A growing demand for fresh, chilled products, without the need for artificial preservatives, has prompted the food industry to make increasing use of modified atmospheric packaging (MAP) gases to keep food fresher for longer.
South African gas and welding products company Afrox special products and chemicals product manager Marietha Strydom says that the company’s range of FoodFresh MAP gases lengthen food shelf life conveniently and economically.
She explains that MAP plays a major role in the food industry when used in conjunction with the highest standards of hygiene and temperature control throughout the production, delivery and storage processes.
“The benefits of MAP are applicable to meat, poultry, fish, dairy products, confectionary products, dried products and fresh fruit and vegetables. New applications are still being discovered and added to the database of products,” adds Strydom.
Afrox’s FoodFresh range also gives companies a competitive advantage, says Strydom. “Extended shelf-life means longer production runs, fewer deliveries and reduced hours spent restocking shelves, as well as reduced losses caused by spoilage” she adds.
She explains that each food category has its own needs and each product has unique requirements. Specific gas mixtures are designed to meet those requirements, but should be used as guidelines.
“We recommend that trials are done to determine the most suitable FoodFresh gas for each application before a final choice is made.
Afrox has many years’ experience in MAP, and we have the support of our parent company, Linde, with extensive technical MAP knowledge readily available to us.”
The component gases comprise carbon dioxide (CO2), nitrogen and oxygen, which contribute different preservation benefits. “These are all present in the air that we breathe and are 100% natural. The success lies in using the correct combination to inhibit deterioration of each specific type of food by using knowledge of the mechanism of deterioration,” reveals Strydom.
CO2 is bacteriostatic and fungistatic, which means that it retards the growth of mould and aerobic bacteria, while nitrogen is used to displace oxygen where anaerobic mechanisms dominate. It is also used as an inert filler gas to prevent pack collapse, she says.
For example, oxygen is used in some FoodFresh mixtures for colour retention in red meat, for fruit and vegetable respiration and to avoid anaerobic conditions. In other applications, like powdered baby milk, oxygen has to be absent for oxidation and spoilage can be induced at levels as low as 0.2%.
Further, she points out that the gases and gas mixtures are rigorously monitored in Afrox’s South African Bureau of Standards ISO 9001 filling facilities and quality control laboratories. FoodFresh is classified as a food-grade additive and complies with EU legislation directive 95/2/EC. “Dedicated use in the food industry is ensured by the use of branded cylinders.”
Although it is dependent on several factors – product type, temperature, hygiene, packaging and gas mixture – the right mix of gases can increase shelf life by days, or even weeks, Strydom points out.
As consumers continue to become more health conscious and mindful of wastage, Strydom believes that the demand for FoodFresh will continue to increase steadily into the foreseeable future.
“The general trend is that people prefer fresh fruit, vegetables and meat, as opposed to the frozen alternative. As the demand for, and production of, food increases, so too will Afrox’s tried and trusted FoodFresh range of MAP gases,” she concludes.