Enzymes in the food industry

Abstract

The use of enzymes such as rennet in cheese making and barley amylases in brewing is as old as the food and beverage industry itself. However, the production of the amylase represents the first example of the industrial production of an enzyme for use in the food industry. The quantity and variety of enzymes used in the food and beverage industry has increased dramatically in the past decade. (Godfrey and Reichelt, 1983; Peppler and Reed, 1987). More than 20 different enzymes are regularly used in the food and beverage industry at the present time. Some of those are shown in Table 8.1. The conversion of starch to different commercial products, such as glucose and maltose syrups and dextrin preparations, represents the major application of food enzymes (Fig. 8.1) having a market value in excess of $100 million in 1988 (West, 1988). The use of enzymes in the dairy industry for cheese making and for the production of low lactose dairy products is the second largest market at $65 million.