CHAPTER FIVE

FOOD SAFETY & PRESERVATION

 Learning objectives

 After the completion of this chapter you will be able to:

 Identify the five keys for food safety
 Analyze quality control of food at different stages
 Define food protection and preservation
 Identify different food protection methods
 Analyze the difference between different food
preservation methods

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 Food safety

 Sanitary practice in food industries is the systematic control

of environmental conditions during at all stages of food
chain in such a manner that avoid food contaminating agents.
 Generally the protection of foods from deleterious effects
should begin at the source and should end when consumed.
Source
Processing
Transport
Storage
Distribution
Preparation
Serving

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 Five keys to Safer food

1. Keep Clean
 Wash hands before handling food and often during
preparation
 Wash hands after going to toilet
 Wash and sanitize all surfaces in equipment for food
preparation-protect kitchen from insects , pets
2. Separate raw and cooked food-
 Separate raw meat , poultry and seafood from other foods
 Use separate utensils for handling raw foods
 Store food in containers to avoid contact between raw and
cooked foods

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 Five keys to Safer food

3. Cook Thoroughly
 Meat, poultry , eggs and Seafood
 Bring soups in stews to boiling (ensure>70degree temp)
 Reheat cooked food thoroughly
4. Keep food at safe temperature
 Don't leave cooked food at room T° >2 hours
 Prompt refrigeration of cooked and perishable food
 Keep cooked food piping hot (>60 °C) prior to serving
 Don’t store food too long even in refrigerator
 Don’t thaw frozen food at room temperature

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 Five keys to safer food

5. Use safe water and raw materials

 Use safe water or treat to make it safe
 Select fresh and wholesome fruits
 Choose foods processed for safety - pasteurized milk
 Wash fruits and vegetables if eaten raw
 Don’t use food beyond expiry date

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 Food Preservation
 Food preservation is a technique by which foods are
kept for intended longer periods without altering their
natural state by applying different techniques.
 The main objective is to:
 Increase the storage life(shelf life) of foods and reduce wastage
 Prevent the development of infectious agents in the foods
 By
 Removing/inactivating of micro-organisms
 Inactivating enzymes
 Removal of insects, worms, rats and other vermin

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 What are the techniques?
 There are several techniques that may be applied to preserve
food.
1. Aseptic technique
 Is a technique of exclusion of contamination/contact with
spoilage agents
 Is by applying artificial covering for the food or consideration of
the natural protective covering of some foods
2. Removal of microorganisms
 This may involve techniques like the washing , trimming and
filtration techniques
3. Maintaining anaerobic conditions
 This is a technique of denial of access to oxygen for organisms
that are aerobic

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 What are the techniques?
4. Temperature control
 High temperature
 Low temperature
5. Reduced water availability
 Drying
 Freeze-drying (lyophilisation)
 Addition of high concentrations of solutes such as sugar or salt
6. Chemical-Based Preservation
 GRAS (Generally Recognized As Safe)
7. Radiation
 Ionizing
 Non-ionizing
8. Microbial Product-Based Inhibition
 Bacteriocins
 Fermentation

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 Food Preservation Principles
 Two general principles are employed in food
preservation.
1. Inhibition priciple
2. Killing principle
1. Inhibition principle
 Food preservation is achieved by inhibition of growth and
multiplication of microorganisms.
 Reduction of water activity (drying & salting)
 Reduction in pH (fermentation & addition of acids)
 Use of preservatives (Sodium benzoate)
 Use of low temperatures (Chilling & freezing)
 Smoking – which has a drying and preservative effect

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 Food Preservation Principles

2. Killing principle
 In this principle, spoilage microorganisms are destroyed
(Killed) in the food, and the food protected against
subsequent contamination by being enclosed in an air tight
container.
 Heat treatment (pasteurization or sterilization)
 Irradiation
 Use of gases (ethylene oxide or ozone)- The gases destroy
both vegetative cells and spores.

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 Food Preservation Methods
 Food can be preserved for extended periods as much in
its natural state with the application of different methods
on the basis of the preservation techniques
 The application of these methods may vary with the
different types of foods
 Preservation methods can work employing different
techniques

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 1. The use of high temperature
 Heat is one of the oldest methods of destroying
microorganisms in food processing and preservation.
 Destruction of microorganisms by heat can be measured by
three methods:
1. Thermal death-time(TDT) - time required at any specified
temperature to inactivate an arbitrary chosen proportion of the
spores
2. Decimal reduction time(D-value) - time in minutes required
to destroy 90% of the cells at a given temperature.
3. F-value - time taken to expose food to destroy spores and
vegetative cells of a particular organism using different
temperatures (time equivalent of sterilization process).

