Students explore different levels of food processing and the ways in which processed foods affect the health of our diets by looking at examples of foods from the grocery store and by closely examining food labels. Grades 3-5

food processing: the process of transforming raw agricultural products, like grains, vegetables, meat, or milk, into end products to be sold to consumers

Food processing is the action of transforming raw agricultural products, like grains, vegetables, meat, or milk, into end products ready to be sold. Most foods that we consume require some processing. Everything from chopping to mixing ingredients to cooking can be considered a part of food processing. A processed food has been changed physically or chemically after being harvested. The amount of processing varies from food to food, ranging from minimal to high.

Minimally processed foods are changed only a small amount between the farm and the consumer. These foods might be washed, peeled, sliced, juiced, frozen, dried, or pasteurized. They have few ingredients (often only one), which are all things that could be found in a home kitchen. Examples include skim milk, pre-washed and torn lettuce, frozen vegetables, and flour. A packaged pancake mix that includes only the dry ingredients and requires the consumer to add milk, eggs, and oil at home could also be considered minimally processed food because all of its ingredients are minimally processed. Many foods in this category are ingredients that would be used to cook a meal at home.

Moderately processed foods are somewhat changed from the form in which they left the farm. In addition to being washed, peeled, and juiced, ingredients may be mixed, cooked, and have preservatives added. Moderately processed products often have several ingredients, and most, but probably not all, of those ingredients may be found in a home kitchen. Many of these foods still require some preparation before eating. Examples include a jar of spaghetti sauce, flavored yogurt, and bread. Another example could be a pancake mix that includes all the necessary ingredients, and you just add water to make the batter. This is different from the minimally processed pancake mix because the ingredients list will include some items that are highly processed, such as monocalcium phosphate, dextrose, and glucose solids.

Highly processed foods often have many ingredients and are mostly or fully prepared in a factory. Little or no preparation needs to be done before eating. Many snack foods, like chips and candy, are highly processed. These foods contain many ingredients not found in a home kitchen that add vitamins and minerals, enhance flavor and texture, and extend shelf life. Individual ingredients may be processed before being combined for further processing. Some ingredients commonly found in highly processed foods include high fructose corn syrup (sugar extracted from corn), polysorbate 65 (an emulsifier that keeps water and oils mixed), and sodium erythorbate (a food additive in processed meats that helps to retain color and improve flavor).

Foods are processed for many reasons. Some foods are more easily digested or safer to eat with some processing. For example, cooked potatoes are more nutritious and taste better than raw potatoes, and cooking meat and eggs kills harmful bacteria that can be carried on these foods when raw. Foods may also be processed so that they will store longer, taste better, or be more convenient to eat. However, processing that involves heating foods to very high temperatures or separating whole foods into their components, can reduce nutritional value. Food processing can also be energy intensive and packaging can generate large amounts of garbage. There are both advantages and disadvantages to food processing.

1. Provide the students with the definition of food processing—the process of transforming raw agricultural products, like grains, vegetables, meat, or milk into end products to be sold to consumers.
2. Ask the students if they think milk is a processed food. Display the first Cow to Milk image. Ask the students, "Does milk go straight from the dairy farm to a grocery store?"
3. Ask the students to use their prior knowledge to make a chronological list of what happens to milk from the time it leaves the dairy farm where it was produced until it arrives at the grocery store to be purchased. Use the second Cow to Milk image to help illustrate.
   • At the dairy farm, the milk is cooled and stored in a tank until it is transported to a milk processing plant.
   • At the milk processing plant, it is pasteurized, separated into cream and milk, recombined into milk with 2% fat, and homogenized to prevent the cream from separating. The vitamins A and D are added to the milk. Finally, the milk is packaged in cartons and jugs.
   • The milk is transported again in a refrigerated truck to the grocery store. The entire process only takes a few days.
4. Ask the students again if they think milk is a processed food. What about cheese, butter, or ice cream? Inform your students that they will be learning about food processing.

Activity 1: What is Food Processing?

