Consumer demands and the challenges they present for the food-processing industry will be the focus of a one-day conference to be held Saturday, Nov. 15, at the Buehler Alumni and Visitors Center at the University of California, Davis.

A select group of scientists, engineers and business professionals will gather to discuss trends, challenges and technological advances in food processing and preservation. The conference, "Processing Food for Today's Consumer," is coordinated by UC Davis' California Institute for Food and Agricultural Research.

Topics to be discussed by guest speakers include foods for prolonged space travel and the military, the art of developing menus, the future of food retailing, nutrient-preservation during processing, and the rapidly evolving consumer food demands in China.

A complete schedule of speakers is available online at the institute's home page at: http://www.cifar.ucdavis.edu/home.htm.

The meeting, which will run from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., will include a lunch. It will be followed by a wine reception. Reporters are invited to participate in the entire day, compliments of the institute, but are requested to RSVP to Joel Scinicariello at jdscinic@ucdavis.edu or (530) 752-2922.

The conference will be held at the Buehler Alumni and Visitors Center, which can be reached by taking Interstate 80 to the UC Davis exit. Turn north onto Old Davis Road. Follow Old Davis Road past the information booth, then turn right onto Beau Vine Lane and immediately left into the South Entry Parking Structure. Place a media business card on the driver's side of the dashboard to park free. Walk north from the parking structure past the Mondavi Center. The alumni and visitors center is to the right, opposite the Mondavi Center.