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The breaking of albumen during the mechanical peeling process of cooked eggs causes food waste. The aim of this thesis was to study the effect of housing system, storage temperature and age of hens on the albumen quality and gelation. In addition, the objective was to compare the properties of eggs collected from different quality batches of industrially cooked eggs. Uncooked eggs were collected from different batches before cooking, and the air cell size, albumen pH and dry matter content were measured. Haugh unit score describing the quality of egg was also measured. The same measurements were also made to eggs produced with two different housing systems, to eggs stored at 4°C and 14°C and to eggs from three different age groups of layers once a week during the total storage time of four weeks. The egg size was measured, and shape index, volume and surface area of eggs were calculated. Egg shell thickness was measured, and pore count was determined with stereomicroscope after dyeing the shells with methylene blue. The protein composition was examined with SDS-PAGE. A microwell plate analysis was tested in order to determine the S-ovalbumin content in albumen. Pieces of coagulated egg white were analysed with texture profile analysis and fracture study. The age of the hen had an impact on egg quality. Coagulated egg white samples made of eggs from old hens fractured more easily than samples made of eggs from young hens in all timepoints. The Haugh unit scores were lower in eggs from old hens and dry matter contents increased faster in eggs from young hens compared to the other age groups. Differences between production methods were also noted, and albumen from organic eggs fractured easier than albumen from barn eggs. Haugh unit scores and dry matter contents were lower and pH-values greater in organic eggs compared to barn eggs. Lysotzyme contents based on SDS-PAGE were lower in organic eggs compared to barn eggs. Shells were thinner and pore counts greater in organic eggs compared to barn eggs. Storage temperature had an impact on uncooked egg quality, and eggs stored at 14 °C had lower Haugh unit score and greater pH and dry matter content than eggs stored at 4°C. Textural properties of eggs stored at 14°C were better only in the first two timepoints. Eggs collected from low quality batches of industrially cooked eggs were laid by old layers and had albumen pH more basic and dry matter content and Haugh unit score lower than eggs collected from batches with good quality. Measuring these properties could be helpful when choosing the eggs for the cooking process, because great dry matter content had an positive impact on textural properties of cooked albumen, but the decrease in Haugh unit score over time possible had an negative impact on textural properties.

Tämän tutkielman tavoitteena oli tutkia rehun vähäisen valkuaispitoisuuden ja aminohappotäydennysten vaikutusta ravintoaineiden sulavuuteen ja valkuaisen hyväksikäyttöön siniketuilla loppukasvatusvaiheessa. Tavoitteena on sinikettujen valkuaisruokinnan optimointi, jotta rehukustannuksia ja ravinnepäästöjä saataisiin pienennettyä. Tutkimus toteutettiin Kannuksessa Luova Oy:n tutkimustilalla 21.-28.10.2016. Kokeeseen valittiin 20 urossinikettua, jotka jaettiin viiteen käsittelyryhmään. Käsittelyt olivat: kontrolli (valkuaista 24% metabolisesta energiasta (ME)), valkuainen 20% ME:stä, valkuainen 20% ME:stä + metioniini, valkuainen 16% ME:stä + metioniini sekä valkuainen 16% ME:stä + metioniini ja histidiini. Eläimet olivat kokeen ajan yksittäin metaboliahäkeissä, joissa niiltä saatiin kerättyä sonta ja virtsa. Ravintoaineiden näennäistä sulavuutta tutkittiin kokonaiskeruumenetelmällä. Välittömästi lopetuksen jälkeen ohutsuolen viimeisen kolmanneksen sisältö kerättiin ja näytteestä määritettiin aminohappojen näennäinen ohutsuolisulavuus. Valkuaisen hyväksikäyttöä tutkittiin typpitasemenetelmällä. Lopetusta edeltävänä päivänä eläimiltä otettiin verinäytteet, joista määritettiin plasman aminohapot ja urea. Ravintoaineiden sulavuudessa ei havaittu suurta vaihtelua valkuaisen vähentyessä, paitsi valkuaisen sulavuus heikkeni yhdeksän prosenttiyksikköä kontrollin ja alimman valkuaistason omaavan ryhmän välillä. Typen hyväksikäyttö parani valkuaisen vähentyessä. Virtsan mukana eritetyn typen määrä väheni valkuaispitoisuuden vähentyessä mutta typen pidättymisessä ei ollut eroja. Metioniinin, histidiinin, lysiinin ja kysteiinin sulavuudessa havaittiin eroja, mutta muiden aminohappojen sulavuuteen koekäsittelyt eivät vaikuttaneet. Aminohappotäydennykset paransivat kyseisten aminohappojen sulavuutta merkitsevästi. Plasman ureapitoisuudessa ei ollut eroja, mutta joidenkin aminohappojen osalta plasman pitoisuudet vähenivät valkuaisen vähentyessä. Valkuaisen vähentäminen ei vaikuttanut muiden ravintoaineiden kuin valkuaisen sulavuuden heikentymiseen. Valkuaismäärän väheneminen ei vaikuttanut typen pidättymiseen eli pienempikin valkuaisen määrä tyydytti siniketun valkuaistarpeen loppukasvatusvaiheessa.