1. Display the PowerPoint The Quicker the Better? Food Processing. Use slide two of the PowerPoint to help students understand that food processing is what takes place between the farm where the food is produced and the consumer.
2. Discuss with your students the many ways foods are processed. Some examples of processing may include crushing, grinding, pressing, flaking, chopping, peeling, pitting, dehydrating, canning, freezing, pickling, smoking, salting, bottling, or bagging. Use slides three to seven of the PowerPoint to show examples of raw food products and the final products they may be turned into.
3. Explain that there are many levels of food processing. Use the information provided in the Background Agricultural Connections and slide eight from the PowerPoint. Use slides nine and ten to illustrate how one raw product can be processed to various levels.
4. Display the Levels of Food Processing handout for the students to reference, and provide each student with a copy of the From Farm to Table activity sheet to track information about the foods you are about to discuss.
5. Hold up a grocery bag containing 3-5 different foods that have all been derived from the same raw or primary product. For example, canned tomatoes, salsa, ketchup, and spaghetti sauce. (The Materials list provides additional ideas.)
6. Tell the students that it is now their turn to examine some foods from the grocery store and decide how processed each food is. Take one food out of the bag at a time. Show the students each food and read its ingredients list out loud. For each one, the students should write the name of the food, the number of ingredients, the type of packaging, and the temperature at which it is stored on their activity sheets. Discuss whether they think the food is highly, moderately, or minimally processed.
7. Discuss the reasons why foods are processed. Some examples include:
   • to increase shelf life
   • to improve flavor and texture
   • to provide convenience
   • to make foods easier to transport
8. Ask the students to define the word convenience. Many highly processed foods are referred to as convenience foods. Discuss the following questions:
   • Why would a consumer choose to eat a convenience food? (to save time; because they don't know how to cook; students may say they aren't allowed to cook on the stove without a parent present)
   • Can minimally processed foods be convenient? (Yes, think of pre-washed and cut vegetables and fruits or individually-sized cartons of milk.)
9. Divide the students into pairs, and give each pair 2-3 food labels (each label should include the name of the food, nutrition facts, and an ingredients list).
10. Ask the students to examine the ingredients lists. Explain to the class that the primary or main ingredient is the first one listed and that the ingredients are listed in descending order according to how much of the the ingredient is included in the food.
11. Ask the students to write the name of the food and the primary ingredient from each food label on their From Farm to Table activity sheets. Then, ask them to finish filling in the columns on the activity sheet for each food label.
12. Complete this activity with a formative assessment. Explain to the students that you will be showing them a series of pictures of common foods. Using what they have learned, they should determine if the food is minimally, moderately, or highly processed. Instruct students to give a thumbs-up to represent moderate processing. Use the PowerPoint slides 11-27.

Activity 2: Nutritional Value 

1.  Using their food labels from Activity 1, have each student identify one ingredient with which they are unfamiliar (i.e., sodium bicarbonate, citric acid, monosodium glutamate, sorbitol).
2. Have the students research these items using the Internet to discover the additives' purpose in food processing.
3. Ask the students to identify whether or not their ingredient contributes to the nutritional value of the food. Explain to the students that raw products often have greater nutritional value than processed food products because processing can remove and destroy nutrients. Processors often have to add vitamins and minerals back into the processed product so that it has some nutritional value.
4. Have the students identify the salt and sugar content from their food labels. Tell the students that it is recommended that we eat no more than 25 grams of sugar and no more than 2300 milligrams of salt daily. Are their foods high in sugar or salt? Do they also provide healthy vitamins and minerals? 
5. Use the following questions to help students think about healthy diet choices:
   • How does consuming too much salt affect our bodies? (can lead to high blood pressure)
   • How does too much sugar affect our bodies? (can lead to weight gain and increase susceptibility to diabetes)
   • What role do convenience foods play in a healthy or unhealthy diet? (many convenience foods are high in sugar, salt, and/or fat, which can lead to obesity and/or high blood pressure; conveniently pre-washed and cut fruits and vegetables can promote healthy snacking)

After conducting these activities, review and summarize the following key concepts:

• Most foods that we consume require some processing, and there are both advantages and disadvantages to this processing.
• Reading food labels can help determine how processed a food is and how healthy a food is.
• Many highly processed foods contain lots of sugar and salt, and consuming too much sugar and salt can negatively impact our health.

1. https://www.jhsph.edu/research/centers-and-institutes/teaching-the-food-system/curriculum/_pdf/Food_Processing-Background.pdf

• Higher or Lower: Ingredient Investigation
• Labels Unwrapped
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