Food Processing and Preservation Quiz

Study Notes

Food processing is the transformation of raw ingredients into food products that can be eaten by physical or chemical means.
Food preservation slows or stops food spoilage by various methods, including drying, freezing, pickling, and irradiation.
Benefits of food processing and preservation include increased food safety, improved nutrition, longer shelf life, and increased economic opportunities.

Food processing is any method used to process food to reduce the number of undesired microorganisms and improve its stability and safety margins to make it more suitable for human consumption.
It includes any physical process, chemical process, or a combination of the two that changes the physical characteristics of food to make it safer or more convenient to use.
Processing also improves palatability and appearance.

Food preservation is concerned with the control and elimination of the agents of food spoilage.
Methods of food preservation include the addition of chemicals, dehydration, and heat processing.
Heat processing involves subjecting foods to high temperatures that could eradicate most food-spoiling agents.
Canning is a main form of food processing and preservation using heat, where foods are sealed inside cans and heated to about 248°F (120°C) to destroy spoiling agents.

Bacteria and other agents of food spoilage are usually present in foods and in places where they were grown and harvested.
Food spoilage can cause food poisoning when consumed.
Traditional food-preserving methods are used to stop the growth of food-spoiling agents.

Irradiation is a method of preserving food that uses gamma radiation to completely destroy bacteria in foods.
It also slows down the decaying of fruits and vegetables and kills tiny pests with low radiation levels.
However, irradiation is a debatable process, considering that most people view radiation as being harmful to the body.