Food Engineering Lab: 

The Food Engineering Laboratory is essential for exploring the core principles of food preservation, processing, and quality control. The laboratory is used for teaching practical part of courses PFE 202, PFE 307 and PFE 601. Through hands-on experiments such as tray drying, spray drying, and freeze drying, students gain practical insights into moisture removal, thermal processing, and how various drying methods impact food quality. These techniques are vital for extending shelf life while maintaining nutritional value. Additional experiments involving equipment like the plate heat exchanger, potato peeling machine, potato slicer, and sugar plant model further enhance students’ understanding of food processing operations. By bridging theoretical knowledge with real-world applications, the lab effectively prepares students to meet the challenges of the food industry.

Packaging Lab:

The Packaging Lab is dedicated to teaching, research, and hands-on training in food packaging at both undergraduate and postgraduate levels. It supports practical sessions for core courses such as PFE 405 (Food Packaging Technology), PFE 506 (Food Package Engineering), and selected modules from PFE 306 and the Experiential Learning Programme (ELP). The lab is equipped with a range of machines used for packaging fresh and processed food products, including band sealers, cling wrap machines, shrink packaging units, vacuum packaging machines, nitrogen flush packaging systems, active packaging units, candy packaging machines, and an ozone processing system. In addition, it houses instruments for testing packaging materials and packages, such as thickness gauges, drop testers, burst strength testers, puncture resistance testers, and simulated vibration testers.

Process Engineering Lab: 

The Process Engineering Lab supports practical learning and research activities for both undergraduate and postgraduate students. It caters to courses such as PFE 201 (Unit Operations in Food Processing-I), PFE 305 (Post Harvest Engineering of Cereals, Pulses and Oil Seeds), PFE 502 (Unit Operations in Food Process Engineering), and PFE 503 (Field Crops Process Engineering). The lab is equipped with a wide range of machines and instruments used for evaluating and understanding various unit operations in food and grain processing. Key equipment includes a Ro-Tap shaker, hammer mill, burr/attrition mill, batch-type V-mixer, vibratory screen grain pre-cleaner, indented cylinder grader, aspirating column for terminal velocity studies, Satake tray dryer for drying experiments, fruit and vegetable cleaning, grading and waxing unit, and a farm batch mixer. Practical exercises conducted in the lab include performance evaluations of these machines, determination of drying constants, and terminal velocity measurements, among others.

Quality Control Lab:

The Quality Control Lab is equipped to support fundamental microbiological and biochemical analyses essential for food quality and safety assessment. It serves as a facility for conducting routine testing and research on microbial load, contamination levels, and basic biochemical properties of food products. The lab houses essential instruments and equipment such as Laminar Air Flow Cabinet, autoclave, incubators, Kjeldahl’s apparatus, cooling centrifuges etc.required for sample preparation, culture growth, and analysis, enabling students and researchers to carry out quality assurance protocols and ensure compliance with food safety standards. This facility plays a crucial role in practical training and research related to food quality control and hygiene monitoring.

Post-Harvest Technology Lab:

The Post-Harvest Technology Lab is engaged in the practical teaching and research of post-harvest processing and quality evaluation of agricultural produce. It caters to several UG and PG courses, including PFE 305, PFE 302, PFE 503, PFE 508, and PFE 601, with practical sessions scheduled throughout the week. The lab offers hands-on experience in a wide range of activities such as texture profile analysis, milling characteristics, separation efficiency, moisture and juice content analysis, color and freezing characteristics of produce, milling recovery, oil extraction, and sonication process optimization. It is equipped with advanced instruments including single and double column textural analyzers, paddy cleaner, dehusker, rice polisher, indented cylinder separator, digital moisture meter, coil-type juicing machine, vacuum oven, colour reader (CR-10), deep freezer with gauss meter, Natraj tall flour mill, mini oil expeller, and an ultrasonic probe-type sonicator.

