This course emphasises food as a fundamental aspect of life that directly influences health and well-being. Students explore food across cultural and global contexts and examine factors that influence food choices. They apply knowledge of food properties to prepare nutritious, visually appealing meals aligned with dietary guidelines. Students also analyse food trends and marketing. The subject develops practical skills, safety awareness, and critical thinking, supporting pathways into further education and food-related careers.
In this unit, students select and use appropriate ingredients, equipment, and techniques to produce quality food items, and apply hygienic, safe practices in the selection, handling, and storage of food. Students demonstrate safe practices when using equipment and appliances. Students develop an understanding of the nature of food, nutrition, and the relationship between food and health.
In this unit, students develop knowledge and understanding of the functional properties, sensory characteristics, and processes applied to a range of foods in different applications. They evaluate the sustainability of food packaging. Students learn about the factors that influence food choices and food production. They use a problem-solving approach to explore and apply a range of techniques and processes for producing food products.
In this unit, students explore how cultural communities experience food in a variety of local, regional and global contexts to understand the cultural significance of the food and its role in people’s lives, customs and traditions. They develop intercultural understanding through the medium of food. Students develop an understanding of a range of consumption patterns and food practices and the relationship to the cultural community context.
In this unit, students develop an appreciation of the strengths and weaknesses of emerging and contemporary foods and food products in society and make informed, ethical decisions as consumers. They explore factors that contribute to innovations in the quality, styles, forms and availability of food. Innovations and contemporary trends are explored in the preparation and presentation of foods, including advertising and consumer demand, sustainable food production, the desire for novelty, food styling, and the impact of social media.