Pasteurization Technologies Employed In The Food Industry
Published by Fred at July 23rd, 2010We can enjoy the great taste of fresh milk thanks to technologies such as pasteurization. The technology is one still in use today, although founded about two centuries ago by a man known as Louis Pasteur. It alone has developed the food industry as it is apparent today.
One may notice that pasteurization isn’t the best in the taste category. While pasteurization is necessary and still makes a great end product, there are those that say the process takes too much flavor out of the item being processed. Where milk is concerned, one can taste the difference by selecting different brands of milk based on how they were sterilized.
Taste isn’t such an issue in the end. The real fact to consider is that pasteurization has been shown to take out helpful enzymes, vitamins, and minerals that are in milk. Often, the milk you see in stores will have been supplemented with such things to put the healthy materials back into the milk. You may see special fortified milk types, although they cost more money.
Some types of pasteurization can make milk last several months without going bad, as you would see with your average grocery store milk container after a week of opening it. Through special processes such as ultra heat treatment, or UHT, and aseptic packaging, milk can last much longer on the shelf. Of course, if you ever opened the carton, you should obey the throwaway date listed on the container.
Don’t forget that the world of pasteurization encompasses much more than milk. There are other foods and liquids that pasteurization has done a world of good for. This would include alcoholic beverages, but also foods like crab and nuts. Imitation crab meat especially is a product that can withstand spoiling, as it can be pasteurized and packaged to be shipped all around the United States. Other items might include cream, soy sauce, honey, and more.
In relation to homogenization, pasteurization is seen as a healthier alternative. Homogenization is a type of sterilization that instead attempts to make the entire milk product the same throughout the body of liquid in the container- effectively “smashing” fat molecules into each other. In the process, proteins and other good materials are being made worthless as they are going to bypass the digestion process, and not be absorbed as they normally would.
Final Thoughts
Heavy machinery and small machinery alike achieve pasteurization. Finding either will be a tough process, however. Start looking on the Internet for brokers who can help out, start going to local auctions, or buy new from a manufacturer to get started in pasteurization.
Learn more about pasteurise and tunnel pasteurizer.