Indoor gardening is continuously increasing among consumers. Consumers and greenhouse entrepreneurs are looking for ways to optimize growing conditions for their plants to produce high quality and good yield. So far, the effects of LED lights on the plant biomass production and on the composition of volatile aroma compounds have been investigated. However, the effects of different lights on the taste and odor of homegrown herbs is yet to be discovered. The aim of this study was to investigate how different light conditions would affect the composition of compounds that are mainly responsible for the specific flavor of selected model plants. The main goal was to investigate what type of volatile compounds could be obtained in plants grown under different light conditions. The second goal was to investigate how non-volatile saliva soluble compounds could be modified due to the different growing conditions. Coriander and dill were selected as model plants. Coriander is globally utilized herb while dill is one of the most used herbs in the Nordic countries. Due to their strong flavor, both of these herbs divide consumer opinions and therefore investigation of their flavor modification is important. Coriander and dill were grown in domestic smart gardens manufactured by Plantui Oy. Used light conditions included control, green and blue light. Control light composed of a combination of blue, green and red light. Light source was LED lights. The herbs were grown at +22 °C and at humidity of 56.5 %. Used nutrients were ready-made mixtures by Plantui Oy. The composition of artificial saliva was optimized with commercial coriander and dill for the investigation of flavor compounds. Coriander and dill samples were extracted with the developed artificial saliva after which the volatile compounds were analyzed by a combination of gas chromatography and mass spectrometry (GC-MS) and non-volatile compounds by a combination of liquid chromatography and mass spectrometry (LC-MS). Principal component analysis (PCA) was utilized to investigate the composition of volatile compounds while partial least squares-discriminant analysis (PLS-DA) was used to investigate the differences in the non-volatile compounds. Used light conditions altered the chemical composition of herb leaves. Also, light conditions had a visible effect on plant growth. For example, herbs grown in blue light germinated weakly and produced less biomass. The profile of volatile compounds in corianders grown under green and blue light differed from those grown under control light. For dill, the profiles differed only for the samples grown under blue light. Majority of the volatile compounds were components of the essential oils of herbs and compounds that enhance stress tolerance. When looking at saliva soluble non-volatile compounds, coriander grown under blue light was different from the one grown under control light while for dill a difference was observed both under blue and green light. Based on the results, special light recipes can be developed to modify the flavor of coriander and dill. Further research is still needed, especially on the effects of light conditions in plant cell signaling and thereby on the morphological changes in plants and as a consequence on their flavor compounds.

The aim of this research was to find out the effect of photoperiod and quantity of light on growth and flowering of arctic bramble (Rubus arcticus L.) cv. Mesma. The object was also to find out the effect of light on development of floral organs in apical buds of root suckers. Three 12 week long standard treatments were: LD (long day, 12 h HPS-light + 12 h incandescent light), SD (short day, 12 h HPS-light) and HPS (24 h HPS-light). Additionally, the effect of changing the light conditions was examined in four treatments: SD->LD (6 wk SD-treatment + 6 wk LD-treatment), SD->HPS (6 wk SD-treatment + 6 wk HPS-treatment), HPS->SD (6 wk HPS-treatment + 6 wk SD-treatment) and HPS->LD (6 wk HPS-treatment + 6 wk LD-treatment). In standard treatments the vegetative growth determined as the dry weight of the shoots was increased in HPS and decreased in SD. Elongation of shoot was enhanced by LD and development of new leaves was increased in LD and HPS. The number of flowers was highest in HPS and lowest in SD. The average dry weight of a flower and the number of flowers in relation to vegetative growth were increased in HPS. In SD growth and flowering were suppressed towards the end of the experiment. When plants were moved from SD to HPS or LD, growth and flowering were continued. Growth and flowering were clearly enhanced by continuous HPS light. Cessation of growth and flowering in SD suggests that the plants were becoming dormant. Growth and flowering continued when plants were moved from SD to LD or HPS, which indicates that plants were not fully dormant. The differences between treatments LD and SD were probably a consequence of dormancy induction in SD. Floral initiation in apical buds of root suckers occurred in all three standard treatments regardless of photoperiod or quantity of light.

