Food Chemistry, 2nd ed.

revised and expanded

Owen R. Fennema, ed.
Hew York Marcel Dekker, Inc., 1985, 991 pp., $95.00 domestic, $114.00 foreign (hardcover); $39.99 domestic, $59.50 foreign (softcover/
classroom use).

Food Chemistry is a revision of its decade-old pre

vious edition, Principles of Food Science. Part I. Food
Chemistry. The editor's objective for the book "is to
serve as a textbook for upper division undergraduates
or beginning graduate students who have sound back
grounds in organic chemistry and biochemistry, and to
provide insight to researchers interested in food chem
istry."
Those familiar with the first edition will immedi
ately see a great improvement in the format. Instead
of camera-ready typed manuscripts, this edition is type
set and figures are more standardized, clearly presented
and complete. The text is still presented in 16 chapters,
with contributions
from 22 authors. The style has
changed from a chapter-by-chapter literature review to
a more integrated presentation with less emphasis on
completeness of citations and more on understanding
and integration of material presented. A concerted ef
fort has been made to minimize overlap of basic chem
ical information found in chemistry and biochemistry
textbooks and to focus on those aspects of physical and
organic chemistry and biochemistry that constitute the
uniqueness of the food chemist's interests.
The introductory chapter outlines historical and cur
rent issues that have faced food chemists. This provides
an interesting perspective for nutritionists
and dieti
tians who have witnessed similar changes in focus and
direction for their research and who must also presently
respond to the public's need for accurate and timely
information.
The major constituent of most foodswateris dis
cussed at length in the next chapter, which emphasizes
the physical chemistry of water in foods. This coverage
is beneficial in terms of understanding the role of water
in cryobiological systems, the effects of water activity
on physical and chemical properties in foods and diets,
and water-state effects in food preservation, especially
control of microbial growth.
The chapter on carbohydrates has been completely
rewritten.
Nomenclature,
chemical structures and
physical properties are all introduced. Reactions of car
bohydrates are outlined in terms of their importance
in food systems, and interactions with noncarbohydrates, such as Maillard browning, are systematically
presented. The review of polysaccharide structures and
0022-3166/87 $3.00 1987 American Institute of Nutrition.

are 262 references cited with 13 additional biblio

graphic sources suggested; however, there are few ref
erences more recent than the mid-1970s. Some incon
sistencies such as incorrect citation of RDA values and
conflicting statements on the stability of pyridoxal
(compared to other vitamers) suggest need for editorial
review in future versions of the book.
The chapter on pigments and other colorants is a
concise introduction to natural and synthetic colorants

Received: 14 August 1986.

213

J. Nutr. 117: 213-214,

1987.

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functional properties may be of particular value to those

interested in the composition of dietary fiber.
The food lipids chapter is also new and well done.
Basic nomenclature
is given, and the discussion of
physical/chemical
properties stresses mechanisms of
lipid oxidation, thermal decomposition and prevention
of deleterious reactions. Biological effects of various
forms of food lipids are introduced, with key references
given for more detailed reviews of selected topics.
Amino acids and proteins are presented from a basic
chemical base from which the authors lead to physical
properties in foods and an introduction to nutritional
attributes. Unconventional and genetically engineered
sources of proteins are discussed along with the effects
of processing and storage of selected proteins. Some
aspects of chemical modification of proteins are re
viewed and related to changes in functional properties.
Changes in nutritive values and toxic effects are also
introduced.
The enzyme chapter has been extensively revised and
provides an exceptionally complete introduction to the
unique properties and effects of enzymes in foods. Cov
erage of basic enzyme biochemistry is thorough and
leads to examples of importance in foods and food pro
cessing. An overview of the use of immobilized en
zymes is given with examples of food applications. A
thorough review of the effects of endogenous enzymes
in foods is followed by a discussion of enzyme inhib
itors. The chapter concludes with a discussion and per
spective of recombinant DNA technology and genetic
engineering applied to foods.
The chapter on vitamins and minerals stresses effects
of processing and preservation on losses, retention and
both increased and decreased availability of vitamins
and minerals. The chapter format is more of a literature
review, similar to the book's previous edition. There

