Based on the knowledge of General Microbiology already acquired in the previous semester the Food Microbiology course is a core course of Food Science which introduces students to microbiology and microbiological analysis of foods, on the types of food microorganisms, their growth conditions and their control means or their destruction, while at the same time presenting in detail the microbiological alterations of food, the microbiological risks due to food pathogenic micro-organisms and products of their metabolism, and the beneficial actions of probiotic microorganisms or food fermenting microorganisms. The knowledge acquired is directly related to the food preservation and safety, nutrition and nutritional value of food and food quality and organoleptic control. The course material also aims to familiarize students with the use of various microbiological techniques for the enumeration of microorganisms for food and water or beverages.

Upon successful completion of the course, the student will be able to:

• Has knowledge of the basic laboratory techniques of Food Microbiology
• Enumerates, isolates and identifies microorganisms found in food
• Knows which microorganisms are spoilage indicators and which are microbiological cause changes in food
• Identifies spoilage microorganisms depending on the food and its processing of the potential microbiological hazards.
• Select appropriate processing, maintenance or disinfection/sanitization techniques to combat micro-organisms, depending on the composition and overall treatment of the food
• Estimate the shelf life of foods based on indicators of microbiological spoilage
• Be aware of the risks to human health due to foodborne pathogens and the ways to prevent or deal with them.
• Know the types and the role of probiotic microorganisms in science and technology (fermented) foods