Research

The Department of Food Science is a member of 3 interfaculty research centers :

• CART : Center for Analysis for Residues in Traces


• CIRM : Interfaculty Drugs Research Center


• CRPP : Prion Proteins Research Center

The Department is involved into six main research areas :

Nutrition and health

• Ulg Credit : Characterization of two new Bifidobacterium species with probiotic effects


• Foodinter : Chemical and biochemical analysis of contaminants in food supplements and functional food products


• WalNut-20 : Development of products with nutritional and/or health allegations. In particular, effect of these componants in the context of two public health issues, metabolic syndrome and bowel function


• Bifido : Bifidobacterium crudilactis & B. mongoliense : two novel species of Bifidobacterium.

Food preservation

• Consalim : Improvement of food products shelf-life by understanding and managing the mechanisms responsible for their degradation


• Polygal : Optimalization of food products storage by using a combination of lactates and polyphenols


• Clostridium psychrotrophes.


• Metagenomics : Metagenomics applied for Food Microbiology

Chemical risks

• Allergen : Development of a new method for detecting and numbering milk and egg allergens by using coupled liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS)


• Allerrisk : Development of an integrated strategy for controlling the allergen issue, particularly soy and nut


• ContEgg : Research of private individuals hen's eggs chemical contaminants (heavy metals, dioxins, PCB, pesticides)


• Endis : Use of cells tests to detect toxic and hormonal contamination and xenobiotics


• Foodinter : Evaluation of the risks related to food supplements, para-pharmaceutical products and functional food products intake


• FURA : Development of an analytical method to detect and quantify furans; study of occurence in food products; estimation of population exposure; study of foodstuffs contamination mechanisms by furans


• HAP : Development of analytical methods for polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) dosage in foodstuffs


• Medebeta : Development of methods for beta-agonist substances detection


• Vietnam : Quantification of antibiotics residues in shrimps : (1st phase) and in fishs : (2nd phase)

Microbiological risks

• BiFido : Use of Bifidobacterium species as a fecal contaminant indicator


• Diasea, Stectrack : Immunological and genetic detection of seafood pathogens


• Metzoon : Development of a methodology used to build and manage an integrated production line of Salmonella-free pork meat


• NoRisk : Norovirus transmission paths


• Clostridium difficile : an emergent zoonotic agent for real?


• AQRM : Risk Analysis applied to Microbial Risk

Meat quality

• CGCC : Guidance group - Carcasses classication


• Consbbb : Long shelf life of fresh bovine meat


• CW3C : Walloon Control group - Carcasses classification


• Development of rapid predictive tools for meat quality


• Study of technological and organoleptic quality of fresh meat and meat-based products

Management of food sanitary security : HACCP, GMP, ...

• Control of food product quality and sanitary security : farmers and workers support (GMP and HACCP)