214

BOOK REVIEWS

The chapter on edible plant tissues is an excellent

summary of the tremendously diverse field of plant
biology. The author successfully distills out the key
elements of cell composition, structure and biochem
istry which leads to a logical and concise discussion of
plant tissue characteristics. The effects of handling and
storage of fresh fruits and vegetables are then empha
sized. There is an excellent overview of effects and
processes such as temperature
and humidity, con
trolled atmosphere
storage, radiation preservation,
thermal processing, dehydration and freezing preser
vation of fruits and vegetable products.
The final chapter, entitled "An Integrated Approach
of Food Chemistry: Illustrative Cases," attempts to sew
together the preceding 15 chapters and show a cohesiveness to the field of food chemistry. Although this
would have been an ambitious project for any author,
I felt somewhat disappointed. The chapter is mostly a
review of the author's research program and focuses on
empirical and engineering perspectives
of physical
properties of foods during processing operations and
storage. Changes in products during their shelf life are
important; however, there are many other aspects of
food chemistry that are described throughout the text
but are not mentioned in the summary. Thus, I feel the
chapter falls short of the promise of its title and detracts
slightly from the overall high caliber of the book.
To summarize, this book is probably the most com
prehensive and complete reference source for food
chemistry available at this time. The editor and con
tributors have taken great care in updating and revising
key chapters from the earlier edition of the text. The
style has changed emphasis to a more readable form
with fewer literature citations and more explanation
for the reader, in most chapters. The book is also very
well indexed, making it even more valuable as a ref
erence source.
The book should serve the editor's stated goal of
meeting the needs of a two-semester course in food
chemistry. My classroom experience with this text sug
gests that it is more appropriate for advanced under
graduate or graduate level study than as an introductory
text for upper division undergraduate students. For the
nutritionist and dietetics professional, it should serve
well as a key reference for questions of food chemistry
and food composition.

Reviewed by
Gerald F. Russell
Department of Food Science
and Technology
University of California
Davis, CA 95616

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in foods. Structural information on various plant pig

ments is presented and some mechanisms for color
changes and effects are reviewed. Detailed mechanisms
for synthesis, color changes, and degradative reactions
are not given much attention (for example, the impor
tance of charge-transfer complexes is not detailed), but
these may be beyond the scope of this book.
Flavors in food systems are presented in one of the
most complete and best written chapters on the sub
ject. Although, by the nature of the subject matter, the
treatment of specific topics must be selective, subjects
are chosen wisely in terms of importance to food chem
istry and its relationships to the areas of sensory re
sponse to which the chemistry is related.
A similar selective treatment is given to the pre
sentation of food additives. The author chose several
categories of food additives and presents the chemistry
along with discussions of the function that the additive
is to impart to foods. This chapter will not serve as a
complete reference guide to additives that may be of
concern to the reader, but it does cover the general
modes of action for several of the major classes of food
additives.
The chapter on undesirable or potentially undesir
able constituents of foods starts with an overview of
the considerations of toxicants in foods. This is fol
lowed by selected samples of various classes of natu
rally occurring and synthetic, or unintentional,
con
taminants. The chapter covers the terms and general
chemical structures, where known, for most of the
common types of food-borne toxicants.
Four chapters follow that deal specifically with major
food types or commodities. The first of these describes
characteristics of muscle tissue. The emphasis is on
the conversion of muscle to meat and the chemical and
biochemical changes that occur during the conversion
process. Topics of particular emphasis are the effects
of freezing and postmortem changes that occur through
such treatments as electrical stimulation, modified at
mosphere storage, and preservation with chemical and
radiation methods.
The discussion of milk covers material familiar to
most nutritionists,
especially the physiology of milk
production. The complex subject of the stabilization of
milk constituents such as the casein micelles and fat
globules is introduced. Some of the effects of pro
cessing, especially thermal treatment, are also de
scribed.
The chapter on eggs is very complete and has been
updated from the previous edition. The chemistry of
egg constituents and the associated microstructure
is
presented in a manner which lends itself to further
examination of the effects of processing on the major
components.