14F-37 |
The Culinology® Framework for food product development: Application to Hispanic-style seafood products development |
S. F. ALMONACID and M. T. MORRISSEY. Dept. of Food Science & Technology, Oregon State Univ., Astoria Seafood Lab., 2001 Marine Dr., Rm. 253, Astoria, OR 97103-3420 Today’s technological changes coupled with heightened domestic and international competition require companies to develop new products to respond to changing markets. A new trend in new food product development is the blending of the culinary arts with food science to design successful and creative products. This organizational framework is known as Culinology® (Research Chefs Association), which consists of four steps from Concept Design and Specification, to Detailed Design and Prototype. This study describes the research efforts to develop products based on Hispanic recipes with high perishable ingredients like seafood and vegetables by applying a Culinology framework to manage the development process. The hurdle technology was used to extend the shelf life of the products being developed; acidification, high pressure processing (HPP), mild thermal processing and refrigeration were used as means of preservation. The product development team was composed of people in three main specialties; culinary arts, food-technology and business administration. Five initial products were developed as starting points, together with general guidelines of packaging and expected shelf life. A team-based multidisciplinary analysis reduced the number of products to three. The selected products, were subjected to shelf-life tests in which microbiological and organoleptic characteristic over a two month-period were tested. Refrigerated products at 4-5ºC maintained a pH value of 4.2. Microbiological results showed lag phase periods from 3.6 to 7.8 days and an expected shel-life of 25 to 45 days, when APC reached a value of 106 cfu/g. Results led to the elimination of one product, while two products were chosen for the final stages of product refining and marketing. The culinology framework proved to be an efficient link between chefs and food scientists, bringing a multidisciplinary approach to product development and opening new opportunities for small and mid-size companies.
Session 14F, Product Development: General
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