Skip to main content
ARS Home » Northeast Area » Wyndmoor, Pennsylvania » Eastern Regional Research Center » Food Safety and Intervention Technologies Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #371141

Research Project: Development of Alternative Intervention Technologies for Fresh or Minimally Processed Foods

Location: Food Safety and Intervention Technologies Research

Title: Non-thermal processing techniques for innovative food processing

Author
item OYEYINKA, SAMSON - University Of Ilorin
item Olanya, Modesto
item ADE-OMOWAYE, BEATRICE - Ladoke Akintola University Of Technology
item Niemira, Brendan

Submitted to: Book Chapter
Publication Type: Book / Chapter
Publication Acceptance Date: 4/15/2020
Publication Date: 12/10/2020
Citation: Oyeyinka, S.A., Olanya, O.M., Ade-Omowaye, B.I., Niemira, B.A. 2020. Non-thermal processing techniques for innovative food processing. Food Science and Technology Trends and Future Prospects. Berlin, Germany: De Gruyter. https://doi.org/10.1515/9783110667462-017.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1515/9783110667462-017

Interpretive Summary:

Technical Abstract: The increase in consumption of ready-to-eat foods and minimally processed produce, due to health-consciousness has been documented in various countries. However, periodic occurrences of pathogenic microbes and outbreaks of foodborne illnesses have provided challenges for pathogen control. Among the foodborne pathogens, Listeria monocytogenes, Salmonella enterica, and Escherichia coli have been invariably implicated in food contamination at various scales. Therefore, innovative food processing based on non-thermal techniques may be essential to meet the consumer demand. Non-thermal food processing techniques could provide the lethality necessary for pathogen inactivation, in addition to maintaining the sensory and nutritional characteristics of foods. Post-harvest food-processing techniques that are most often utilized include: pulsed electric field (PEF), high pressure processing (HPP), ultrasound techniques and various forms of ionizing radiations often applied for pathogen inactivation. For example, In this chapter, examples of the application of HPP and its utility for pathogen control on diverse food types such as meat, dairy products, juices (liquid), and for enhancement of food quality have been presented. Similarly, PEE, ultrasound and radiation technologies for pathogen inactivation have also been presented. However, it is worth noting that differences in mechanisms of pathogen inactivation in non-thermal processing techniques do occur, due to variations in conditions of non-thermal applications, processing times, dosage levels of technologies used, food matrices, and post-harvest conditions. The chapter also outlines how the various non-thermal processing techniques can improve yield, food preservation and quality in addition to pathogen control with examples of the approaches drawn from various food types.