From sweet pastry fillings to savory almond-and-rice mixes, food scientists should be aware of all the unique processed versions of fruits and nuts and the applications that they work best in. Handling these often delicate ingredients with care will ensure optimal presentation as well as safety and flavor quality for the duration of that application’s shelf life.

People are continuing to include more protein in their diets — at every consumption occasion and in higher gram-per-serving formulations.

Whether it's the flavor of coffee or a caffeine buzz, more consumers are turning to foods rather than beverages to get their coffee or tea flavors and caffeine fix.

Pasta used to fall into several basic categories: the on-the-fly, kid-friendly type; the vegetarian entrée option; or authentic dishes found in specialty, stand-alone restaurants.