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The key role played by microbiological testing within a cocoa manufacturing plant

7 July 2011 | By Maurizio Pagano, Microbiology Laboratory Analyst, Quality Department, Kraft Foods UK

Food microorganisms and humans have had a long association whose origins pre-date recorded history. Food, providing nutrients for us, is an ideal culture medium for the growth of microorganisms. Microbial growth is controlled by factors related to the food itself, and also to the environment where the food is being…

Same-day PCR testing of Salmonellain meat: From research to routine application at slaughterhouses

7 July 2011 | By J. Hoorfar, C. Löfström & M.H. Josefsen, National Food Institute, Technical University of Denmark and F. Hansen & S. Mansdal, Danish Meat Research Institute and J. Andersen, Danish Crown A/S and G. Pedersen, TiCan amba

Due to the very short shelf-life of fresh (especially ground) meat, slaughterhouses benefit from faster screening tests to dispatch Salmonella-free meat as soon as possible after slaughter. An increasing number of European countries require that the meat is tested as free for Salmonella before it is imported. This is currently…

Current trends in spray drying research: Understanding the development of particle stickiness enables controlling agglomeration during dehydration

7 July 2011 | By Alessandro Gianfrancesco & Stefan Palzer, Nestle

Spray drying is a widely used technique to produce a broad range of industrial powders. For instance, within Nestle, the largest product volumes such as powdered infant formulas (e.g. NAN®) and pure soluble coffee (Nescafe®) are manufactured through spray drying. The goal for manufacturers of such powders is to make…

Cakes and biscuits; I know what I mean!

7 July 2011 | By Paul Catterall, Bakery Technology Manager, Campden BRI

Rules. We all need rules to exist in our complicated lives. Speed limits are a good example. Very important, they keep us safe on the roads. But we all have our own version of rules: in a 70 mph limit, it’s okay for me to drive at 74 mph, but…

Industry’s approaches to reduce acrylamide formation in French fries

7 July 2011 | By Raquel Medeiros Vinci, Frédéric Mestdagh & Bruno De Meulenaer. NutriFOODchem Unit, Department of Food Safety and Food Quality, Faculty of Bioscience Engineering, Ghent University

In 2002, The Swedish National Food Administration reported relevant amounts of acrylamide in several carbohydrate rich foods when baked at high temperatures (> 120°C) upon frying, baking and roasting. Toxicological studies demonstrated the carcinogenicity of acrylamide in animals and thus indicated potential health risks for humans. Consequently, in 1994, the…

A new EU fisheries policy: Aligning market forces for conservation

7 July 2011 | By Mogens Schou, Advisor to the Danish Minister for Food

The Common Fisheries Policy (CFP) is up for revision. On approaching the CFP’s 30th birthday, the EU imports an increasing 60 per cent of the fish consumed, excess quantities of our marine food potential is wasted, many fishing communities are economically underperforming and years of successive tightening of fisheries regulations…

Natural antimicrobials derived from the cultivated hop (Humulus lupulusL.)

7 July 2011 | By Paul Hughes, School of Life Sciences, Heriot-Watt University

To many, consumers and non-consumers alike, there is an understanding that hops are an essential ingredient for the production of beer. However, the history of hop usage for beer production is not as venerable as beer production itself. The hop plant, Humulus lupulus L., was mentioned as early as the…

From waste product to food ingredient: The extraction of abundant plant protein RuBisCo

13 May 2011 | By Fred van de Velde, Group Leader Ingredient Technology, and Arno Alting, Project Manager Applied Protein Technology, and Laurice Pouvreau, Project Manager Vegetable – Derived Ingredients, NIZO Protein Centre, NIZO food research

Due to an ever-growing population, proteins extracted from existing agricultural side-streams are of high interest for food processors. RuBisCO, being the most abundant protein in the world, is a very good candidate for food applications. However, up to now, the greenish colour associated with RuBisCO preparations made consumer acceptance very…

Rheological properties of chocolate

13 May 2011 | By Bettina Wolf, Division of Food Sciences, School of Biosciences, University of Nottingham

Chocolate is a multiphase confectionary product which is consumed as a treat or in-between meals to overcome hunger. The popularity of chocolate is almost certainly due to its unique eating characteristics. It melts in the mouth, imparting a sensation of cooling. The surfaces of the oral cavity are coated by…

Open innovation and technology scouting

13 May 2011 | By Simon Woolford, Jasper Peters & Matt Hogan, Mars

Open innovation has grown as a topic of interest over the last few years – the phrase is broad and ambiguous enough that many people have claimed its importance for doing business in the new millennium, while at the same time drawing very different meanings from the term. Chesborough coined…

Emerging technologies for food refrigeration applications

13 May 2011 | By Savvas Tassou, Head of School of Engineering and Design, Brunel University

Refrigeration is used in all stages of the food chain, from food processing to distribution, retail and final consumption in the home. The food industry employs both chilling and freezing processes where the food is cooled from ambient to temperatures above 0°C in the former and between -18°C and -35°C…

Methods to evaulate packaging performance

13 May 2011 | By Emma Hanby, Innovation Advisor, Campden BRI

Food packaging is core to managing the delivery of innovative, safe products to the consumer. The consumer has an increasing awareness of the impact of packaging on the environment. With the advent of the Courtauld Commitment to reduce the amount of packaging materials being sent to landfill, an increasing number…

The quality and safety of flexible packaging materials

13 May 2011 | By Kata Galić, Faculty of Food Technology and Biotechnology, University of Zagreb

Food contact materials (FCMs) comprise a broad and complex area, using many different types of materials and articles, as well as many different chemical substances such as additives in the materials and articles. The intent of packaging is to maintain its function of protecting the integrity, quality, freshness and safety…

Screening of acrylamide contents in potato crisps using VIS and NIR technology

13 May 2011 | By Vegard H. Segtnan and Svein H. Knutsen, Nofima AS, The Norwegian Institute of Food, Fisheries and Aquaculture Research

Acrylamide is considered a potential carcinogen and is present at elevated concentrations in different types of heat-treated foods. It is formed during baking, frying and roasting of raw materials from plant origin, particularly potatoes and cereals. Acrylamide is one of the reaction products in the Maillard reaction between the acrylamide…

Overview of food preservation technologies

13 May 2011 | By Dr Paul Gibbs & Dr Evangelia Komitopoulou, Food Safety, Leatherhead Food Research

The control of microbial access and growth in foods from ‘farm to fork’ is important to ensure consumer health and well-being and minimise losses of foods through spoilage. Whilst it seems almost impossible to achieve a good and consistently hygienic production of raw materials, there are many different ways of…