Circular Bioeconomy: Novel Processes and Materials for Food Preservation

Abstract

[EN] Food preservation is a set of procedures and resources aimed at blocking the action of external and internal agents that may alter the original characteristics of food. It has implications regarding aspects of food quality and food safety since it delays the deterioration of organoleptic and nutritional properties and prevents toxicity and contamination. Alteration agents can be grouped into physical (e.g., mechanical damage, temperature, humidity, air, and light), chemical (e.g., browning or rancidity reactions), and biological (e.g., enzymes, macro-, and microorganisms) agents. The food industry has traditionally made use of a combination of different processes and materials to ensure food preservation. These techniques have been classically grouped into two methods, those based on the use of temperature (e.g., pasteurization, sterilization, refrigeration, and freezing) and non-thermal methods (e.g., dehydration and drying processes, the application of electromagnetic waves, radio frequency, salting, curing, acidification, pickling, glazing, smoking, etc.).