The american cranberry (Vaccinium macrocarpon) is a woody perennial plant. Cranberry fruit has been studied for its many different health benefits due to the high level of human health-promoting compounds such as flavonoids and anthocyanins. The growing season is too short in Finland, and the fruits must be harvested before frost. Studies have shown that post-harvest lighting can affect the quality of fruits. Light treatment increases the anthocyanins content and red color in fruits. Lighting during storage might improve also shelf life. The aim was to find out how different light treatments affect different quality characteristics of fruits. In this thesis, the effect of three different light treatments on the accumulation of anthocyanins and phenols during 14 days following harvest in american cranberry fruits was investigated. The light treatment was APL (multispectrum), blue and red light. The control was dark treatment. In addition, the color of the fruits, the sugar content and titratable acids were measured. Light treatments increased anthocyanin content in all varieties compared to dark control. The most effective was APL treatment. The phenol content first (7 days) increased in all varieties, after which the increase continued only in Early Black and Howes varieties. There were statistically significant differences between the light treatments only for these varieties, but only 14 days after the treatments. The treatment did not have significant effect on sugar content or the titratable acids. The berries turned red in light treatments and the color intensity increased. The treatments differed significantly from the dark, but not with each other. The results of this thesis indicate that it would be possible to ripen cranberry fruits during storage. The berries could be harvested half ripe and ripened during storage using lights. There would also be a demand for domestic cranberries in the food industry, allowing imported cranberries to be replaced by a domestic alternative.

Packaging is a part of an integrated food system, where actors are linked through value chains. This research aimed to identify collaboration amongst the primary external stakeholders of the fiber based packaging value chain of CH-Polymers Oy, and to understand the decision making regarding supplier and material selection. This research was conducted as a qualitative case study that explored the experiences of 6 companies. Semi-structured interviews were conducted as the main data collection method. The data collected from the interviews was analyzed using thematic analysis method. The findings showed that stakeholders were dependent on each other, shared mutual goals and understood the benefits and necessity of collaboration. Succeeding in packaging development was found to be the main purpose of collaboration. Even though collaboration functioned well with closest stakeholders, the lack of resources and time limited collaboration with other stakeholders. Lack of supplier and customer involvement in the early stages of packaging development were found to cause challenges and uncertainties. Also, product development projects were often started with former partners. The value chain criteria guided the development of new packaging and the decisions regarding material and supplier selection. However, quality, price and available processing equipment created limitations in adopting new technology. This study raised the importance of integrating the entire value chain during packaging development, and the importance of engaging the suppliers and customers early in the packaging development process. However, the significance of internal collaboration during packaging development should be highlighted and studied further especially regarding sustainable new product development.

Lack of scientific knowledge of how marine ecosystems relate to each other, how they are producing services and how to quantify ecosystem flows at adequate accuracy, have led to a situation where marine ecosystems are undervalued or even completely ignored in decision-making process. More research is needed from the value of marine ecosystem services in order to better integrate them into decision-making. Seafood production is essential part of the marine provisioning services and the aim of this study is to estimate the potential value of the European Union’s seafood production in the Northeast Atlantic (FAO fishing area 27). Fish stocks are currently managed too short-sightedly in EU and for that reason, EU is unable to take full advantage of the true potential of the stocks. This study provides quantitative analysis of the potential benefits of the rebuilt fish stocks in the Northeast Atlantic for the EU. Growth potential of EU’s wild capture production in Northeast Atlantic were calculated by comparing current production and theoretical maximal production, where all fish stocks could provide Maximum Sustainable Yield (MSY) at the same time. Besides quantifying potential value of EU landings in Northeast Atlantic, this study also compares different rebuilding pathways to achieve collective MSY. According to the result of this study, EU fishing fleet would get €4.43 billion more annual profit if every stock in the Northeast Atlantic could produce MSY. In order fish stocks to produce MSY, the long-term effort level of EU fleet should be dropped by 38%. Total revenue of fishing is maximised when stocks are harvested to a level of Maximum Economic Yield (MEY), where annual profit would be €4.64 billion more than currently while long-term effort level should be dropped by 48%. In this study, several management strategies for rebuilding the Northeast Atlantic stocks were compared, and rebuilding time and net present value were calculated for each management strategy. The results address that it is preferable to decrease effort level as soon as possible to match the effort level of MSY or MEY. The sooner the optimum effort level is reached, the shorter is the rebuilding time and the higher is the net present value.

