What is food preservation? Food is a source of energy for all of us. Unhealthy or spoiled food is the major cause of diseases in humans. This is known as food poisoning. To prevent this the food needs to be preserved in a variety of ways. “Food preservation is the technique to prevent food spoilage, food poisoning, and microbial contamination in food.” One of the ways of food preservation is aseptic food packaging. Let us read what it is about
What is Aseptic food packaging?
Aseptic processing is a processing technique in which commercially thermally sterilized liquid products are packaged under sterile conditions in pre-sterilized containers to produce shelf-stable products that do not require refrigeration. Taking the seriousness and importance of sterility of these products, proper packaging hence becomes extremely important. Aseptic packaging is a specialized manufacturing process in which food, pharmaceuticals, or other contents are sterilized separately from the packaging. The contents are then placed in the container in a sterile environment.
Advantages of Aseptic Packaging
● The advent of this packaging technique has enabled the adoption of modern technology and replacing traditional; canning techniques.
● The adoption of this packaging has reduced the use of preservatives and the need for refrigeration
● The biggest advantage is the achievement of gaining room temperature product stability.
● In general, liquid products such as milk and juices are packaged aseptically. The process essentially involves ultra-high temperature sterilization of liquid food out of the package. The process quickly heats and cools the product before filling it. The process also ensures a minimal thermal load on the product and ensures safety.
● Aseptic Packaging is portable, lightweight, and not fragile. Hence it has a very high degree of convenience.
● The quality of the product is way more assured by the adoption of this technique. This can be said because the aseptic process employs lower heat. Hence, better retention of nutrients which is as near as to the original texture, taste, and color.
Disadvantages of Aseptic Packaging
● The aseptic system is relatively expensive but considering convenience, savings in refrigeration, no preservative, etc. the add-on benefits only justify the added cost.
● Advanced technology in the form of aseptic bag packaging has also been tried to make the system more affordable for the consumer. The combination of materials was polymer substrates with aluminum foil but has not prevailed considering affordability and value proposition.
● Since it is a multilayer laminate, recycling the used disposable packaging was a challenge. The composition generally consists of 74% paper, 24% polymer film, and 6% aluminum.
● Presence of overcooked flavor in some products.
● The hardest part of any aseptic filling process is ensuring an aseptic environment. Either an isolator or a barrier system with restricted access & # 40; RABS & # 41; can achieve a cleanroom environment in accordance with ISO 5 that meets regulatory requirements. Hence, the licensing process and constant up-to-the-mark performance with every product produced are extremely essential. Matching every batch to the set benchmark is a tough job.
For more articles on food Marketing, agrotech, and technology related to the Indian food industry, check out FMTmagazine. FMT Magazine is an edition of the German publication. It is a comprehensive food and beverage magazine that connects the buyers and the sellers through content that is of international quality. The magazine over the entire spectrum of the food industry including content on policies. FMT Magazine stands for Food Marketing & Technology Magazine. The magazine carries articles on ingredients, processing, packaging, food safety, and marketing, along with interviews with top personalities in the Indian food industry.
