Research Institutes (continued)

Inevitably, the sugar industry has a strong emphasis on chemical engineering, but SRI has been active in the biological field also, with projects on the micro-flora of sugar mills, enzymic saccharification of bagasse and the biological treatment of distillery waste.

The Australian Wine Research Institute (AWRI) was established in 1955 'to promote research and other scientific work in connection with the winemaking and viticultural industries and other trades and industries allied therewith or accessory thereto'. Regretfully it has had to restrict its studies to oenology but it has a good record of published research papers and it provides technical assistance to subscribing vintners. AWRI has long provided pure yeast cultures and more recently pure cultures of Leuconostoc oenos for controlled malo-lactic fermentations. It has amassed a great deal of analytical information about Australian wines, including that on the role of metals in wine stability. A significant improvement in the quality of the spirit distilled from grape marc has been achieved through the study of the nature of offensive volatile components. The Institute carried out pioneering work on the stabilization of wines by ion exchange and has developed analytical methods leading to better quality table wines. Its work on the reactions of phenolic components of young red wines and their control by wine-making practices has led to a significant improvement in Australian red wines and the effectiveness overall of AWRI's contribution to the industry is reflected in the world recognition of Australian wines which has developed in the last 15-20 years.[139]

In 1958 the Army (now Armed Forces) Food Science Establishment (AFFSE) was established at ottsdale, Tasmania, next door to a vegetable dehydration factory. Its purpose is to provide laboratory and pilot plant facilities for the development of service ration packs, but because of the highly specialized nature and small production runs, especially of trial packs, AFFSE also includes small-scale production facilities. It has contributed to some specialized technologies in Australia, notably freeze drying and the introduction of retortable pouches of limited application. It maintains valuable links with the Commonwealth Defence Science Organization and the United States Quartermaster Corps Laboratories.[140]

Finally, reference should be made to the stimulation of food science and technology in specialized areas by funds provided by industry levies through the Australian Dairy Research Committee and the Australian Cattle and Beef Research Committee, now the Meat Research Committee. These funds have supported much work in CSIRO and Departments of Agriculture but have also stimulated in universities work in food science which otherwise would not have been done. Much of that work has been translated into technology.

Australian Academy of Technological Sciences and Engineering