The irradiation and chemical additives like methods of food conservation

Biopreservation

¡Hola! Bienvenidos a la 1ra edición de la

revista “Food innovations”, pensada y

creada por los estudiantes del tercer

semestre de Ign. Agroindustrial Angarita

Miguel, Ramos Maria Andreina y Barrios

Nieves e impulsado por la profesora de

la asignatura Ingles II, Doravit Jiminez.

Esperamos que este ejemplar sea de su

agrado y le sirva para conocer las nuevas

tecnologias que se estan implementando

en la agroindustria.

Carta Editorial

2

The irradiation and chemical additives like methods of foodconservation

Some of the future methods of

food preservation are

irradiation and chemical

additives. Although these

methods are currently in use,

they are expected to expand and

develop further. Irradiation of

food is the process of exposing

food to ionizing radiation. This

process can alter the bacteria,

microorganism or virus’ DNA,

without harming the food.

Irradiation is attractive because

of its selective targeting. It is

already used on non-food items.

“The molecular bonds in the

microbial DNA are the main

targets of the irradiation, but

DNA and RNA synthesis,

denaturation of enzymes and

cell membrane alterations may

also be affected”. The process of

irradiation opens the possibility

to process a large number of

foods in great quantities,

however it can be expensive.

The buildings for such a process

require specific infrastructure

and construction that is both

expensive and time consuming.

“The Food and Agriculture

Organization (FAO), the

International Atomic Energy

Agency (IAEA), and World

Health Organization (WHO)

concluded in their report, that

any food irradiated up to a

maximum dose of 10 kGy is

considered safe and

wholesome”. Essentially three

things were concluded in their

report:

1. It won’t lead to toxicological changes in the food

that will negatively affect our health.

2. The technology won’t increase the microbial risk of

the consumer.

3. Irradiation won’t lead to nutritional losses.

However, most consumers are still radiation-phobic

despite these positive results. They aren’t willing to

buy something that has, in their mind, been radiated

and burned to safety.

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The irradiation and chemical additives like methods of foodconservationAnother process is the addition of chemicals to preserve the freshness of the food. Consumers

feel that this is a risk because of the unnatural state the food and their bodies are subjected to.

New research has shown that even the most susceptible foods such as a ham and pepperoni

sandwiches can be made to last years. In the TIME article, researchers added chemicals to

the sandwich to ensure the oxygen, moisture and other moist areas did not spread mold or

microorganisms that would harm the freshness or integrity. Lauren Oleksyk , leader of the

food-processing, engineering and technology team at the U.S. Department of Defense

Combat Feeding Directorate mixed water-absorbing ingredients including glycerol and

sorbitol into the filling. They also increased the use of fine, edible polymer films, which are

undetectable in the mouth. These were added to combat moisture that would be detrimental

to the sandwich as it provides a good breeding ground for microorganisms and bacteria. In

addition to the water absorbing ingredients, Oleksky’s team also added oxygen eliminators.

It sounds more intimidating than it is; essentially it is the process of adding oxygen-

scavenging chemicals. Oxygen increases the possibility of spoilage to the food. By adding

these chemicals, it limits the microorganism’s chance to grow and thrive, and also inhibits

the sandwich’s ability to change chemically.

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GM foods that include modified DNAand/or protein include fruits,vegetables, corn and soy. Corn and soyare also consumed after modificationsthat remove most/all DNA/protein.

There is broad scientific consensus that food

on the market derived from GM crops poses

no greater risk to human health than

conventional food. However, opponents have

objected to GM foods on grounds including

safety, environmental impact and the fact that

some GM seeds that are food sources are

subject to intellectual property rights and

owned by corporations.

