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THE UNIVERSITY OF THE WEST INDIESST. AUGUSTINE, TRINIDAD, W.I.

green beans. Fresh, store bought weremost common (56%), with home grown(23%), canned (20%), and frozen (10%).

A fresh crisp apple can now beenjoyed in February, thanks to modernstorage techniques used by the Cana­dian apple growers. The two most fre­quent storage methods used to keepapples at their best for long periods oftime are cold storage and controlledatmosphere storage. For the future,apple growers look toward researchdevelopments in low oxygen storage.

When held in Cold Storage ware­houses, apples are chilled to 8°C in spe­cial chambers to further extend storagelife. A high humidity level is main­tained to reduce moisture loss and pre­vent shrivelling. Even after harvest, theapple continues to "breathe" or respireby using oxygen and giving off carbondioxide. Lowering the temperature willslow the ripening process and apprecia­bly extend the storage life. As a result,fresh, high quality apples are availablewell into winter.

Respiration and the ripening pro­cesses can be further slowed by reduc­ing the oxygen level in the atmosphereand by increasing the amount of carbondioxide in an airtight room. The resultis slower ripening and extended storagelife. The combination of refrigerationand atmosphere regulation is known as

Breads and cerealsConsumption of plain white bread

was highest (56%), with brown, wheator rye at 31%. No single cereal was con­sumed by a large number of respon­dents, although 40% reported eatingsome kind of cereal with cold cerealbeing more popular than hot.

Milk and milk productsFifty-six percent of respondents drank

fluid milk, mostly skimmed milk. Con­sumption appeared to decrease as ageincreased and was most often con­sumed with cereal. Forty percent atecheese and processed cheese slices weremost popular (14%), followed by milkcheddar (11%), and whole cottagecheese (4%). Imported cheese were con­sumed by 4% of the sample.

MeatsBeef was the most frequently con­

sumed meat by 37% followed bychicken by 23%. Beef was most fre­quently purchased minced. Chickenand turkey were more likely purchasedwhole while pork was frequently pur­chased as ham or bacon.

Fruits and vegetablesRespondents consumed more fruit

than fruit juice (67 vs 50%). However,orange juice was the single most popu­lar item (36%) with apples (31%),bananas (21%), and oranges (16%).Apple juice was consumed by 11%. Awide variety of vegetables were con­sumed with potatoes most frequentlyfollowed by carrots, peas, corn and

A survey on the eating habits ofCanadians by Market Facts of CanadaLtd. has generated a wealth of data forthe Food Advisory Division of Agricul­ture Canada. A questionnaire on con­sumers' eating habits for one day wascompleted at different times of the yearby 4556 respondents. The data wasused to identify the frequency that var­ious foods were consumed and can beused to develop marketing opportuni­ties for Canadian food products.

also expected to go up in 1986, as mayimports.

In the beverage industry, conditionsin 1985 were less favorable. Excessproduction capacity and expensive mar­keting measures such as extensiveadvertising campaigns, new productlaunches and packaging formats addedto costs, while overall demand wasstagnant. Little improvement isexpected in the beverage industry in theshort term.

In 1985, important structural changestook place in food retailing which couldaffect future industry performance.Large blocks of stores changed handsamong major retail chains, alteringcompetitive pressures in specific cityand regional markets. The trend to fran­chising and new store formats con­tinued. This year, overall profits areexpected to recover, following a poorshowing in 1984. However, despitemore moderate increases in labor,interest and other costs, operating mar­gins have declined. The reasons areslow growth in demand and intensecompetition..

Consumer spending on food isexpected to increase again in 1986, butat a slower rate, further intensifying thecompetition for market share and thesearch for ways to reduce operatingcosts.

What consumers drinkCoffee, milk and fruit juice are the

most frequently consumed beverageswith coffee consumed by 57%, milk by52%, and fruit juice by 50%. Tea wasnext by 39% and soft drinks by 27%.

One Professor/Senior Lecturer in Food Technology. In­terest in Fruit & Vegetable processing and/or QualityControl desirable.

What consumers eatThe most frequently eaten foods were

mixed dishes that contained a proteinfood (96%), bread/toast (90%),meat/poultry (85%), and fruit (67%).Less frequently consumed foods werefish/seafood (17%), pasta (17%), rice(11%), and salad as a main course (8%).

One Lecturer/Assistant Lecturer. Interest in Engineeringaspects of Food Technology, teaching, research andsome management background desirable.

Further detailed information available from the Registrar.

Can. InSf. Food Sci. Technol. J. Vol. 19, No.2, 1986 Institute Affairs / xv