Environmental Control and By-product Utilization Lab: 

The Environmental Control and By-product Utilization Lab support practical learning andresearch activities for both undergraduate and postgraduate students. The laboratory is used forteaching practical part of courses such as PFE 303 (Protected Cultivation and SecondaryAgriculture ), PFE 304 (Agricultural Structures and Environmental control), ME 106 (FoodThermodynamics) and PFE 605 (Agricultural Waste and Byproduct Utilization). The Laboratoryis well equipped with equipments and instruments used for evaluating different properties relatedwith by-product/waste and for measuring different environmental parameters. Key equipmentsinclude Industrial Muffle Furnace, Automatic Solvent Extraction Unit, Hectoliter, Hot air ovens;and instruments like lux meter, hygrometer, anemometer, black globe thermometer, maximumand minimum thermometer, refract meters etc.,

Engineering Properties Lab: 

Engineering properties of biological materials play an important role in the design of equipments and

optimization of process parameters; consequently this lab has been designed to determine engineering properties viz physical, frictional, aerodynamic, electrical & Dielectrical, thermal and rheological,properties of agricultural produce.The lab is primarily meant to conduct practicals related to courses such as PFE-204 (Engineeringproperties of Agricultural Produce), PFE-301 (Food Process Equipment Design), PFE-303 (ProtectedCultivation and Secondary Agriculture), PFE-508 (Application of Engineering Properties in FoodProcessing) and PFE-603 (Textural and Rheological Characteristics of Food Materials.The lab mainly has equipments like Micrometers, Vernier calipers, Overhead projector, pycnometer,setup for measurement of angle of repose, coefficient of internal & external friction. Vertical wind tunnel,Dickerson Apparatus for thermal diffusivity, unsteady state line heat source method for thermalconductivity, Electrical conductivity meter, apparatus for ohmic heating, This lab is equipped withsophisticated equipments like Rheometer, Texture analyzer, GLC, HPLC, WVTR

Storage Engineering Lab:

The Storage Engineering Lab is dedicated to hands-on training and practical learning in post-harvest technology and agricultural storage systems. Practical sessions for courses PFE 302, PFE 305, and PFE 602 are conducted throughout the week, ensuring regular student engagement. The lab covers a wide range of experiments, including the determination of dry matter and moisture content, drying characteristics, handling time using different equipment, grinding characteristics, and storage studies on grains and pulses. It also includes practicals on fumigation, identification of storage fungi, and the design and working of various storage systems. The lab is equipped with essential instruments like ovens, tray dryers, hammer mills, grinders, UV sanitation units, and various storage containers such as PET and GI bins.

Departmental Library:

The Departmental Library serves as a vital academic resource hub for students, researchers, and faculty of the discipline. Located within the Department of Processing and Food Engineering, the library offers a well-curated collection of textbooks, reference materials, research journals, theses, technical reports and bulletin in the areas of agricultural engineering, food technology, renewable energy, soil and water conservation, farm machinery, and post-harvest technology. The library has a sitting capacity of 30 students. The library boasts a diverse and well-rounded collection that goes beyond academic textbooks. It includes practical manuals, competitive exam preparation books, and popular magazines, catering to both academic and general reading interests. The departmental library also houses a rich collection of glossaries, technical specifications, and national and international standards booklets, providing essential reference material for students and researchers.In addition, the library features encyclopedias, educational resources, and a range of booksrelated to life sciences and cultural studies, supporting interdisciplinary learning and personal development.

Pilot plants – Rice Milling, wheat milling, oilseed milling and Fruits and Vegetable Processing:

The department is having fully function pilot plants in the area of milling of cereals (wheat and Paddy), oilseeds and processing of fruits and vegetables. Various machines available in these plants are: Rice Mill, Wheat Flour Mill, Roller Flour Mill, Oil seed Processing unit (Oil expeller, Filter Press and Bottling unit), animal feed mill, vegetable dehydration unit, blanching systems, Individual Quick Freezing (IQF) Plant, Cold stores and different packaging machinery. These plants are quite useful for providing hands on training to different stake holders. This facility caters to the teaching, research, and training needs of the undergraduate and post graduate students, young farmers and entrepreneurship trainees. The Experiential Learning Programs (ELP) are conducted for the undergraduate students of the college. Along with that, the department is also running a revolving fund scheme under which various crops are processed and the final processed products are sold in the university.

PAU Agro Processing Complex:

The Department provides a variety of processing and analytical services to support farmers, entrepreneurs, and researchers. These include custom hiring services such as oilseed processing, paddy milling, wheat milling, turmeric grinding and boiling. Additionally, the department offers laboratory-based analytical services like moisture content determination and textural analysis of food samples. Through these services, the department facilitates value addition, promotes efficient utilization of agricultural produce, and supports.

In addition of the above, the following service/custom hiring rates have also been proposed