Did you know that more people have become interested in eating food for their health? If you want to learn about food processing, we can help.
In this guide, we’ll answer the question, “What is food processing?”
Want to learn more? Keep reading.
What Is Food Processing?
Businesses process food, so raw ingredients or foods get transformed into new products. Some people will mill grain into flour. Others will crush seeds and get oil.
Farmers will churn milk into butter and mix ingredients to create a batter. Bakers will bake cookies on a massive assembly line.
Meat processing involves techniques like cutting, deboning and removing the guts from carcasses.
Food processing techniques will use technology that’s new and improved. Yet, other food processors will use timeless techniques.
Food processing will offer some benefits to consumers and businesses. Yet, some aspects of food processing can impact your health.
What About Nutrition and Food Processing?
Food processing can have varying effects on nutrition. Some techniques will end up removing nutrients from food.
Refining grains removes the germ and bran. The germ and bran have essential nutrients like iron, fiber, and B vitamins. Look at buying whole wheat or rye flour.
Fermentation can enhance the nutritional quality of your food. Freezing vegetables and fruits after you harvest them can preserve nutrients.
You can eat processed food that has undergone strict and careful packing. Learn more about how food gets processed, so you can supply your family with healthy food.
Try to buy fresh fruits and vegetables when possible. Look at processing your own food at home.
Prevent Harmful Pathogens
Molds, bacteria, and yeasts can cause food to spoil, making it unsafe to eat. Pickling vegetables, fermenting dairy, drying fruit, and salting meat are preservation methods.
Preservation techniques allow people to ship different foods across massive distances. People can stock other products in their stores for a longer time.
Processing will delay or destroy any potential pathogens that could contaminate food.
Dehydration, fermentation, and refrigeration can stop or slow the growth of pathogens. Heat processes like cooking or pasteurization will destroy the pathogens.
Businesses will use food processing techniques to reduce any food safety problems.
Sometimes, the facilities where food gets processed are part of the issue. Massive processing plants will handle volumes of products that arrive from different sources.
If one shipment of spinach from a farm has E.coli, then it could end up contaminating a massive batch of mixed greens.
Learn more about the food processing industry.
Keep Learning About the Food You Eat
We hope this guide on food processing was helpful. Now that you have the answer to “what is food processing,” consider learning more.
Some food processing techniques will maintain or improve the nutrition in foods. Examples include fermenting or freezing harvested vegetables. Other preserving methods will remove the nutrients from food.
Are you looking for more health education? Check out our resources on the blog.
