Processing and Food Engineering Department

     

     Processing and Food Engineering has come to acquire a great deal of importance. This department is earlier known by Agricultural Process Engineering. Under this department, the students would get to study as how to develop technology that could be effectively used in fields of drying and dehydration, development of process technology for the value added products, design and development of processing equipment for on farm processing, storage and packaging of fruits and vegetables and reduction of post-harvest losses. They would also get an opportunity to study about food refrigeration, freezing, thermal processing, drying, and other food operations.

     Field crops, including grains, oil seeds, sugar crops and forages are major contributors of the nutrients required by man either through direct consumption of the seed kernel or isolated components as food, or through utilization of the plant and byproducts as feed in the production of meat, poultry, milk, eggs and fish. Field crops also have major non-food uses. However, in essentially all instances, harvested field crops must be processed in some manner prior to utilization as food or feed or in industry so as to reduce their post-harvest losses.

     Food processing operations includes many methods that are used to add value to the raw food materials (including marine products, poultry and meat) which can be consumed by human beings or animals.

     The research project based on local and future needs of the farmers and entrepreneurs are given to the final year under graduate and postgraduate students as a part of their academic research work. Department is having Drying and Storage, Agricultural Process Engineering, Post-Harvest Technology Laboratories to provide practical knowledge and also to demonstrate and organize training to farmers, entrepreneurs etc.  Many farmers, women and local peoples, NGO and others often visit the department to gain knowledge of processing technology. They are also familiarized with the new developments like agricultural processing of grains, different storage techniques, cleaning and grading machines and different type of mills and dryers.