Methodology of multilevel modeling of food systems

Abstract

A methodology for creating complex food systems using mathematical and computer modeling methods has been proposed. The methodology is based on a systematic approach. The main purpose of this approach is to develop a multi-component food product with specified properties and quality levels. In the methodology, the product is considered a food system with several structural levels. For each level, certain characteristics are modeled in the aggregate that forms the quality of the ready-made product. The system includes modeling molecular interactions of raw materials, combinatorics of nutrient composition, structural and functional organization of a food product, and external consumer characteristics. The presented methodology can become a basis for a new emerging direction in food engineering, combining various scientific concepts, technical, computational models, and metric sizes of their objects. The potential of using this model is determined by the wide possibilities of predicting the characteristics and properties of food systems beyond a full-scale experiment’s capabilities. With the development of science, the number of levels for modeling can increase with detail in the hierarchy of scales up to quantum. Consequently, the elements of each level of the hierarchy can represent separate food systems or clusters and serve as new logical-dynamic objects-computer modeling systems.