Chapter ten - Validation and safety of reformulated products (shelf-life testing)

Abstract

This chapter begins by discussing the factors affecting the quality and shelf life aspects of various food and beverage products. Safety from pathogenic microorganisms is the most important factor when considering the shelf life of foods and beverages, but other factors that limit shelf life include spoilage, also by microorganisms, and physicochemical changes. Reformulated products must be reevaluated with respect to these parameters to ensure safety and shelf life outside of sensory quality. Quite often reformulation of products may involve the reduction of targeted negative ingredients such as salt or sugar. However, these ingredients are also important preservatives and subsequent reductions must be monitored in new variants for physiochemical changes, safety and shelf life in parallel with sensory testing. Physicochemical and microbiological processes can also result in deleterious sensory quality which can affect the different sensory modalities appearance, aroma/flavor, taste, and texture. In addition, spoilage and physicochemical changes can also ultimately result in the development of off-flavors. All food and beverage products do not exist without some form of packaging, and to a great extent, packaging also determines stability and shelf life. Reformulated products should be evaluated in package and where preservatives are reduced or where compensatory processes have been put in place to obtain suitable safety, shelf life, and sensory quality. The principal sensory changes that occur in foods and beverages involve changes to appearance, aroma, flavor, and texture, and to a great extent these changes are also indices of shelf life and quality. These parameters will be discussed in the present chapter in detail for a range of foods and beverages. This chapter will thus discuss the microbiological, sensory and physicochemical approaches employed for the shelf life determination of a selection of foods and beverages in the context of reformulation.