollei var. mirifica root extract and Coccinia grandis fruit juice extract: An In vitro study. European Journal of Medicinal Plants 2015, 5(4), 318-327.
  • Lam YS, Okello EJ. Determination of Lovastatin, β-glucan, Total Polyphenols, and Antioxidant Activity in Raw and Processed Oyster Culinary-Medicinal Mushroom, Pleurotus ostreatus (Higher Basidiomycetes). International Journal of Medicinal Mushrooms 2015, 17(2), 117-128.
  • Okello EJ, Abadi AM, Abadi SA. Effects of green and black tea consumption on brain wave activities in healthy volunteers as measured by a simplified Electroencephalogram (EEG): A feasibility study. Nutritional Neuroscience 2015, epub ahead of print.
  • Okello EJ, Coleman A, Seal CJ. In-vitro anti-cholinesterase activities by piperine, an alkaloid from the spice family Piperaceae.International Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences and Research 2015, 6(9), 3726-3732.
  • Mendonca N, Granic A, Mathers JC, Wrieden W, Siervo M, Seal C, Jagger C, Adamson AJ, Hill TR. Contribution of animal products to dietary intakes in the very old. In: Nutrition Society Summer Meeting 2015. 2015, Nottingham University, UK: Cambridge University Press.
  • Jajja A, Sutyarjoko A, Lara J, Rennie K, Brandt K, Qadir OK, Siervo M. Beetroot supplementation lowers daily systolic blood pressure in older, overweight subjects. Nutrition Research 2014, 34(10), 868-875.
  • Wootton-Beard PC, Brandt K, Fell D, Warner S, Ryan L. Effects of a beetroot juice with high neobetanin content on the early-phase insulin response in healthy volunteers. Journal of Nutritional Science 2014, 3, e9.
  • Brandt CJ, Brandt V, Pedersen M, Glintborg D, Toubro S, Nielsen JB, Eisenbach G, Brandt K, Søndergaard J. Long-Term Effect of Interactive Online Dietician Weight Loss Advice in General Practice (LIVA) Protocol for a Randomized Controlled Trial. International Journal of Family Medicine2014, 2014(2014), 245347.
  • Lietz G, Oxley A, Ford J, Green M. A modified isotope dilution equation predicts vitamin A total body stores in individuals. In: Experimental Biology 2015. 2015, Boston, USA: Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology.
  • Lietz G, Haskell M, Melse-Boonstra A. Uncertainties of assessing total body vitamin A stores in community settings in low-income countries using the stable-isotope dilution methodology. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition 2015, 102(2), 520-521.
  • Oxley A, Berry P, Taylor GA, Cowell J, Hall MJ, Hesketh J, Lietz G, Boddy AV. An LC/MS/MS method for stable isotope dilution studies of β-carotene bioavailability, bioconversion and vitamin A status in humans. Journal of Lipid Research 2014, 55(2), 319-328.
  • Park H, Lietz G, Oxley A, Boddy A, Berry P, Wyss A, Schalch W, Green M. Simplified approaches for estimating vitamin A stores and beta-carotene bioconversion in humans. In: Mieconutrient Forum Global Conference. 2014, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia: Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology.
  • Dinesh R, George D, Okello E, Daoud-Bouattour A, Ghrabi-Gammar Z, Sparagano O. Does AChE inhibition explain acaricidal activity of plant essential oils against the poultry red mite Dermanyssus gallinae, and can such inhibition be considered selective?. In: 8th International TTP and 12th Biennial STVM Conference. 2014, Cape Town, South Africa.
  • Jansen RLM, Brogan B, Whitworth AJ, Okello EJ. Effects of five Ayurvedic herbs on locomotor behaviour in a Drosophila melanogaster Parkinson's disease model. Phytotherapy Research 2014, 28(12), 1789-1795.

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