the book will bring several disparate aspects of food science and analysis together in one place. the book will start with chapters on sampling techniques and recent instrumentation for food analysis. descriptions of how vibrational spectroscopy can be used to study and measure changes occurring during cooking, processing or storage, will follow. finally, a dozen or so case studies will be used to illustrate the many applications in vibrational spectroscopy to the analysis of foodstuffs. the book will be of benefit both to readers who have not previously considered the potential use of these techniques in the study and quality control of food systems, as well as those who have had some experience but perhaps in the context of non-food biomaterials, or only a specific food commodity group, or a specific technique (mir, nir or raman spectroscopy).