Recent developments in novel freezing and thawing technologies applied to foods

ABSTRACT

This article reviews the recent developments in novel freezing and thawing technologies applied to foods. These novel technologies improve the quality of frozen and thawed foods and are energy efficient. The novel technologies applied to freezing include pulsed electric field pre-treatment, ultra-low temperature, ultra-rapid freezing, ultra-high pressure and ultrasound. The novel technologies applied to thawing include ultra-high pressure, ultrasound, high voltage electrostatic field (HVEF), and radio frequency. Ultra-low temperature and ultra-rapid freezing promote the formation and uniform distribution of small ice crystals throughout frozen foods. Ultra-high pressure and ultrasound assisted freezing are non-thermal methods and shorten the freezing time and improve product quality. Ultra-high pressure and HVEF thawing generate high heat transfer rates and accelerate the thawing process. Ultrasound and radio frequency thawing can facilitate thawing process by volumetrically generating heat within frozen foods. It is anticipated that these novel technologies will be increasingly used in food industries in the future.

KEYWORDS:

• Ultra-low temperature
• ultra-rapid freezing
• ultra-high pressure
• ultrasound

Funding

We acknowledge the financial support by China National Natural Science Foundation (Contract No. 21176104), Jiangsu Province(China) “Collaborative Innovation Center for Food Safety and Quality Control” Industry Development Program, Jiangsu Province (China) Infrastructure Project (Contract No. BM2014051), Zhejiang Province (China) International Cooperation Project (Contract No. 2015C34012), Ningbo (China) International Cooperation Project (Contract No. 2014D10016) which have enabled us to carry out this study.