Fungi and Food Spoilage

•           Dr John I. Pitt was employed by CSIRO Food (under various names) from 1954 to 2018, commencing as a Technical Assistant, rising to Chief Research Scientist n 1992 and then, after official retirement in 2002, continuing to work as an Honorary Fellow. His prime interest was fungi in foods, where he contributed in three areas: media and methods in food mycology; species of foodborne fungi, their sources, physiological properties and ecology; and their production of mycotoxins. He was elected to Fellowship of the International Mycological Association, and Life Membership the Mycological Society of America, the British Mycological Society and the Australian Society for Microbiology. He is currently employed (part time) by Microbial Screening Technologies, a biodiscovery company.•           Dr Ailsa D. Hocking joined Dr Pitt at CSIRO Food in 1974: they worked there together for more than 40 years. Dr Hocking rose toSenior Principal Research Scientist before she officially retired in 2015, then continued to work as an Honorary Fellow until she finally retired this year. Her principal research work was in the study of  foodborne fungi, particularly their physiology and ecology, and also media and methods for their isolation.  She also spent many years liaising with the Australian food industry over many and varied food related industrial problems. She served as the mycological Editor of International Journal of Food Microbiology for a number of years.

• Ch-01 : Introduction.- Ch-2. Ecology of Fungal Food Spoilage.- Ch 3. Naming and Classifying Fungi.- Ch-4 Methods for Enumeration, Isolation and Identification.- Ch-5 Primary Keys and Miscellaneous Fungi.- Ch 6- Zygomycetes.- Ch 7 Penicillium and Talaromyces.- Ch 8 Aspergillus and Related Teleomorphs .- Ch 9  Xerophiles .- Ch 10 - Yeasts.- Ch 11: Fresh and Perishable Foods.- Ch 12- Spoilage of Stored, Processed and Preserved Foods.- Ch 13: Mycotoxins.

“This is a must-have for all who deal with spoilage issues involving moulds ... . The book will, however, remain as a treasured testimony to the work of a most remarkable man who devoted most of his life to improving our understanding of food spoilage issues involving fungi, and particularly the characterization of the species involved.” (IMA Fungus, Issue 2, February 5, 2024)