There are increasing community concerns about food issues, including hygiene and safety, nutritional claims and the nutritional quality of food, genetic engineering, functional food and the environmental impact of food production processes. Students will explore food-related issues through a range of practical experiences, allowing them to make informed and appropriate choices with regards to food.

Food habits change as a result of economic, social, cultural, technological and environmental factors. In Australia, consumers are confronted by an increasing array of food products designed to complement our changing lifestyles. Making informed food decisions requires an explicit understanding of nutrition principles in both theory and practice, and this is embedded in a study of Food Technology. This is essential to the development of sound food habits and contributes significantly to the well-being of all Australians.

The study of Food Technology provides students with a broad knowledge and understanding of food properties, processing, preparation and their interrelationships, nutritional considerations and consumption patterns. It addresses the importance of hygiene and safe working practices and legislation in the production of food. It also provides students with a context through which to explore the richness, pleasure and variety food adds to life.

This knowledge and understanding is fundamental to the development of food-specific skills, which can then be applied in a range of contexts enabling students to produce quality food products. Students develop practical skills in preparing and presenting food that will enable them to select and use appropriate ingredients, methods and equipment.

This course provides for the development of relevant and meaningful learning experiences, inclusive of life experiences, values, learning styles and individual student characteristics. Through a study of food and its applications in domestic, commercial, industrial and global settings, the syllabus caters for all students’ needs and interests. It contributes to both vocational and general life experiences. Integral to this syllabus is the ability to design, produce and evaluate solutions to situations involving food. These form part of a broad set of skills that are transferable to other study, work and life contexts that students may encounter.

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