FP4H (2015)

BACKGROUND
Food processing – whether on industrial scale or in household dimension – affects the composition and structure of a food and in turn the digestion in the gastrointestinal tract and the delivery of its constituents to the human body.
Consumer demands drive diversification in particular for food products (land and marine based) with health benefits. However, different consumer groups have different dietary needs and in particular in the elderly not only food intake (desire to eat, chewing, swallowing) is often impaired but also digestion and absorption of nutrients and bioactives. With a rapidly growing population of elderly this is an increasingly important problem. The development of innovative food products that better suit diverse consumer needs with improved organoleptic and health promoting qualities requires more knowledge on the impact of processing on fate and function of food constituents.

AIM OF THE CALL
The main objective of the Joint Action “Food Processing for Health” was to support multidisciplinary transnational research consortia with innovative and scientific approaches to address the following:

• Mechanistic research on the preservation and/or the enhancement of health promoting properties of food as a result of food processing
• Food processing for matrix stability and controlled digestibility, bioavailability, bio-accessibility and bioactivity of food compounds
• Food structures for appropriate bioavailability of nutrients and bioactives
• - Optimize food processing for quality and safety

The following perspectives were indicated in the call text to take into account in the project proposals: Research could relate to products aimed at particular life stages or consumer groups, and may have included investigation of fate in the human body and employed model foods. Capacity building was encouraged (PhD/postdoc research and research mobility).

WHO
Applicants may be research groups working in universities (or other higher education institutions), non-university public research institutes, hospitals and other health care settings. Participation of private parties is encouraged as well as commercial companies. The eligibility of these organisations and institutions are subject to the national/regional regulations of the individual funding organisations and may therefore vary. The respective applicants need to obtain clarification on the national/regional eligibility criteria from the individual funding organisations (see ANNEX 1).