Thesis (Master of Engineering in Chemical Engineering)--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2018. / Brewer’s spent grain (BSG), a solid residue obtained from brewing beer, is gaining attention in the food, cosmetics and pharmaceutical industry due to its use as natural source of colorants, texturisers, functional ingredients and preservatives. It is therefore necessary to develop an economically viable method for the extraction, isolation or enrichment of these compounds. Although literature shows the technical feasibility of extraction of bioactive compounds from BSG at laboratory bench scale, none of the reviewed literature could provide adequate information necessary to determine the economic feasibility of the process at commercial scale. The aim of this study was to investigate the technical and economic viability of a commercial process for the recovery of antioxidant rich polyphenolic compounds from brewers spent grain using organic solvents and/or water. The objectives were to select the best solvent, perform the optimisation and kinetic study, as well as to model and simulate the extraction process with the aim of performing an economic analysis. In selecting the best solvent, maceration and soxhlet extraction were used for the recovery of polyphenolic compounds. Acetone and acetone: water mixtures, ethanol and ethanol: water mixtures as well as pure water were used as solvents. The evaluation of the best solvent was measured by the total phenolic content (TPC), flavonol content, the antioxidant activity using 2.2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) assay and ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP) assay. The study performed optimisation for various operational parameters (time, temperature, solvent to feed ratio and shaking speed) using response surface method. The effect of temperature on the extraction kinetics was also investigated with experiments being carried out at 20°C, 40°C and 80°C. Antioxidant activity was detected in all BSG extracts, but water showed the highest global yield and rates of extraction. The optimum conditions were found at 15 min reaction time, temperature of 40 °C, shaking speed of 185 rpm and solvent to solid ratio of 27.5: 1. So-Macdonald model was a suitable fit for the experimental data with a R2-value range of (0.85 < r2 < 0.995). A processing scenario was proposed as a base case, upon which subsequent scenarios were generated to improve the operation or the economics. SuperPro Designer® (Intelligen, Inc) was used for modelling the proposed process, for simulation and for the economic evaluation. Four alternative schemes from the base case simulation were developed for optimisation of the process. The process was found to be economically feasible and attractive with a return of investment (ROI) of 48.45 % for alternative scheme 4. The results in this thesis highlight the likely economic feasibility of the extraction of polyphenolic compounds from BSG at commercial scale by the maceration method.

"May 2003" / Bibliography: leaves 161-180. / x, 180 leaves : ill., map ; 30 cm. / Title page, contents and abstract only. The complete thesis in print form is available from the University Library. / This study analyses driving forces, determinants and implications of emerging contractual arrangements in the Chinese agri-food system based on the transaction cost approach. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Adelaide, School of Economics, 2003

Thesis (Ph.D.) -- University of Glasgow, 2008. / Ph.D. thesis submitted to the Department of Mechanical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, University of Glasgow, 2008. Includes bibliographical references. Print version also available.

Thesis (M.A.)--University of Central Florida, 2009. / Adviser: Denise DeLorme. Includes bibliographical references (p. 107-112).

In Hong Kong, around 3,600 tonnes of food waste is produced every day. Although different pilot schemes and programmes had been operated by government and organizations, most of them were more like demonstrations on different methods in treating food waste. Up to this stage, no concrete facilities and long-term schemes have been carried out by the government to tackle the food waste generated. In this study, different approaches to treat food waste have been explored and relevant practices in Hong Kong have been investigated. In order to obtain the first hand information from the local situation, 250, 11 and four sets of questionnaires were distributed to the general public, catering sectors and green groups and other NGOs respectively. The relationship between the knowledge and attitude of food waste management and demographics characteristics of the participants were studied. Apart from questionnaires, four interviews with green groups and NGO were conducted. The results showed that all three sectors support implementation of food waste management, and were not satisfied with the current status of food waste management in Hong Kong. Both the general public and the catering sector found “converting food waste to renewable energy” the most suitable practice for food waste management in Hong Kong, while “food waste charging scheme” gain most of the support from the green groups and NGOs. Recommendations were made according to the results of the questionnaires, interviews and literature reviews on successful overseas case studies. / published_or_final_version / Environmental Management / Master / Master of Science in Environmental Management

M. Tech. Business Administration / An efficient canteen that serves the needs of its employees leads to employee satisfaction and adds value to the organisation. Canteens in the service industry constantly need to re-align their service delivery and image to their client base in order to remain viable. Theoretical models have been widely used in the business environment to gauge customer satisfaction. Companies are constantly measuring service quality in an effort to improve turnover and increase their client base. The need to understand customer expectations on service quality was the key motivation behind this study. The study evaluated service quality as perceived by employees in an industrial canteen operating within the automotive sector using the five components of the service quality (SERVQUAL) model. Service delivery monitoring tools are necessary in a catering environment to enable staff and management to identify customer service areas requiring improvements. The quality of service delivery impacts on brand equity and loyalty.

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The concentration-profits relationship of the Bain-Mason paradigm is tested and an alternative "augmented model" is proposed which includes dimensions of task environments of food industries and industry strategy variables. The environment is characterized in terms of Dess and Beard's (1984) dimensions: munificence, dynamism and complexity. / The augmented model was found to be a better descriptor of factors affecting the performance of the food industries than the Bain-Mason model. Profitability was found to be positively related to industrial concentration, and negatively related to munificence and complexity. No significant relationship between dynamism and profitability was found. / Further studies on the performance of the food manufacturing industries should include the use of strategic group typologies based on strategic behaviour specific to the food industries. It is also recommended that investigations of industry environments be conducted using multivariate measures of munificence, dynamism and complexity.

Today the Taiwan food service industry is faced with growing public environmental concern, increasing requirement from government, and a more competitive market environment. Research related to environmental management in the Taiwan food service industry is still very limited. This research aims to study how corporate (head office) level decision makers in the food service chains recognize the impact of environmental issue on their business, and what factors might influence them putting this issue into firms' strategic plans. A series of questions have been developed based on the literature and the conceptual framework in order to gain an understanding on how the motivating factors can influence food service operators towards implementing environmental strategies. A questionnaire survey complemented by interviews was used to assess the influence of public concern, government's environmental policy, competitive advantage, top management commitment, firm's capability, and environmental orientation on environmental strategies in food service chains. For the survey study, 133 Taiwan food service franchisors who are on the registration list of the Taiwan Chain Store and Franchise Association (TCFA) were purposely chosen. The data obtained from the survey provided a wide-ranging exploration of what is happening overall in the food service chain regarding environmental strategies and the attitudes and perceptions towards motivating antecedents. Furthermore, the survey provided an opportunity to identify a pioneering company for the further in-depth case study in which each of the motivating factors and environmental strategies were studied in more detail, and the associated relationships between them and the key motivating factors were able to be determined. / Thesis (DBA(DoctorateofBusinessAdministration))--University of South Australia, 2006.