THE DEFINITIVE MEASURE OF AN IDEAL PRODUCT FORMULATION IS OPTIMIZED SHELF LIFE. Proteins need to remain stabilized to ensure product freshness both before and after it reaches the hands of the consumer.
Products must maintain their integrity for the duration of their shelf life. The expected taste and texture of a product must be realized from manufacturing to consumption.
Meat, Poultry, Seafood (MPS) Open/Close
MPS
Meat, poultry and seafood products are vulnerable and require proper processing and handling along with a correct selection of ingredients to maintain shelf life, hinder bacterial growth and preserve flavors. Sliced products especially need additional formulation considerations due to the higher risk of handling and increased contact surface after cooking.
Enhanced shelf life can be achieved with the use of phosphates through sequestration of iron which delays the oxidation of fats and development of off flavors. Products with higher pH-values are at risk of faster bacterial growth. Processing that incorporate ingredients with too high pH-values for optimizing yields require more adjustment using phosphate blends that bring high protein activation and adequate pH-value. Selecting the right ingredients earlier in the development cycle will ensure proper formulation and ingredient performance.
The key is to select the right ingredients for function earlier in the development cycle that deliver optimal yield and texture with adequate shelf life. Reliable performance and consistent quality.
Dairy products are susceptible to destabilization after production which can negatively impact shelf life. They are also some of the best incubators for bacterial growth due to the water, protein, sugars and minerals present. In process cheese applications, phosphates can hydrolyze and shorten the structure or network of protein, fat, and water. This will have an impact on maintaining firmness, melt, and stretch.
Phospate salts allow for the peptization of insoluble calcium in para-casein to sodium caseinate which helps extend shelf life. Sodium caseinate efficiently emulsifies the free fat and stabilizes the network during heat treatment. The heat treatment (pasteurization, retort, UHT) kills dangerous microorganisms which allows for the extended shelf life of process cheeses in comparison to natural cheeses.
A simple heat treatment can extend shelf life from days to weeks or months in good food safety level.
If a beverage is not buffered correctly, or if the metal cations are not sequestered, the possibility of protein precipitation and age gelation increases as the shelf life is extended. The correct selection of a phosphate specialty can eliminate protein sedimentation in dairy beverages.
As the shelf life of dairy and plant-based beverages is extended, free calcium/magnesium will interact with proteins causing precipitation. High heat treatment of beverages leads to age gelation during shelf life due to disassociation of protein complexes and formation of a three-dimensional protein matrix which appears as a thick gel.
Phosphate salts help extend shelf-life of beverages through preventing protein to protein interactions, reactions with insoluble calcium salts and protein, stabilize pH in the system which prevent proteins from aggregating due to nearing the isoelectric point. They also slow the disassociation of protein complexes which leads to age gelation.
