Introduction

The postgraduate specialist studies in “Food Quality and Safety” emerged from the need imposed on the food industry as to engage entirely new personnel, capable of perceiving global changes in production, processing and distribution of food and involving themselves into the aforementioned, as well as from the novel perception of food quality and safety, encountered among the consumers. In their lesser part, these studies represent a continuation of the former postgraduate specialist studies in “Analytics and Microbiology of Foodstuffs”, which had been carried out at the Faculty of Food Technology and Biotechnology from 1991 on and were terminated with the launch of the studies presented herein. These studies were established in order to serve the need of educating each and every person who might pose as a link in the food trade chain, and are aimed at ensuring food quality and safety which, along the course of globalisation, have become the issues of international relevance. Nowadays, when the consumers’ notion is on a much higher level and the Republic of Croatia stepped into the process of integration into the world market, the production of safe foodstuffs becomes and imperative of the economic development, and justifies beyond any doubt the need for implementing the studies of such a nature. The application of novel technologies and the increase in number of additives employed in food processing in order to increase its durability and diversity, calls for serious risk assessment analyses in terms of food safety, as well as for those in terms of risk management. Aside from familiarisation with the processes of raw material and final products’ production, processes of food storage and terms under which a certain food may be placed on the market, as well as with potential contaminants (of chemical, biochemical and microbiological origin), one should also familiarise with methods of their detection, as well as with leadership and management of the processes aimed at preventing such contaminants to materialise in the food production chain. Strategic relevance of food quality and safety for the development of the Republic of Croatia was emphasised within the frame of the study entitled “The strategy for agriculture and fishery in the Republic of Croatia” (Official Gazette 89/02). In order to achieve these goals, adequately educated experts, to whom these studies should convey all of the knowledge and skills required for the development and implementation of novel methods and techniques aimed at quality assurance of the food products present on the market, are needed. The proposed postgraduate specialist studies represents a direct continuation of the graduate studies in “Food Safety Management”, and are oriented towards the acquisition of knowledge and skills founded on the notions of analysing, comprehending and clarifying the processes going on within the production chain, as well as towards ensuring a better quality of the legislation governing the field of food trade, which would be in conformity with the internationally adopted standards.

-correlation with the contemporary scientific notions, and/or skills and competencies based on the aforementioned

The program is founded on the latest scientific achievements related to the assessment of food quality and safety (chemical, toxicological and microbiological aspects of food safety). Following the completion of the studies, the candidates will be able to apply those achievements in their practice. Therefore, by virtue of the latest and sophisticated analytical methods, the program covers the field of food quality control, legislation related to the food quality and safety, the latter being of a special relevance since the processes of harmonisation of domestic legislation with that of the EU are underway, and the field of process-management and implementation of novel food.