You must be a member to access this exclusive content!

Silver membership gives you:

  • Exclusive access to every article from our back issue archive
  • Our regular email newsletter

Or become a subscriber and also get:

  • Six issues of New Food (printed magazine)

Join now >>

Issue 3 2008

Nestlé cocoa processing and chocolate manufacturing

Issue 3 2008 / 18 August 2008 / Klaus Zimmermann, Head of Product Technology Centres and R&D Centres, Nestec S.A. and Hilary Green, Head of R&D Communications, Nestlé S.A.

Nestlé Chocolate Processing Research and Development has a long 100 year history, and is an important part of Nestlé’s rich innovation heritage. The ‘grandfathers’ of Nestlé’s chocolate history were François-Louis Cailler, Charles-Amédée Kohler and Daniel Peter. The history of Swiss innovation in chocolate started in the 19th century with Daniel Peter’s invention of milk chocolate in 1875. The Nestlé label was used for the first time in 1904, following the merging of Kohler’s and Peter’s companies. Cailler’s company was subsequently added in 1911. We have come a long way since then.

(more…)

Tagged with: , , ,

Optimal drying is no easy task

Issue 3 2008 / 18 August 2008 / Maarten Schutyser, Maykel Verschueren, Han Straatsma, Hadiyanto, Coen Akkerman, Peter de Jong, NIZO food research

Drying processes in the food industry often operate at a suboptimal level. The most important reason for this is that to obtain optimal drying, a complex balance must be found among variables such as energy costs, product quality, dryer design and safety. Therefore, there is a need for a systematic approach and concrete solutions. NIZO food research has developed a step-by-step optimisation approach that not only makes use of process and product scans, but simulation techniques such as CFD (Computational Fluid Dynamics).

(more…)

Tagged with: , , , , , , , ,

Measurement of water dynamics by low-field NMR

Issue 3 2008 / 18 August 2008 / Dr Hanne Christine Bertram. Senior Project Scientist, University of Aarhus

Water is a major constituent in many foods. For example, in several of our basic food items such as muscle-based foods and vegetables, water is the dominating component and is in many ways of primary importance for the quality of these products. Low-field proton NMR relaxometry is an excellent technique for studying water properties in complex systems such as food.

(more…)

Tagged with: , , ,

Mapping food composition using NIR hyperspectral imaging

Issue 3 2008 / 18 August 2008 / S.J. Millar, M.B. Whitworth, A. Chau, Campden & Chorleywood Food Research Association and J.R. Gilchrist, Gilden Photonics Ltd

Near infrared (NIR) spectroscopy is widely used in the global agri-food industry for the non-destructive assessment of both the compositional and physical characteristics of a wide range of raw materials and finished products. This is particularly so in the cereals and related industries where, following the commercial development of suitable NIR instrumentation in the 1970s, the technique rapidly became the main means of determining a range of compositional properties which form the basis of trading operations worldwide.

(more…)

Tagged with: , , , , , , ,

A perspective on actual technologies and future developments

Issue 3 2008 / 18 August 2008 / Giuseppe Mensitieri, University of Naples Federico II and Giovanna Giuliana Buonocore, Institute for Composite and Biomedical Materials – National Research Council

In this contribution, the topic of Modified Atmosphere Packaging (MAP) is reviewed by describing the actual status of this technology and its possible developments, which are mainly related to the combination of MAP with other preservation technologies. Among them, particular attention is devoted to active packaging with antimicrobial properties.

(more…)

Tagged with: , , ,

The risks of psychrotrophic Clostridium botulinum in MAP and vacuum packed chilled foods

Issue 3 2008 / 18 August 2008 / Greg Jones, Senior Research Officer for the Preservation, Processing and Spoilage Group, Campden & Chorleywood Food Research Association

Foodborne botulism is a severe illness that is caused by the consumption of foods containing a neurotoxin produced by a bacterium called Clostridium botulinum. Very little of this toxin is required to cause illness; for example, in 2002, a 35 year old man put a piece of baked potato in his mouth and then spat it out again as it tasted bad. He ingested enough toxin to put him in hospital for six and a half months4.

(more…)

Tagged with: , , ,

Major boost for food and drink industry

Issue 3 2008 / 18 August 2008 / Martin Lowe, Managing Director, CenFRA Ltd

Figures suggest that since the start of the 21st century, there has been a three-fold increase in the use of automation and robots in the global food sector. However, many food and beverage producers in the UK appear reluctant to adopt this technological advance.

(more…)

Tagged with: , , ,

A new generation of natural and nutritious pleasure-foods

Issue 3 2008 / 18 August 2008 / Joy Wilkinson, Mark Berry, Peter McClure and Susie Turan, Unilever Plc

Key driving forces for new foods are naturalness and nutrition. Consumers also expect pleasurable eating experiences. Unilever have recently launched “Frusi” , a completely new concept in ice cream that addresses the ‘enjoyment versus health’ paradox – the idea that something that tastes good cannot be healthy and vice versa. Moreover, Frusi is the first of a new generation of natural and nutritious pleasure-foods that is eaten directly from the freezer.

(more…)

Tagged with: , , , , , ,

An introduction to food safety and HACCP law

Issue 3 2008 / 18 August 2008 / Carol Wallace, Principal Lecturer, University of Central Lancashire and Sue Powell, Co-ordinator for the North West Teaching Public Health Network

All businesses need to make sure that they operate within the law for a wide range of measures, including health & safety, environmental issues, weights and measures, et cetera. For food businesses, it is crucial that the food sold does not endanger public health, therefore adequate control systems must be in place. In the UK and EU, food safety requirements are clearly identified in legislation so it is important that all food businesses are aware of and keep up to date with changes in food safety laws.

(more…)

Tagged with: , , , ,

Breathing new life into hydrocolloids

Issue 3 2008 / 18 August 2008 / Dr Pretima M. Titoria, Section Manager: Ingredients, Leatherhead Food International

Food and drink manufacturers are under relentless pressure from consumers to produce products that can not only deliver exciting textures and tastes, but can also be healthy and shelf-life stable. This is then reflected in the challenge posed to the hydrocolloid suppliers and manufacturers, who must deliver thickeners, stabilising agents and gelling agents with specific functionalities that can meet consumer demand.

(more…)

Tagged with: , , ,