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Concept
Pasteurization
Summary
Pasteurization or pasteurisation is a process of food preservation in which packaged and non-packaged foods (such as milk and fruit juices) are treated with mild heat, usually to less than , to eliminate pathogens and extend shelf life.
The process is intended to destroy or deactivate microorganisms and enzymes that contribute to food spoilage or risk of disease, including vegetative bacteria, but most bacterial spores survive the process.
The process is named after the French microbiologist Louis Pasteur whose research in the 1860s demonstrated that thermal processing would deactivate unwanted microorganisms in wine. Spoilage enzymes are also inactivated during pasteurization. Today, pasteurization is used widely in the dairy industry and other food processing industries to achieve food preservation and food safety.
By the year 1999, most liquid products were heat treated in a continuous system where heat can be applied using a heat exchanger or the direct or indirect use of hot water and steam. Due to the mild heat, there are minor changes to the nutritional quality and sensory characteristics of the treated foods. Pascalization or high pressure processing (HPP) and pulsed electric field (PEF) are non-thermal processes that are also used to pasteurize foods.
The process of heating wine for preservation purposes has been known in China since AD 1117, and was documented in Japan in the diary Tamonin-nikki, written by a series of monks between 1478 and 1618.
Much later, in 1768, research performed by Italian priest and scientist Lazzaro Spallanzani proved a product could be made "sterile" after thermal processing. Spallanzani boiled meat broth for one hour, sealed the container immediately after boiling, and noticed that the broth did not spoil and was free from microorganisms. In 1795, a Parisian chef and confectioner named Nicolas Appert began experimenting with ways to preserve foodstuffs, succeeding with soups, vegetables, juices, dairy products, jellies, jams, and syrups.
Official source
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