Strategic
devices
It
is imperative to translate the skill of processing traditional food
into business opportunities, assert Dr V Prakash and Dr KSMS Raghava
Rao from CFTRI
Food
habits in India are traditional in nature and are varied across the
country. Changing consumer mentalities, busier schedules, and a growing
number of working women has collectively led to an increase in the demand
for ready-to-eat traditional foods. These foods are based on a variety
of raw materials such as cereals, milk, fruits and vegetables, and are
prepared in large varieties in the country. As a segment of the food
industry, traditional foods is the largest, both in terms of tonnage
and value. However, production is done at different scales, mostly in
the nrecognised sector, barring a few large-scale industries. Most of
the operations are manual at best batch type even in relatively large-scale
units. This causes variation in quality and shelf life. Hence, the need
of the hour is automation of the traditional food industry, irrespective
of the scale.
Equipment
with large potential
Food
processing is a highly complex multi-disciplinary activity involving
the application of chemistry, biochemistry, biophysics, nutrition, microbiology
and also different branches of engineering. Today, consumers have an
increasing concern regarding food safety and sensory qualities, which
makes them look for minimally processed foods with least distortions
to the profile of the food during processing.
Dehydration
and drying equipment: The efficiency of the existing equipment used
at large for drying and dehydration is very low (say, 10-15 per cent
only). Adaptation of conventional equipment used in the chemical industries
for food processing is difficult mainly due to factors such as high
moisture content, thermal labile nature with respect to notation as
well as colour and most importantly, rate of drying which influences
food characteristics significantly. Hence there is a need for design
of efficient dehydration and similarly competent drying equipment.
Since
the cost of energy is increasing all over the world, alternate sources
of energy such as solar energy and fossil fuels such as LPG (liquid
petroleum gas) will improve the economics and the present status of
the industry. Application of LPG will even enhance the efficiencies
due to the provision for recycling. Solar energy based equipment also
has potential.
For
many years, thermal processing was the main technology for the preservation
of food and extended shelf life, although in most cases loss of fresh
flavours, vitamins, and some physio-chemical characteristics were the
price of the safety and long-term stability. Increasing consumer demand
for new products with very high organoleptic and nutritional qualities
has led to extensive research for new alternatives to food processing.
Looking
ahead
High-intensity
pulsed electric field (HIPEF) processing, a non-thermal process has
been shown to inactivate microorganisms and maintain food quality, potentially
making it the answer to current consumer demands. In addition, the low
processing temperature used in HIPEF allows the process to be energy
efficient, which translates into lower cost and fewer environmental
impacts. HIPEF processing offers almost fresh, minimally processed foods
with little loss of colour, flavour, and nutrients.
Developing
low cost models of the ohmic heater especially for liquid foods also
holds ample scope today. Ohmic heating is one of the earliest applications
of electricity in food pasteurisation. Heat is generated when electricity
is passed through a food item due to electrical resistance. Ohmic heating
is suitable for viscous products and is considered a promising technology
for aseptic processing
of foods.
Microwave
heating is now applied extensively in everyday household use and in
the food industry. Water in food is often the primary component responsible
for dielectric heating. Due to their dipolar nature, water molecules
follow the electric field associated with electromagnetic radiation
as it oscillates at a very high frequency. Such oscillations of water
molecule produce heat. However, many food materials possess very low
values of static conductivity and subjecting them to microwave fields
produces extremely high values of alternating field conductivity; thus,
considerable energy is consumed.
High-pressure
technology can perform a number of functions such as..
.....CONTD
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