Innovative technologies for food preservation

Abstract

Several techniques have been developed during the 20th century in order to preserve foods. These innovative technologies vary considerably and embrace physical technologies (e.g., high hydrostatic pressure and high-pressure homogenization), electromagnetic technologies (e.g., pulsed electric fields, ohmic heating, microwaves, radio-frequency, and UV-light), acoustic technologies (e.g., ultrasound and shockwaves), and others such as membrane filtration and dense phase CO2. In this chapter, the theoretical background and definition of the technologies are explained together with a description of the equipment, main technological/processing parameters, and some advantages and limitations from a technological point of view.