IN conversations about food safety, the spotlight often falls on hygiene, contamination and expiry dates.
These are undoubtedly important but there is another aspect that deserves attention, for example, the physical design of food: its texture, structure and shape.
Over the past few years, we have seen an increase in food products, particularly snacks, designed to appeal to children. These snacks are often small, vibrantly coloured and jelly-like in texture, making them soft, smooth and fun to eat. But in the hands or mouths of a child, these features can become dangerous.
From a food technology perspective, many of these products are made using gelling agents such as konjac, carrageenan or agar, which produce a firm and rubbery texture. These gels are made to hold their shape but because they do not easily dissolve or break down during chewing, a child who swallows such a product whole could experience a blocked airway almost instantly.
This is where a concept often introduced in the classroom becomes highly relevant in real life – rheology, the study of how food flows and deforms under force.
Rheology is essential for understanding how food behaves when it is chewed, swallowed or even when it becomes stuck in the throat.
Foods with high elasticity and low solubility, for example, can pose choking risks, particularly for young children who are still developing proper chewing and swallowing coordination.
While most food manufacturers follow strict safety guidelines such as HACCP (Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point), these protocols primarily address biological, chemical and process-related hazards.
Physical risks, such as texture, shape and form, are far less often scrutinised, even though they too can have serious, even fatal, consequences.
This issue is not about placing blame or discouraging innovation but rather about raising awareness of the need to consider food structure as a safety factor, particularly for products intended for vulnerable consumers.
These products may be hygienic, appealing and well-packaged, yet still pose a risk if they are not designed with the consumer’s age and ability in mind.
As technologists, engineers, scientists, educators and members of society, we share a responsibility to ensure that food innovation is paired with sensible, safe, responsible and
user-appropriate design.
Whether it is through clearer labelling, improved regulation and better public awareness, we can make room for both fun and safety on the plate.
Dr Abdullah Amru Indera Luthfi is a lecturer at the Department of Chemical and Process Engineering, Faculty of Engineering and Built Environment, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia.
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