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Preservation and quality standard

Elizabeth Vimbai Mungwari

Food preservation is an action or a method of maintaining foods at a desired level of properties or nature for their maximum benefits. In general, each step of handling, processing, storage, and distribution affects the characteristics of food, which may be desirable or undesirable. Thus, understanding the effects of each preservation method and handling procedure on foods is critical in food processing. The processing of food is no longer as simple or straightforward as in the past as it is now moving from an art to a highly interdisciplinary science. A number of new preservation techniques are being developed to satisfy current demands of food safety, economic preservation and consumer satisfaction in nutritional and sensory aspects, convenience, absence of preservatives, low demand of energy, and environmental safety. Better understanding and manipulation of these conventional and sophisticated preservation methods could help to develop high-quality, safe products by better control of the processes and efficient selection of ingredients. Food processing needs to use preservation techniques ranging from simple to sophisticated; thus, any food process must acquire requisite knowledge about the methods, the technology, and the science of mode of action. Food preservation is vital in ensuring food safety and that the quality standard set by the manufacturer is maintained thereby also maintaining the quality attributes that the consumers find appealing. Quality standards have focused on consumers’ demand for safe foods and beverages. The documents, certifying food quality and safety are getting much more attention, together with the production supervision and control from the starting phase, i.e. the producer, up to the market chain’s end Quality concept within the food industry puts an emphasis on three key factors:  Conformity with product’s intended purpose, Safety, Satisfaction of consumer’s expectations and perceptions. Quality Standards If an economy or a company wants to maintain its good quality standards and market image, appropriate specification schemes should be developed for all its products. Most companies need product specifications, which define the standard quality of their products and production procedures, such as picking, preservation, storage, delivery, supply and transportation. The large and ever-increasing number of food products and new preservation techniques available in order to ensure Quality standard within an organization is maintained created a great need for a thorough research into food preservation and quality standard in order to ensure food safety.