Teaching Food Processing to Chemical Engineering Students with Native American Food

A chemical engineering degree offers the possibility of a variety of career paths including food and beverage industry. However, chemical engineering students are rarely exposed to food processing examples during their education. Therefore, a new elective food processing course was developed and offered for the first time in the department of Chemical Engineering at UC Davis in Spring 2022. With the objective to increase diversity, equity, and inclusion in the course, students' learning on food preservation strategies was assessed with an assignment designed not only to align with some of the ABET outcomes and compliance with FDA regulations, but also to increase students' awareness of Native American culture and food and how to propose engineering solutions considering cultural appropriation.