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Evaluation criteria for adaptation of new technologies in industry |
E. J. TUREK, Kraft Foods, Inc., 801 Waukegan Rd., Glenview, IL 60025 Consumer interest in fresher, more nutritious and safer food is driving academic and industrial research into new processes for food preservation. These processes are characterized by their ability to better retain the natural color, texture, nutrition and flavor of food by using novel mechanisms -- and less heat -- to effect the inactivation of pathogens and spoilage microorganisms. Adoption of these new technologies by industry is contingent upon a number of factors. First and foremost is the ability to ensure food safety even with some deviations from planned distribution, storage and use conditions. Second is quality. The new technologies, which generally will involve re-capitalization, and in some cases higher operating costs, must deliver an improvement in product quality that the consumer can clearly see and be willing to pay for. Quality, to the consumer, is an integrated perception which can include such factors as flavor, aroma, texture, appearance, physical properties, nutritional benefits, etc. The last factor is cost. Costs (e.g. capital investment and operating expense) can be constraints to adoption of new technologies, but this is much less of an issue if the benefits the technologies offer have sufficient value to the consumer to justify her expenditure for it. The challenge to the Food Industry will be to identify those product applications which take best advantage of the new technologies, provide a beneficial cost/value proposition to the consumer and ensure that products preserved in new ways can continue to deliver safe and wholesome food.
Session 22, Establishing processing criteria in nonthermal food preservation
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