Food Preservation

• Food preservation is the process of treating

and handling food in such a way as to stop
or greatly slow down spoilage to prevent
foodborne illness and extend its shelf-life
while keeping as much of its nutritional
quality.
 Food processing
• Food processing is the set of methods and
techniques used to transform raw ingredients
into food for consumption.
• Examples of food processing methods include:
– Chopping
– Mixing
– Homogenizing
– Cooking
– Pastuerizing
– Emulsifying
– Drying
 Types of Food Preservation
• Food processing methods that are used to
preserve foods include:
– Refrigeration and freezing
– Canning
– Irradiation
– Dehydration
– Freeze-drying

– Fermentation: microbial decompostion resulting in alcohols,

vinegar, lactic acid (kraut)(pickles)
– Chemicals: salt, sugar, vinegar
 Food Preservation
Many food preservation methods
have also been used to create foods
for astronauts and for the armed
forces. These foods must remain
safe to eat over a long shelf-life.
It is reported that M & M’s were
developed when Forrest Mars, Sr.
saw soldiers eating candy coated
chocolate. The chocolate pellets Bags of Space Station
that the soldiers were eating were food and utensils on a tray.
coated in sugar to increase their
shelf-life in hot climates and
prevent the chocolate from sticking
to the soldier’s fingers! 4
Food Deterioration & Spoilage
• Food deterioration is any change in food
that makes it less desirable. (flavor, color,
texture & smell)
• Food spoilage is the state of food where it
is no longer safe to consume.
How does food start to spoil?

Once food is harvested or slaughtered, its plant or

animal tissue soon starts to decay.

Food spoils because of the activities of

micro - organisms, enzymes
and chemical reactions.
What are the micro-organisms?

• Molds
• Yeasts
• Bacteria
Molds

• Molds are
microscopic fungi
that can form
visible colonies.
Yeasts

• Yeasts are
microscopic fungi
but rarely grow
on foods.
Bacteria

• Bacteria are
microscopic
organisms that can
both spoil food and
produce toxins
causing food-borne
illness.
Enzymes & Chemical Reactions
• Enzymes help facilitate chemical reactions that
cause foods to spoil.
• As Chemicals in food are altered, the smell,
appearance, texture and flavor can change.
• ex. Oxidation of apples and potatoes when
sliced; In apples, the specific enzyme that
causes the brownish colour to appear is called
polyphenol oxidase (PPO).
 Signs of Spoilage
• Off-Odors
• Brown meats
• Sour milk
• Mushy Vegetables
 SPOILAGE !!!!

Remember:

When in doubt, throw it out.

What is a food-borne illness?
• A food-borne illness is derived from food.
Majority of these illnesses are caused by
micro-organisms which are called
Pathogens.
• Pathogens are bacteria that cause disease.
(ex. E.coli H7, Salmonella)
 E.Coli H7
• Causes diarrheal
problems which
can cause
complications that
sometimes lead to
death.
 Salmonella

• Causes
gastroenteritis
infections
 Clostridium botulinum
• Clostridium botulinum is a Gram-positive,
rod shaped bacterium that produces the
neurotoxin botulin, which causes the
flaccid muscular paralysis
 Food preservation
• So, how does food preservation work?
• All of the food preservation processes work by
slowing down the activity and growth of disease
causing bacteria, or by killing the bacteria all
together. They also slow down or stop the action
of enzymes which can degrade the quality of the
food.
– Temperature

– Water Activity

– pH
How does food preservation help?
• The goal of food preservation is to minimize
the activity of micro-organisms (pathogens),
enzymes and chemical reactions.
• This will help keep the food free from spoilage
and illness-causing micro-organisms.
Processing Systems

- Drying
- Canning
- Freezing
- Fermentation
- Irradiation
 Canning
Involves heat
sterilization(pasteurizatio
n destroy enzyme and
microbe activity
Most cost effective
method for long term
processing
Problem…loss of quality
Clostridium botulinum
 Freezing

• Freezing is the unit operation in which the temperature of a

food is reduced below its freezing point and a proportion of
the water undergoes a change in state to form ice crystals.
The immobilization of water to ice and the resulting
concentration of dissolved solutes in unfrozen water lower
the water activity (aw) of the food

• Preservation is achieved by a combination of low

temperatures, reduced water activity and, in some foods,
pre-treatment by blanching
 Introduction to Food Preservation Methods.
High-Temperature Systems

Basically, two different food preservation categories are performed

with heat application:
Pasteurisation and sterilisation .

Pasteurisation is defined which is able to destroy pathogenic life

forms, and the most part of those vegetative microorganisms in
foods ; moreover, enzymes are reported to be inactivated with
pasteurisation treatments

Sterilization is defined as the destruction of all microbial forms,

including spores.
Low-temperature pasteurisation may be used for beers and wines,
while milk for cheesemaking purposes is expected to be heated at
75ºC at least for 15 s. HTST and high-temperature pasteurisation
techniques are used for milk and fresh milk.
• A) Indirect method. In detail energy is supplied by
means of an indirect steam injection system; fluids are
forced to pass through close heat exchanger plates.

• B) Direct system. The preheated food and the injected

heating medium (steam) are in direct contact for a
few seconds; subsequently, under-vacuum cooling is
required, similarly to pasteurisation treatments, with
the aim of eliminating extra water (a certain
volumetric augment is observed in the process).
 Cold Preservation
• The cold slows down until it stops degradative (chemical and
enzymatic) reactions inside the food. This effect is mainly due to
the inhibition of microbial activity.

• Enzymes: they are not denatured and therefore inactivated, but

their action is inhibited (rendered useless) in relation to the low
temperature of the food.

• Moreover, the inhibitory action of low temperatures occurs with

the subtraction of free water from the system because of ice
formation with the consequent increase in the concentration of
extracellular solutions and the dehydration of microbial cells.
• There are two different methods of food preservation by cold
storage refrigeration and freezing systems. The first method,
refrigeration preservation, concerns the storage of food
commodities at temperatures low enough to slow down
degradative (chemical and enzymatic) reactions inside stored
products; in addition, water must remain liquid.
 Dehydration

• The term ‘dehydration’ means the progressive

reduction of water content inside foods with the aim of
inhibiting microbial spoilage; essentially, this process
has microbiostatic effects. However, three different
processes can be named ‘dehydration’:
a) Concentration
b) Drying
c) Freeze-drying.
 Food Drying
Most ancient method of food processing. Drying is
historically well known: this method implies the
heat treatment of solid or liquid products with the
aim of removing large water amounts: the final
aqueous content should not exceed 15 %.

Dehydration/drying stops/slows : respiration,

enzyme activity and microbial acitivity
Sun drying, heat drying, freeze drying