A Successful Food Science Study Abroad Program
MU students spent two weeks learning about the German meat and dairy industry firsthand by visiting farms and meat and dairy processing companies in Germany.
Posted July 14, 2008.
Twenty-five CAFNR students in food science, animal science, HRM, biochemistry, plant sciences, ag education and ag economics, participated in a study abroad course in Germany from May 17 through May 31.
Students received hands-on experience in making German specialty sausages
The students travelled more than 1,800 miles in Germany visiting small farms, such as St. Wendelinshof in Bodenheim, where pigs are still being slaughtered on the farm, as well as touring large multinational corporations, such as Toennies Fleisch with a slaughtering capacity of well over 20,000 pigs per day.
Students also learned about artisan cheesemaking in comparison to bulk cheese manufacturing at Humana.
Highlights of the tour included visits to the two German Federal Research Centers responsible for dairy research in Kiel, where students had close encounters with dairy cows, and for meat research in Kulmbach, where students received hands-on experience in making German specialty sausages, such as blood sausage.
Students toured the town of Hamelin with the Pied Piper
Students had the opportunity to learn about German history and culture. They saw the Hermann Memorial, a 174-foot-high statue commemorating a battle in 9 A.D. They also visited castles and an open air museum of a German village.
They toured the town of Hamelin with the Pied Piper as their guide. The legend of the Pied Piper is about a colorfully dressed man who plays a pipe to first lure the town's rats away, then later the town's children. Versions of the legend date back to the 1300s and the story was made famous by the Brothers Grimm.
The students stayed overnight in an authentic German castle. They also tried their hand at a ropes course. The opportunity to stay in a castle was one that few students will ever experience again, while the chance to experience a ropes course can be had in the U.S. but was, nevertheless, a first for many students.
The course was organized by Andrew Clarke, Ph.D., and Ingolf Gruen, Ph.D., of the Food Science program and will be conducted every other year. The next food science study abroad program is scheduled for 2010.
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