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ARS Home » Southeast Area » Raleigh, North Carolina » Food Science and Market Quality and Handling Research Unit » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #386099
Research Project: Influence of Ingredients and Processing Methods on the Safety of Fermented and Acidified Foods

Location: Food Science and Market Quality and Handling Research Unit

Title: BufferCapacity3 an interactive GUI program for modelling food ingredient buffering and pH

Author
item Breidt, Frederick

Submitted to: SoftwareX
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 3/1/2023
Publication Date: 3/14/2023
Citation: Breidt, F. 2023. BufferCapacity3 an interactive GUI program for modelling food ingredient buffering and pH. SoftwareX. 22:101351. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.softx.2023.101351.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.softx.2023.101351

Interpretive Summary: Novel methods have recently been developed for buffering and pH in acidic foods. These methods may have a variety of uses for the acid and acidified food industry, including determining the pH stability of foods, aiding in product formulation, and clarifying the regulatory status of these foods. It is important to assure that the pH of acidic foods is correctly adjusted to prevent botulism and potential survival of acid resistant disease-causing bacteria. A user-friendly software program (BufferCapacity) was developed to aid food manufacturers in predicting pH and pH stability of foods. The program implements previously published models, with graphics, on-screen hints, highlights, and a step-by-step approach for the pH modelling process. This may aid manufacturers with new product development or assessing pH stability of existing products. The program may also be used by regulatory agencies to help make regulatory decisions about the safety of acidic foods.

Technical Abstract: For many acidic foods, including fermented and acidified vegetables, salsas, salad dressings, and others, maintaining a pH below 4.6 is a critical control to prevent botulism. The pH of acidic foods is controlled by acid content, low acid ingredients, and buffering; however, buffering of foods remains largely uncharacterized. A Matlab GUI program "BufferCapacity3" was developed to automate the process of quantifying the buffers present in foods utilizing acid/base titration data. The BufferCapacity3 program may be used to aid product development and help assure pH control and safety of acidic foods.