Food Technology
Food technology focuses on achieving the right structure of the finished food product under given processing conditions. Many food systems are multi-phase: emulsions, dispersions, foams or combinations. Creating a multi-phase system as well as stabilising it, is also a serious challenge for food technologists.
The common ingredients of choice are starches, emulsifiers, thickeners and gelling agents. Phosphates and proteins are also used. In carefully choosing these ingredients a pourable, pumpable, spreadable or cut-able food product can be made. Key functionalities like fat and water binding, crystallisation control, rheology characteristics, freeze-thaw or bake stability and mouthfeel are the result of precise selection of these ingredients.
Processing conditions have a major influence on the performance of the ingredients. The intensity of mechanical shear and heat treatments should be taken into consideration. Ingredients capable of withstanding the processing conditions, in combination with the pH of the product, should be selected. Most ingredients do not act alone, in fact ingredient interactions can be beneficial. In order to achieve such interactions, the ingredients need to be in the right state, they must be soluble. Process conditions should be chosen to guarantee that ingredients dissolve at the correct rate and in the right amount of time.
In short: a clear vision of the required finished food properties (pourable emulsion), together with the desired ingredient functionalities (e.g. waterbinding, emulsification) and the given process conditions make a successful evaluation of ingredients possible. This first evaluation step is mainly to eliminate ingredients which will not perform under the circumstances or which do not display the required functionality. A second evaluation step concentrates on functionality in more depth and other attributes such as cost/performance, efficiency and labelling also play a role.
- Thickening and gelling agents
- Starches (native and modified)
- Emulsifiers
- Proteins
- Dairy ingredients
- Phosphates
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