Ethnoscience: Insights into Nutrition and Cultural Foundations, the first book in the series Culinary Synergies: Exploring Nutrition and Science in Gastronomy, a five-book exploration into food education, innovation, and preservation, encompasses everything from flavor chemistry and sensory science to the role of micro- and macronutrients in traditional and culturally specific diets. The book begins with an introduction to the discovery of food through nutrition and cultural identity, discussing modern technological advances such as machine learning, digital tools, and sustainability. It then moves into the culinary traditions of Southeast Asia, where food diversity and ingredient preparation's influence on nutritional value are discussed. Section two highlights Southern Europe, focusing on foraging and the health benefits of fermented foods and more. Finally, section three introduces sustainable and indigenous farming practices in North Africa, along with healing herbs, their medicinal properties, and much more. Each section includes case studies highlighting nutrition, innovation, and health.
Dr. Tanmay Sarkar is currently working as a Lecturer in the Government of West Bengal. With 9 years of experience in both teaching and research, his areas of interest include bioactive components from natural sources, ethnic foods, mathematical modeling, and phytochemicals. He is an editor for several SCI, SCIE, and Scopus- indexed journals and has edited numerous books with Elsevier and Springer.
Charles Brennan is a Professor of Food Science at RMIT University, Australia, where he is the Dean of the School of Science. Brennan's research interests lies in the interface between food science and human nutrition with a particular interest in how bio-active ingredients and processing manipulate the nutritional quality of foods, in particular, the role of plant dietary fibre in manipulating the glycaemic response. Brennan is a graduate of London University, Wye College (BSc in Applied Plant Science) and King's College London (Ph.D. in Food Science and Nutrition). During his career, he has also worked at Durham University (UK), Plymouth University (UK), Massey University (NZ) and Manchester Metropolitan University (UK). He currently serves as Editor in chief for the journal International Journal of Molecular Sciences, and International Journal of Food Science & Technology and in the Editorial Board of the Journal of Bioactive Carbohydrates and Dietary Fibre.
Dr. Walid Elfalleh obtained his PhD in Biochemistry from the University of Tunis El-Manar, Tunisia. He has been teaching in Tunisian universities since 2006, and currently he is an Associate Professor at Imam Mohammad Ibn Saud Islamic University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. His research focuses on plant valorization for medicinal and food applications. He is currently working on the extraction, separation, and chromatographic identification of bioactive molecules of industrial interest. Furthermore, he is interested in the optimization of extraction methods for bioactive molecules and the elucidation of their biological activities in vivo and in vitro. He is the author of more than 200 papers in international peer-reviewed journals.
He serves on the editorial boards of several journals as an Associate Editor, including Food Bioscience (Elsevier), Quality Assurance and Safety of Crops & Foods (Codon Publications), and Euro-Mediterranean Journal for Environmental Integration (Springer), and as an Editorial Board Member of Grain & Oil Science and Technology (Elsevier) and Food Nutrition (Elsevier).
Dr. Slim Smaoui is an Associate Professor at the University of Sfax. His research focuses on the valorization of agro-food industry by-products as sources of bioactive compounds, and the design of functional foods enriched with bioactive ingredients.
He has authored more than 250 publications, including numerous articles in Scopus-indexed, international peer-reviewed journals.
Dr. Smaoui serves on the editorial boards of several reputable international journals and is actively involved as a guest editor and reviewer for multiple ISI-indexed journals.
Dr. Jalloul Bouajila is a professor at the Faculty of Pharmacy in Toulouse since 2004. He received his Doctorate in 2002 in analytical chemistry. Since 2003, he is specializing in natural products, extraction, fractionation, analytical chemistry, identification and biological activities in vitro. Dr Bouajila is responsible of research team and a partner of several regional, national, international and industrials research projects. He has published 162 scientific papers in international peer-reviewed journals. He is the co-inventor of 2 patents.
