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Other non-thermal treatments to control pathogens in muscle foods |
G. TEWARI, Zero-Ox Systems, Inc., 301 S. Frio St, Suite 102, San Antonio, TX 78207 Presently, most of the foods are preserved commercially by thermal treatments, i.e., by employing ultra high temperature (UHT) or high temperature short time (HTST) processes, or drying or freezing. Although heating inactivates enzymes and microorganisms, the organoleptic and nutritional properties of the food suffer because of protein denaturation and the loss of vitamins and volatile flavors. Thus, extending the shelf life of food by heat treatment is not only energy intensive but in most cases adversely affects the flavor, chemical composition and nutritional quality of the preserved food. There is a great need for a non-thermal method for inactivating microorganisms that is economical, compact, energy efficient, safe, socially and environmentally acceptable, and which does not adversely affect nutrition, texture and flavor of the treated food. The consumer demand and awareness for quality foods are also increasing. The paper deals in great detail about non-thermal food preservation with major emphasis on recently commercialized or close to being commercialized non-thermal technologies. Non-thermal technologies such as hydrostatic high pressure processing (HHP) and active packaging concepts have been employed for food preservation. HHP has been employed to significantly reduce the microbial counts for different food products, including, but not limited to muscle foods. Different strains of microorganisms have been used to determine the efficacy of HHP. In addition, active packaging technology, such as oxygen scavenging technology, has been used to prevent microbial growth. Different commercial applications of these technologies for fresh and processed meat industry will be discussed. Hydrostatic high pressure processing (HHP) and active packaging technology has the potential of extending the shelf life of meat based products. Commercialization of non-thermal technologies such as HHP and active packaging will lead to better quality food products with extended shelf life.
Session 4, Recent developments in post harvest intervention technologies to control microbial pathogens in muscle foods
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