Food preservation has been a long-lasting desire of human beings. The significant developments in food preservation started the day fire was discovered by prehistoric humans, which was followed by indigenous methods of food preservation such as pickling, oiling, and salting of different food types, whether raw or processed. Some of the earlier techniques are still in use and are available in several commercial formats. The major developments and needs in food processing and preservation started during wars, when extended shelf life of foods became a necessity. As a matter of fact, several food processing techniques—such as ready-to-eat food in pouches, aseptic processing of milk and liquid foods with particles, and ohmic/electric resistance heating of foods—were developed to achieve extended shelf life of foods for soldiers in wars. A transfer of technology occurred when consumers started demanding a food product with fresh-like characteristics, along with extended shelf life.
Over the years, consumers became more and more educated about adding food preservatives and their adverse effects on long-term health. This all added to research and development and finally the commercialization of innovative food preservation techniques. This also gave birth to several non-thermal food preservation techniques, including ultra-high-pressure processing, which has begun to see commercialization since the late 1990s. Irradiation is also getting limited acceptability by consumers for several food products. Thermal food preservation techniques are being revisited and are being modified to provide consumers with a variety of food products with home-cooked meal characteristics.
Researchers not only in the United States but also all over the world have played a major role in the latest developments of food preservation techniques. Europe and Asia have seen more commercial food products with extended shelf life on the shelves of their grocery stores than in the United States. Due to stringent regulatory control in the United States and reluctant behavior of established U.S. food processors in adapting new food preservation techniques, several food preservation techniques are still in their commercial infancy. The ones gaining limited commercial success are ultra-high-pressure processing, retort pouch technology, and, to some extent, irradiation.
Despite the availability of different food processing and preservation techniques discussed in a plethora of books available in stores, a single book with special attention to advancement in thermal and non-thermal food preservation and with special emphasis on commercialization of food preservation techniques was still needed. And that is this book.
Contents
- 1 Basic Food Microbiology
Part One: Thermal Food Preservation
- 2 Thermal Processing of Liquid Foods with or without Particulates
- 3 Aseptic Processing
- 4 UHT and Aseptic Processing of Milk and Milk Products
- 5 Microwave and Radio-Frequency Heating
- 6 Novel Thermal Processing Technologies
- 7 Radio-Frequency Heating: Commercial Developments
- 8 Sous Vide and Cook-Chill Processing of Foods: Concept Development and Microbiological Safety
Part Two: Non-Thermal Food Preservation
- 9 Active Packaging: A Nonthermal Process
- 10 The Ozonation Concept: Advantages of Ozone Treatment and Commercial Developments
- 11 Electronic Pasteurization
- 12 High-Pressure Processing of Foods
- 13 Pulsed Electric Field Technology: Effect on Milk and Fruit Juices
Index
About the Author
- Gaurav Tewari, PhD is CEO and President of Tewari De-Ox Systems, Inc. San Antonio, TX. Dr. Tewari has had a successful track record as an engineering scientist as well as an industrialist involved in commercialization of his packaging systems for global case-ready meat and poultry industry (patents pending). He has commercialized novel food processing and packaging systems for several North American Food Companies. He has worked at University of Manitoba, Lacombe Meat Research Center, University of Illinois Urbana-campaign, The National Center for Food Safety and Technology, University of Guelph and Guelph Food Technology Center. Vijay K. Juneja, PhD is Supervisory Microbiologist and Lead Scientist for the USDA, ARS, Eastern Regional Research Center, Wyndmoor, PA. Among his numerous published works are his contributions as lead editor of and contributor to Control of Foodborne Microorganisms.
Product Details
- Hardcover: 288 pages
- Publisher: Wiley-Blackwell; 1 edition (March 6, 2007)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 0813829682
- ISBN-13: 978-0813829685
- Product Dimensions: 10.1 x 7.1 x 1 inches
List Price: $230.00