Johdanto: Ruoka-allergiat yleistyvät länsimaissa ja syyksi epäillään mm. hygienian paranemista ja mikrobialtistusten vähenemistä. Ruoka-allergiat ovat yleisiä leikki-ikäisillä ja niistä toivutaan yleensä muutaman vuoden kuluessa. Kasvisten, hedelmien ja marjojen välttämistä on tutkittu vain vähän. Kalaa saatetaan välttää varmuuden vuoksi, sillä vielä 10 vuotta sitten kalaa pidettiin yleisesti allergisoivana ruokana. Suomalaislapset syövät kasviksia, hedelmiä, marjoja ja kalaa suosituksiin nähden niukasti ja välttämisruokavaliota noudattavat ruoka-allergiset saattavat olla matalan kulutuksen riskiryhmä. Koska vanhemmat ovat vastuussa leikki-ikäisen lapsen ruokavaliosta, tulisi heidän allergiatietämystään ja sen vaikutusta lasten ruoankäyttöön kartoittaa. Tavoite: Tutkielman tavoitteena on selvittää, eroaako tavanomaista ruokavaliota ja allergiaruokavaliota noudattavien lasten ruokavalio kasvisten, hedelmien, marjojen ja kalan käyttökertojen tai valikoiman laajuuden osalta. Samalla kartoitetaan vanhempien ruoka-allergiatietämystä ja sen yhteyttä lasten kasvisten, hedelmien, marjojen ja kalan käyttöön. Aineisto ja menetelmät: Tutkielman aineisto on osa LILLA-tutkimusta (Leikki-ikäisten ravitsemuksen ja allergiaterveyden edistäminen), joka toteutettiin vuosina 2013 ja 2014 41:ssä päiväkodissa Helsingissä, Espoossa ja Vantaalla. Ruoankäyttötutkimukseen osallistui yhteensä 78 lasta vanhempineen. Lasten ikä vaihteli 11 kuukauden ja 6 vuoden välillä. Lapsista 35 noudatti allergiaruokavaliota päiväkodissa ja verrokkeina toimivat 43 lasta noudattivat tavanomaista ruokavaliota. Työssä hyödynnettiin 3 päivän ruokapäiväkirjoja, taustatietolomaketta sekä vanhempien ruoka-allergiatietämyslomaketta. Ruokapäiväkirjojen avulla laskettiin, kuinka monta kertaa lapset söivät kasviksia, hedelmiä marjoja ja kalaa tutkimusjakson aikana. Taustamuuttujien yhteyttä kasvisten, hedelmien, marjojen ja kalan kulutukseen tutkittiin Mann-Whitneyn ja Kruskall-Wallis’in mediaanitesteillä. Ruoka-allergiatietämyslomakkeesta laskettiin oikeiden vastausten lukumäärä kaikille väittämille (12 kpl) ja erikseen 3:lle kasviksiin ja hedelmiin liittyville väittämille. Logistisella regressioanalyysilla tutkittiin lasten kasvisten, hedelmien, marjojen ja kalan käyttöä selittäviä tekijöitä. Tulokset: Ruoka-allergiset söivät verrokkeja enemmän kypsennettyjä hedelmiä niin käyttökertoina (p 0.030) kuin valikoiman monipuolisuutena (p 0.020) tarkasteltuna. Kalan osalta eroja ei havaittu. Vanhempien ruoka-allergiatietämys erosi kolmen kasviksia ja hedelmiä koskevan väittämän osalta, siten, että verrokkien vanhemmilla oli keskimäärin enemmän oikeita vastauksia (p 0.003). Verrokkien vanhemmat vastasivat myös harvemmin ”En osaa sanoa” (p 0.010) kasviksiin ja hedelmiin liittyviin kysymyksiin. Regressiomallin perusteella vanhempien heikko ruoka-allergiatietämys oli yhteydessä lasten pienempään todennäköisyyteen kuulua tuoreiden kasvisten, hedelmien ja marjojen ylimpään käyttökolmannekseen (OR: 0.06 [CI: 0,07-0,49], p 0.009). Tuoreita kasviksia, hedelmiä ja marjoja monipuolisimmin käyttävien kolmannekseen kuuluminen oli myös vähemmän todennäköistä (OR: 0.12 [CI: 0.02-0.81] p 0.029). Johtopäätökset: Tämän tutkimuksen perusteella ruoka-allergisten lasten ei voida sanoa olevan kasvisten, hedelmien, marjojen ja kalan riskiryhmä verrattuna tavanomaista ruokavaliota noudattaviin suomalaislapsiin. Aihetta olisi tosin syytä tutkia suuremmalla otoksella, jotta mahdolliset erot havaittaisiin paremmin. Vanhempien allergiatietämyksessä oli jonkin verran puutteita ja vanhempien parempi ruoka-allergiatietämys ennusti lasten runsaampaa tuoreiden kasvisten, hedelmien ja marjojen käyttöä ja valikoiman suurempaa monipuolisuutta. Koska vanhempien merkitys lapsen ruokavalion koostamisessa ja sen rakentumisessa on suuri, tulisi heidän tietämystään ruoka-allergian hoidosta lisätä.