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Thermal profile of the heat treatment process

Bacterial destruction by heat is achieved due to the

function of time and temperature variation

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 1. The use of high temperature
I. Cooking/boiling
 Is the process of heat application to temperatures of
about 100°C for some time.
 Boiling of foods cannot completely destruct all
microorganisms but the vegetative cells of bacteria,
yeasts and moulds.
 Spore of some bacteria & heat resistant microbial toxins
cannot be affected at this temperature except inhibition
of their growth.

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 1. The use of high temperature
 Disadvantage of cooking
 It affects the nutritive value of food
 Gives cooked taste to food
II. Pasteurization
 Is a process of heat treatment of food with
sufficient holding time to assure the thermal
destruction of pathogens and organisms
responsible for fermentation and spoilage
without altering its nutritive value.
 Is a heat treatment process that kills part but
not all of the microorganisms present

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 1. The use of high temperature

 Three methods of pasteurization

 Low temperature long time (63°C for 30 minutes)
 High Temperature short time (72°C for 15 seconds)
 Flash method (88°C for 1-2 seconds)
III. Sterilization
 Is the use of physical or chemical means to eliminate all
microorganisms that are present in the food.
 Sterilization can be achieved by:
 Heating at high temperatures, e.g. 100-140°C
 Irradiation - kills bacteria, spores, and insects as well as
inactivates enzymes.

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 1. The use of high temperature
IV. Blanching
 Is a mild pre- cooking operation, which is often used to
reduce the bacterial load on vegetables by 90%
 It is the application of hot water or steam
 It wilts some bulky vegetables, prevents discolouring of
others, and removes some of the air from the tissue
V. Canning
 Is the application of a thermal sterilization procedure to
products packed in hermetically sealed containers
 It is one of the most widely used modern methods of
processing and preserving food
 It involves the careful preparation of food packed into a
sealed tin, glass or plastic container which is subjected to
definite elevated temperatures(above100°C) for the proper
period of holding time and then cooled
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 1. The use of high temperature
 Processes of canning
1. Preparation of the food - a variety of processes such as
grading, trimming, washing, blanching, precooking, etc are
employed
2. Filling of the container - this is accomplished mechanically or
by hand, requires to be carefully controlled
3. Exhausting – is the removal of air from the container before it
is sealed.
4. Sealing the container
5. Thermal processing- heating for an accurately predetermined
time and temperature
6. Cooling of the container and contents
7. Coding of cans

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 Drying
 Drying is a process by which removing of water content of
food through evaporation by using heat.
 Is most effective when combined with other methods of
controlling microbial growth such as salting
 Advantage  Disadvantage
 Dried foods have low weight  It is a slow operation
and reduced bulk therefore,  It is difficult to get uniform
easily stored and distributed application of heat
 End product may be stored at throughout the product
room temperature

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 2. The use of low temperature
 Low temperature preserve foods by retarding or preventing
the growth of spoilage organisms and by inhibiting the action
of natural autolytic
 Unlike high temperature, cold is not an effective means of
destroying pathogenic bacteria, viruses and toxins in foods
except retarding their multiplication and metabolic activities
 Preservation by low temperature could be achieved by:
 Chilling or
 Freezing temperatures

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 2. The use of low temperature
I. Chilling(refrigeration)
 Involves reducing food temperatures to below danger
zone, but above -1°C.
 Cold storage is normally used at 0°C to 8°C for
preservation of wide variety of food products.
 This temperature range is bacteriostatic and at the same
time slows the reaction rates of both enzymatic and
chemical processes which lead to deterioration and
spoilage.
 The temperatures for refrigeration are determined by the
kind of food, the condition of the food and the desired time
for keeping it.

