Heat treatment in food processing

Currently, heat processing or thermal processing is the most commonly used method for the conservation, cooking and enzymatic inactivation of raw biomaterials.

It is an efficient and reliable process reducing the risks associated with food-borne pathogens and diminishing the activity of several enzymes, and it is also an economical technology for the food industry in terms of energy.

Thermal processing involves heating foods in hermetically sealed containers for specific time at a specific temperature to eliminate the microbial pathogens that endanger public health and microorganisms and enzymes that deteriorate food during storage.

High temperature invariably kills food-borne microbial cells mainly because it denatures nucleic acids structural proteins, and other functional proteins such as enzymes.

Another key attribute of the application of heat in food manufacture is to bring about a modification of the texture and taste of foods, so facilitating the wide variety of foods now available to the consumer.

Food heat treatments can be classified into two groups: sterilization and cooking (combined with sterilization). Low viscous liquids (milk, fruit juices etc) are usually sterilized using and HTST process or high temperature short time.

Heat treatment for complex food fluids is considerably improved when newer systems such as microwave heating, inductive or ohmic heating are used.

When heat treatment is done above 100° C it is known as sterilization, and when it is done below this temperature it is called pasteurization, Blanching is also a kind of pasteurization in which the natural enzymes in fruits and vegetable are inactivated.
Heat treatment in food processing