Question

What are the modern methods of food preservation?

Answer 1

Food preservation: It is a process that helps to limit or stop the spoiling of food.

• Food items tend to get spoilt because of the microorganisms present in them.
• These microorganisms feed on the nutrients present in the food and affect the quality, taste, and nutritive value of the food and make it unfit for human consumption.

Traditionally, food items were preserved using techniques like drying in the sun but in the modern times following methods are used:

Canning: The process of storing processed food in air-tight containers.

• Canning is a modern method of food preservation where food items to be preserved are added to a can along with a liquid (mostly water) and this can is heated at a high temperature.
• This high temperature is maintained for a specific time duration which helps to kill the microorganisms responsible for spoiling the food.
• Examples: Jams, jellies, pickles, tomatoes, and fruits are commonly stored via canning.

Pasteurisation: It is the process where heat is used to process the food in order to kill pathogenic bacteria (harmful and disease-causing) to make the food safe to eat.

• In this method, food is heated at a high temperature for a short time duration.
• Example: Pasteurisation of milk

Refrigeration: It is a method of preserving food where food items are stored in cold conditions like refrigerators.

• This method works by inhibiting the growth of microorganisms like bacteria, yeast, and moulds.
• Examples: Milk, fruits, vegetables, etc. are stored by this method.

Addition of chemical preservatives: Addition of certain chemicals to food items to increase the shelf life of food.

• Chemical preservatives like benzoic acid and sodium benzoate are commonly used to preserve fruits and vegetables.
• These chemicals prevent the growth of microbes such as harmful bacteria which are responsible for the spoiling of fruits and vegetables.