The driving factors-1
Dr
Peter Fellows begins his discussion on the developments
in the food processing industry in the 21st century
In
order to supply the major customers, the food processors must meet the
volume requirements and ensure that both products and processes comply
with international standards of quality and management or company-specific
quality requirements. Food processing companies have responded by adopting
strategies to increase their competitiveness and profitability, including
mergers and acquisitions among themselves or with manufacturers in other
countries. A 2005 report noted that 30 companies now account for one-third
of the world's processed food. They have advanced in Information and
Communication Technologies (ICTs) to establish tightly integrated Global
Value Chains (GVCs) that enable food production to be coordinated between
distant sites. This may involve investment in foreign subsidiaries,
subcontracting, licensing agreements, joint ventures or strategic partnerships.
For example, trans-national brewery or soft drink companies that form
partnerships with local companies and use FDI to upgrade the processing
technology, train local staff and fund improved packaging and marketing
in the host country.
Changing
consumer attitudes and preferences
In many countries, since 1990s, there has been significant growth
in per capita income leading to a rapid rise of urban middle classes
and a consumer-led demand for a greater variety of foods. This increased
urban wealth has led to growth in ownership of refrigerators and a higher
demand for shorter-shelf-life chilled foods. Changing lifestyles, family
structures and increased employment of women have raised the opportunity
cost of women's time and also their incentive to seek convenience foods,
particularly readyprepared products that save cooking time. Foods that
are pereived as 'natural' or 'healthy' are gaining market share in most
countries. This has led manufacturers to replace synthetic colourants
and flavourings with natural equivalents and to produce ranges of 'low-fat',
'low-salt' and 'low-sugar' foods. Similarly, growing consumer resistance
to synthetic preservatives has stimulated research into bacteriocins
and the antimicrobial properties of spices and essential oils as natural
alternatives. Consumer interest in healthy foods has opened market opportunities
for products that are broadly characterised as 'functional foods' (or
'nutraceuticals'). The first Genetically Modified (GM) foods were marketed
in 1990s, and by 2005, more than 80 GM crops were grown in 40 countries.
In 2004, the share of crops in global trade that contained GM material
was estimated to be 90 per cent for soyabeans, 80 per cent for maize,
44 per cent for cottonseed and 73 per cent for rapeseed. Soyabeans and
maize are used to produce a very wide range of ingredients for processed
foods – including hydrolysed protein flavourings and lecithin from
soya-and oil, starch, glucose syrups, High-Fructose Corn Syrups (HFCSs)
and monosodium glutamate from maize. However, there remains substantial
controversy between supporters of GM foods, who point to higher yields
and increased farm outputs, and opponents who are concerned over unpredictable
problems with allergenicity or unintended consequences for the environment
from GM genes entering traditional crops or wild plants. GM microorganisms
have not met the same public resistance as GM foods and currently 60
GM microbial enzymes are produced commercially (for example, alpha-amylase
to produce bakery products, soft drinks, beers, wines and starch, and
a range of pectic enzymes used to process soft drinks, beers, wines,
cocoa, chocolate, coffee, tea, fruits and vegetables).
Food
safety and traceability
The microbial safety of foods and absence of contaminants (for
example, glass, oil and so on) are important aspects of food quality,
which have received considerable attention during the past 10–15
years. There have been important developments in rapid techniques for
identification and enumeration of bacteria (for example, Enzyme-Linked
Immuno- Sorbent Assay [ELISA] procedures) and in equipment to detect
and remove contaminants. For example, microprocessorcontrolled colour-sorting
equipment removes contaminants that have the same colour but a different
shape to foods (for example, removing green stalks from green beans).Machine
vision systems sort and grade foods and are also able to remove contaminants.
Xray- sensitive elements coupled to sophisticated computer image processors
are used to detect metals and other solid contaminants in both raw materials
and inside packaged foods; microwave reflectance holography detects
very small contaminants in three dimensions and ultrasound is used to
detect foreign bodies based on differences in acoustic impedances. In
the future, nuclear magnetic resonance imaging may be used to acquire
three-dimensional images of foods and microwave radar and surface penetrating
radar may be used to detect metal fragments. Following increased incidence
of foodborne illnesses in the late 20th century, the HACCP system of
quality management has been introduced to food processing operations
in most countries to supplement national Good Manufacturing Practice
(GMP) and Good Hygiene Practice (GHP) codes. The establishment of GVCs
has led to strengthened methods of food control to reduce the risks
of cross-border transmission of contaminated foods. There have been
significant developments in methods of traceability and software, which
enables processors to readily access traceability data from anywhere
in the supply chain. The risks to processors of having their products
cause illness are immense. Nearly all types of processing equipment
have been redesigned to isolate motors and gearboxes from food contact
areas, make them easier to dismantle for cleaning or incorporate Cleaning-In-Place
(CIP)/Sterilising-In-Place (SIP) facilities. Ozone-based sanitising
vapours have been developed to disinfect both equipment and processing
rooms. There have also been developments in packaging to improve food
safety, including active biopackaging that controls the microbiological
and biochemical changes in foods (for example, wheat gluten films that
slowly release the anti-microbial chemical sorbic acid during storage).
(to be continued).
