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Food oral processingis a key step in the food digestion process. On the one hand, chewing allows the formation of a food bowl (also called a "bolus") that can be safely swallowed by the individual, and on the other hand, salivation plays an essential role in the process of food deconstruction and the sensory and nutritional properties that result from it. Swallowing is controlled by the viscosity of the bolus, which varies according to the physiological characteristics of individuals and the structure of the food.

For cereal products, it has been demonstrated by mechanistic models that interactions with saliva have a significant effect on the variation in viscosity of the food bowl. These interactions are essential for the acceptance of protein-enriched food products of plant origin, and their consideration can therefore help in the design of specific diets.

The MoFooSA project aims to model the interactions between saliva and food under artificial chewing conditions for cereal products enriched with pea flour in two types of textures: conventional (soft) bakery products and extruded (brittle) products.

The results will be integrated into "Basic Knowledge Models" (BKMs), in order to contribute to the design of this type of food by taking into account nutritional needs and individual physiological characteristics.

This project, which will start on September 1st with the hosting of an 18-month post-doc, is being carried out in partnership with Oniris, the CSGA-INRA Dijon, the University of Wageningen and the Polytechnic University of Valencia. It is funded under the RFI "Food for Tomorrow"/Cap Aliment.

• Duration of the project: 18 months (Sept. 2018 - March 2020)
• Coordination :  INRA BIA  (project owner: Guy Della Valle, Equipe MC2)
• Academic partners:
  • ONIRIS GEPEA
  • INRA CSGA
  • Wageningen University & Research
  • Polytechnic University of Valencia

• Budget:  92 000 € incl. 85 000€ from  RFI