This fifth edition of Modern Food Microbiology places special emphasis on foodborne microorganisms, as the previous four editions attempted to do. A good understanding of the basic biology offoodborne organisms is more critical for food scientists now than in previous decades. With so many microbiologists in the 1990s devoting their attention to genes and molecules, one objective of this text is to provide a work that places emphasis on entire microbial cells as well as their genes and molecules. For textbook usage, this edition is best suited for a second or subsequent course in microbiology. Although organic chemistry is a desirable prerequisite, those with a good grasp of general biology and chemistry should not find this book difficult. In addition to its use as a course text, this edition, like the previous, contains material that goes beyond what normally is covered in a one-term course. For use as a food microbiology text, suggested starting points are the sections in Chapter 2 that deal with the sources and types of microorganisms in foods followed by the principles outlined in Chapter 3. The food product chapters (Chaps. 4-9) may be covered to the extent that one wishes, but the principles from Chapters 2 and 3 should be stressed during this coverage. A somewhat logical next step would be food preservation methods as outlined in Chapters 13-17 where again the principles from Chapter 3 come into play.
