We like to eat foods that suit our taste buds and have essential nutrients to keep us active all day. But how many of us take time knowing how the foods are grown, prepared, transported, shelved, and how they finally land at our table before being consumed? Read on more about food processing and how it matters.
We consume various foods daily, and nearly all of them go through at least one or more processing stages. Even the fresh vegetables grown in your home garden will also meet some sorts of processing. How? Because rather than eating them right after plucking, you would wash them to remove soil, dirt and residues, then cut the vegetables into pieces and finally put them to your desired cooking method – fry, boil, heat. When the cooking is done, you will consume them. Each of these activities collectively contributes to food processing. In this example, the processing of home garden vegetables.
In a broader sense, the term food processing refers to transforming foods into consumable products after putting them into different chemical and physical processes. Nicely processed foods have several advantages. They look attractive, retain essential nutrients, and are marketable. In other words, they can fetch the better market value. Because of being available in wide-ranging options, they give end consumers various choices. They could be safe, fresh to eat and have a longer shelf life.
Wide-ranging options
One of the most striking benefits of processed foods is that they can be quickly and safely stored, preserved and packaged. Then, they can be transported from one place to another. It means that consumers are given wide-ranging options to choose their desired food products. They no longer need to depend on locally-produced and in-season foods.
Retain nutritional quality in foods
Some foods are likely to lose their nutritional properties if not stored well. But this issue can be addressed using modern-day preservation techniques. The right preservation and packaging process and technologies can prevent nutrients from getting lost, thereby retaining the quality of foods.
The purpose of food processing
Food processing aims to make fresh foods into food products, make them more marketable, and remove harmful substances from foods. It is essential to note that many foods may have naturally occurred or other forms of toxic substances. Processing can ensure that harmful substances can cause life-threatening diseases and health conditions are eliminated. Some foods may not be easily digested. Their digestibility can be enhanced by using proper processing techniques. Food processing can also prevent food wastage. It can also facilitate the process of storage.
In some words, food processing is about transforming foods from one form to another, making them safe, attractive, nutritious, marketable and edible. There are as many aspects of food processing, but the above should give you a basic understanding.
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