Introduction

We are delighted to invite you to participate in the international conference “Bubbles in Food 2: Novelty, Health and Luxury”, to be held in The Low Wood Hotel, Windermere, UK on 11th-13th September 2006.

Aerated foods (and drinks) represent the best and most luxurious that the chef or food manufacturer can provide, inspiring praise in the dining room and repeat sales at the retailer. Soufflé, champagne, whipped cream, mousses, Cappuccino, beer, ice cream, pavlova, Swiss cheese, puffed rice, popcorn – all depend on bubbles for the creation of their distinctive appeal, along with bread in its myriad forms, cakes, biscuits, croissants, waffles, wafers, vol au vents, crackers, crumpets, crispbreads, pikelets, pancakes, puff pastry, scones, doughnuts, muffins, aerated chocolate bars, honeycomb, meringues, fools, sorbets, marshmallow, carbonated soft drinks, cornflakes, milkshakes – the list is, if not endless, certainly extensive! Creating and controlling the bubbles in these products is one of the most challenging tests of the skill of the domestic chef or the industrial food technologist.

Aerating foods gives novel textures and attractive structures that provide distinction and differentiation on the retail shelf and in the minds and palates of consumers. Aeration is relevant to choosing a healthy diet – many healthy versions of food products (e.g. wholemeal breads) are only consumed if the appealing aerated texture is maintained, and aeration also affects perceived satiety and assists with portion control. But aeration predominantly delivers luxury. Bubbles in foods are pleasing, alluring, fascinating, and unnecessary – but our diets would be poorer without them. These themes of Novelty, Health and Luxury will be highlighted and explored at the 2006 Bubbles in Food 2 conference.

The conference will build on the highly successful Bubbles in Food conference held in Manchester in 1998. Once again we are pleased that the American Association of Cereal Chemists (AACC International) will, through Eagan Press, be publishing the fully edited conference proceedings. The proceedings from the first Bubbles in Food conference inspired a multitude of new research and product development activities in this area and, for those yet to obtain their copy, those proceedings can still be purchased from AACC International. The new proceedings will complement this first book by updating the advancing scientific study of aerated foods and stimulating further developments, and will also feature fully peer-reviewed and abstracted scientific papers.

We invite you to register your interest in attending this conference or receiving further information, to submit paper titles and abstracts, to register for an exhibition stand, or to indicate an interest in sponsoring or supporting some aspect of the conference. Industrial case studies, interdisciplinary research and review articles on aerated foods and related topics are particularly welcomed. Please feel free to contact the organizers to discuss your intended contribution.

We look forward to welcoming you next September to the beauty of the English Lake District and the stimulation of a scientific event devoted to this most magical and versatile of food ingredients.

Yours sincerely,

The Organising Committee:

Dr Grant Campbell, The University of Manchester
Dr Martin Scanlon, The University of Manitoba
Professor Leo Pyle, The University of Manchester/The University of Reading
Professor K Niranjan, The University of Reading