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 2. The use of low temperature

II. Freezing
 Preservation by freezing is achieved by using temperatures
below 0°C(32°F)
 Is a dehydration method because the water in the food is
transformed to ice, thus making it unavailable for microbial
function.
 Freezing temperature depend on the kind of food and the
intended storage time
 Foods preserved for longer periods of time must be frozen to
below -18°C.
 A low temperature is important if prolonged storage life is
desired

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 4. Fermentation & Pickling
 Both methods work by lowering of the pH of foods.
 Fermentation
 The conversion of carbohydrates to carbon dioxide and
alcohol by yeast or bacteria (helpful).
 Pickling
 Is the immersion of certain food in concentrated natural
acid solution such as vinegar
 Fermented and pickled foods are semi perishable foods
and must be protected from moulds

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 5. Chemicals
 Mode of action:
 Decrease Aw (salt, sugar)
 Influence of ion balnce & pH (organic acids, salt)
 Antimicrobial effect (salt, nitrites)
I. Acid preservatives
 The effects of acids in the development of microorganisms
may be due to the hydrogen ion concentration or to the
toxicity of the un dissociated molecule or the anion
 The acid preservatives most widely used are:
 Benzoates (Sodium benzoate) – yeast & moulds
 Sorbates (Sordid acid or potassium sorbate) - moulds
 Propionates (Na or Ca propionate) - moulds
 Acetic acid - bacteria
 Lactic acid - bacteraia
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 Chemicals

II. Salting
 Salting is the addition of salt(mostly NaCl) to food
 The action of salt on microorganisms is osmotic effect
 The growth of micro organisms is inhibited by creating
hypertonic conditions
 Causes water to pass from bacterial cells to the medium thus
reduce available water for growth
Methods of operation in salting
 Rubbing - rubbing adequate quantity of dry salt into foods
 Immersion - food item is immersed into a concentrated salt
solution

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 Chemicals
III. Sugaring
 Action is similar to salt
 In concentrations of at least 65%, sugar inhibits the growth of
bacteria, yeasts and moulds
IV. Spices
 Spices have inhibitory and toxic effects on microorganisms
 The effect is due to the presence of essential oils
V. Smoking
 Oldest methods used to improve the quality of food
 It accomplishes preservation into two ways:
 Surface drying: removing moisture from the surface of the
food
 The deposition of a thick, brown, oily liquid containing the
bactericidal substance, which act as antiseptic on the surface
of the food
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 Chemicals
VI. Sulphur dioxide, carbon dioxide, benzoic acid
SO2: control carbohydrate deterioration
is toxic to moulds and bacteria
CO2: inhibits the growth of bacterial

VII. Fumigation
Use gaseous chemicals like methyl bromide, hydrocyanic
acid and ethylene oxide
Used in the disinfecting of grain to destroy insect and
microbial infestations
Disadvantage: they can be absorbed readily by liquid or
greasy food products

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 Chemicals
VII. Quality improving agents
 Is the use of chemical compounds, which are used as
additives to protect the nutrient, flavour and physical
property of foods
 Antioxidant additives: maintain food freshness and
prevent spoilage
 Ascorbic acid: prevent or inhibit the activity of enzymes,
prevents the browning of fruits
 Poly-phosphates: control the growth of moulds

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 Radiations
 Radiation - is the emission & propagation of energy through
space or material medium
 Radiations cause microbial death by inactivating cellular
components through energy absorbed within the cell
 Two forms of radiation energy:
 Ionizing energy(gamma rays, X- rays) and
 Non ionizing energy(UV)
 The type of radiation of primary interest in food preservation is
electromagnetic.

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 Radiations
 The effect of preservation by radiation is affected by wave
length of radiation
 The shorter wave length being the most damaging to
microorganisms
 UV light
 is a powerful bactericidal agent, with the most effective
wavelength being 2600 A.
 It is non ionizing and is absorbed by proteins and nucleic acids,
which photochemical changes are produced that may lead to
cell death.
 The mechanism is due to the production of lethal mutations as a
result of action on cell nucleic acids.

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 Radiations
 Gamma rays
 are EM radiations emitted from the excited nucleus of elements
such as Co and Cs, which are important in food preservation.
 This is the cheapest form of radiation since the source elements
are either by products of atomic fission or atomic waste
products.
 They have excellent penetration power
 Beta rays
 a stream of electrons emitted from radioactive substances.
 These rays posses poor penetration power
 X- rays
 are produced by the bombardment of heavy metals with high
velocity electrons(cathode rays ) within an evacuated tube.
 They are the same as gamma rays.

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 Microbial Product-Based Inhibition
 Bacteriocins
 Bactericidal proteins active against related species
 Some lead to DNA mutations
 Some inhibit protein or RNA synthesis
 Example
 Nisin - used in low-acid foods to inactivate Clostridium
botulinum during canning process
 Produced by some strains of Lactococcus lactis

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Thank you!

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