Chapter 10 - Recent progress in aseptic processing of food

Abstract

This chapter focuses on the aseptic processing of low acid foods containing particulates. Aseptic processing and packaging is one of the most dynamic areas of food processing. There are many reasons for interest in aseptic processing. Some of the more important include energy savings, enhanced nutritional and organoleptic properties of the food products, the lack of need for preservatives, and reduced packaging costs. The microwaveability of most aseptic containers also contributes to the growth of aseptic packaging. The Ohmic heater heats and sterilizes food quickly and uniformly, as electrical energy is transformed into thermal energy volumetrically throughout the bulk of the food product. Another heating/sterilizing system under development is the use of high voltage pulsed electric field process heating. High pressure processing not only destroys microorganisms, but also deactivates enzymes and can gel diced fruit to create preserves. The use of corrugation in tubular heat exchange designs has allowed higher heat transfer rates, less burn-on resulting in longer production runs, and wider tube design allowing the tubular heat exchangers to be used to aseptically process significant particulates. The inherent design of the Marlen pump has allowed the largest particulates to be processed.