In the past few decades, free time has increased considerably. And yet leisure has still an ever growing importance for Finnish consumers. Nonetheless, it is not an explicit matter. People experience leisure in different ways. The economic depression has brought forward the leisure practices of unemployed or temporarily laid-off and this is also the basis for my thesis. This thesis is a qualitative research using semi-structured theme-centered interviews to collect the data. Total of 10 consumers, who were or had been laid-off, were interviewed and this data was analyzed using thematic analysis. Temporarily laid-off consumers had three ways of reacting to their status. First group experienced a lot of stress and worry about coping and their future possibilities. Second group, on the other hand, thought of it as an extra holiday during which they could rest and pursue their hobbies. Thirdly, temporal lay-off was seen as a necessary evil: unenjoyable but nonetheless somewhat useful experience. Changes could be observed regarding leisure: daily routines disappeared or changed their importance and social relationships decreased whereas the time with the television increased. This passive leisure showed the importance of activities and being active as a way of coping. Hobbies were an important way to relax and forget. Many temporarily laid-off consumers had problems with their income. Some of them decreased their consumption and begun saving, reconsidering their consumption patterns. On the other hand some turned to impulsive consumption as a means to rebel. As a whole, the shorter the lay-off period, the less it affected consumption. Whichever the case, the changes in consumption during a temporal lay-off had an effect on the surrounding society as well. Leisure, consumption and the reaction to temporal lay-off are strongly linked. Good economical situation is followed by positive reactions and coping as well as active leisure. At the same time positive or negative attitude combined with consumption possibilities have a great effect on leisure activities.

Diacetyl and acetoin are typical butter flavours, which are also present in other fermented dairy products such as sour milk. Diacetyl and acetoin are mainly produced from their precursor ?-acetolactate (ALA) by lactic acid bacteria as a product of their metabolism. In the literature review the formation of diacetyl and acetoin were examined along with the typical techniques to analyse diacetyl. The aim of the experimental work was to develop and validate a method for the determination of diacetyl and acetoin in sour milk by gas-chromatographic technique coupled with flame ionisation detector (GC-FID). In this study a suitable column and gas-chromatographic parameters to analyse diacetyl and acetoin were obtained and two sample preparation techniques were tested. In addition, the reactivity of diacetyl and acetoin and their interactions with the sample matrix were examined. Finally the method was validated. In the complete method, the proteins of the sample were precipitated with acetone and the sample was centrifuged. ALA along with protein-bound diacetyl and acetoin were extracted from the supernatant by solid-phase extraction (SPE), followed by the GC-FID-analysis of free diacetyl and acetoin in the SPE-permeate. GC-FID-analysis was performed using a polar ZB-FFAP-column, split-ratio 30:1 and inlet and detector temperatures 200 ?C and 250 ?C, respectively. Diacetyl and acetoin are reactive and easily evaporated, which complicated their analysis. ALA was mainly decomposed to acetoin in the hot injector. This finding resulted in extraction of ALA from the sample by SPE. In the sour milk matrix, diacetyl and acetoin were believed to appear in three different forms: free and strongly or weakly bound to proteins. The compounds were easily transformed from one form to another. Possibly, also cyclopentanone, the internal standard, was partly bound to the sample matrix. The reactivity of the compounds prevented the determination of total diacetyl and acetoin. Therefore, the method was suitable only for the determination of free diacetyl and acetoin, which, in fact, constitute the buttery aroma in sour milk. Sour milk contained more free acetoin than diacetyl. The method was found to be selective and sensitive for the determination of diacetyl and acetoin. However, the reactivity of the compounds impaired the repeatability of the results. Further research is needed to discover factors affecting the binding of diacetyl and acetoin to the sample matrix. Furthermore, different internal standards and solvents ought to be tested in place of cyclopentanone and acetoin.