Heating in food processing

Heating is one of the most essential methods for food preservation mechanism that applied by the food processor to render food products commercial sterile – that is free from pathogenic and spoilage microorganisms likely to grow during the normal distribution and shelf-life of the product.

Conventional heating methods sue external heat sources including hot water and steam. Heat may be transferred by one or more of the three mechanisms of conduction, convection and radiation.

Most industrial heat transfer operations involve a combination of these but it is often the case that one mechanism is dominant.

Heat sterilization of food in containers is an old technology largely attributed to the work of Nicholas’s Appert in the 1800s.

As introduced and developed in the initial stages, the primary focus of canning was safety and shelf stability. The application of heat processes to containers requires not only the ability to heat and cool the container contents efficiently but also the ability to do so while minimizing the stresses imposed upon the container.

Whether electrical or conventional, heating may be broadly classified as unit operations in blanching, cooking, drying, pasteurization, sterilization and thawing and involve raising the product to some final temperature that depends on the particular objective of the process.
Heating in food processing