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The Future of FoodPreservation

High-Pressure Processing (HPP)A potentially

groundbreaking and safe process of foodpreservation is high pressurepreservation. Dr. V.M. Balasubramaniam,a food engineer from Ohio StateUniversity, is developing a process wherefood is attacked with 100,000 pounds persquare inch of pressure. In a Discovermagazine article, David Freedmanexplains the process in which HighPressure Processing works. The food ispackaged in a plastic bag and then putinto the first compartment. Thatcompartment is also filled with water, tohelp with the pressure. The secondcompartment is filled with hydraulic fluid,which is used to press the piston betweenthe two compartments. When even morehydraulic fluid is pushed into the secondcompartment, the piston is pushed upinto the first compartment. The waterbecomes more condensed,

and as a result the pressure in the first compartment increases rapidly. After only a few minutes, any

food can be ready to eat. While every other process we have discussed thus far has had some negative

side effects, HPP appears to be the perfect solution. Because no chemicals are added, there is no

contamination or taste alteration to the food. The bacteria in the food remain intact; however they die

due to the pressure-induced dismantlement of their DNA structure. Almost all foods are able to be

pressurized in the machine. The only exception is some veggies and fruits, which get too pulverized.

The only major drawback to HPP is simple – the cost. High-pressure machines typically cost $3

million. This technology is so new, and therefore companies have not found a cheap and efficient way

to mass produce these machines. However, with due time, we expect to see high pressure food

preservation machines available to the public at a reasonable cost. This technology is simply too good

to reserve for large industrial food processing plants.

Dr. V.M.

Balasubramaniam

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and as a result the pressure in the first compartment increases rapidly. After only a few

minutes, any food can be ready to eat. While every other process we have discussed thus

far has had some negative side effects, HPP appears to be the perfect solution. Because

no chemicals are added, there is no contamination or taste alteration to the food. The

bacteria in the food remain intact; however they die due to the pressure-induced

dismantlement of their DNA structure. Almost all foods are able to be pressurized in the

machine. The only exception is some veggies and fruits, which get too pulverized. The

only major drawback to HPP is simple – the cost. High-pressure machines typically cost

$3 million. This technology is so new, and therefore companies have not found a cheap

and efficient way to mass produce these machines. However, with due time, we expect to

see high pressure food preservation machines available to the public at a reasonable cost.

This technology is simply too good to reserve for large industrial food processing

plants.

Esquema de funcionamiento de una unidad de HPP

Una ventaja del procesado por

altas presiones es que respeta

la calidad sensorial y

nutricional del alimento

debido a la ausencia de

tratamiento térmico,

permitiendo mantener la

frescura original a lo largo de

su vida útil.

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Freedman, David H. (2 Sept. 2011. Web. 4 May 2012). [ En linea ] Discover Magazine. Bright, Hi-Tech Future of Food Preservation.Disponible: http://discovermagazine.com/2011/sep/17-impatient-futurist-hi-tech-future-food-preservation

What is High Pressure?(2012).[ En linea ]. Hiperbaric. Disponible: http://www.hiperbaric.com/en/high-pressure

Food preservation. (16 June 2015). wikipedia: Fundación Wikimedia, Inc. Disponible: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Food_preservation

Biotechnologies in Agro-industry in Developing Countries (July 2010). [ En linea ] fao: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Disponible: http://www.fao.org/biotech/sectoral-overviews/agro-industry/en/

Genetically modified food. (13 June 2015).Wikipedia:Wikimedia Foundation, Inc. Disponible: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Genetically_modified_food

Bibliografía

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P R O C E S O S S

R O T U L M B G O

E H F Z K U O Ñ T

S G D X G Y V P N

E T E Z V T M J E

R E F N M P G Z M

V W A D E Ñ K S I

A A Y L U T Q A L

C I M A Q U I N A

I O P R Q E F C J

O S O V I T I D A

N B W U X O C N M

1.- PROCESOS2.-PRESERVACION3.-ALIMENTO4.-GENETICA5.-ADITIVOS6.-MAQUINA

Entretenimiento

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Angarita Miguel,

Ramos Maria Andreina

Barrios Nieves

profesora de la asignatura

Ingles II, Doravit Jiminez.

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