Contents 7/2023

The aim of the article is to describe the changes that have taken place in the Polish-British trade in agri-food products after Brexit and the changes in Poland’s position in food supplies to the British market. From 1 January, 2021, EU-UK trade relations are regulated by the EU-UK trade and Cooperation Agreement (TCA), which provides for, inter alia, duty-free trade between the parties. Polish food producers did relatively well on the British market after Brexit. Although the share of the United Kingdom in Polish agri-food exports in 2020-2022 decreased by 1.3 pp (from 9% to 7.7%), the importance of Poland in food supplies to the British market has increased. Poland overtook Belgium and became the seventh largest supplier of agri food products to the UK, accounting for over 5% of supplies by value. After Brexit, Polish exporters strengthened their position on the British market the most in the sale of canned meat and fish, poultry meat, frozen fruit and vegetables, pet food, as well as other tobacco products.

KEYWORDS: brexit, agri-food trade, Poland, the United Kingdom

The article is a theoretical and empirical study on the use of design thinking approach to design an innovative food product. Design thinking is a way of thinking that supports solving problem and the creation of new innovative solutions based on a deep understanding of the needs of users who will benefit from them. The first part of the article presents the issues and essence of design thinking in five iterative stages. The second part of the article, in the form of a case study, discusses the application of a structured design thinking approach to the development of an innovative food product. As a resulted of the project, the pocky sticks spelt flour with chocolate topping with almonds and cashew nuts were created, as a snack for people who exclude lactose from their diet. The developed product took into account both the needs and expectations of the target consumer, as well as the design context.

KEYWORDS: design thinking, food design, consumer, product innovation, pocky sticks

The article characterizes the methods of producing of food inks that are used for 3D food printing. It was pointed out that currently, a limited amount of ingredients is used for the production of food inks, which must meet strictly defined rheological properties. At the same time, new components and food systems are constantly being tested as well as the technical parameters of 3D printers are being optimized. Macroscopically homogeneous gel and emulsion systems with high thixotropy, containing a three-dimensional network structure built of biopolymer chains, show particularly good suitability for printing. Attention was also paid to the methods of determining the basic rheological parameters (using rotational and oscillatory rheometry) and microstructural parameters applied to assess food inks in terms of their printability.

KEYWORDS: food inks, 3D food, rheological properties

Greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions are also becoming an important issue in food production. This is due to companies’ sustainability requirements, reporting obligations and the prospects for labeling food with a carbon footprint (CF). The article characterizes the legal requirements for low emissions addressed in national and international strategic documents. The results of a study of the carbon footprint of the refrigerated storage and transport process of blueberries over the following three years are presented. As part of the research work, energy consumption monitoring for refrigerated storage was carried out with the selected method of analysis and database structures were developed. The CF of blueberry storage was in the range of 0.06-0.10 kg of CO2 per kg of product. On the other hand, the COo2 emissions in a given year, associated with the transportation of blueberries, are in the range of 5274-7217 kg CO2 (at the analyzed plant). A detailed analysis and adaptation of the CF calculation method to a specific technology or production method makes it possible to provide reliable values for determining emissions.

KEYWORDS: carbon footprint, refrigerated storage, GHG emissions, refrigerated transport

Changes in packaging regulations and consumers’ pro-ecological attitudes encouraging producers to look for new solutions aimed at sustainable development of food packaging. Particularly noteworthy is compostable packaging, which is environmentally friendly and facilitates the adaptation of production to a closed circuit economy. Modern packaging, beyond its traditional functions, should be innovative and functional. New developments enable functional packaging to actively participate in the microwave heating process, self-heating and self-cooling of the product contained in them. In addition, they can inform the consumer of the point at which the food is safe to consume and has optimal sensory qualities. Functionality and eco-friendliness are generally contradictory (e.g. convenience, modern technology or multi-material functional packaging generate costs or energy, which is contrary to ecology).

KEYWORDS: self-heating packaging, self-cooling packaging, regulations, biocompostable materials