Packaging food processing systems

Let us now briefly consider the integration of the package within the food processing system. The processes commonly used in the production of food fall principally into five types ... 

This oxygen sensor system has been successfully used by us with a number of different types of packaged foods and packaging processes, being continuously developed and optimized in these real-life conditions and applications. It was validated in several small laboratory scale and medium industrial scale trials19,30 with the following foods and processes ... 

In addition to the food contaminants that have been discussed, there are also man-made chemicals that can inadvertently enter the food chain or water, for example pesticides, industrial chemicals, and substances fed to animals like antibiotics and anabolic steroids. Some of these have been discussed in Chapter 5. In addition, there are also contaminants that are derived from the packaging or processing of the food. An important example is the phthalates, chemicals that are added to plastics, some of which are used in packaging food or drink. These substances may leach out of the packaging and into the food. As they are beheved to have effects on the reproductive system (endocrime disruption) there is clearly concern about their potential appearance in food. This type of substance has also been discussed in Chapter 5. 

The adhesive may be solvent or water-based, hot-melt, coldseal or heatseal and pressure sensitive or chemically reactive. So the solidification process may occur via drying of water or solvent-based adhesives, by cooling of hot-melt and heat-seal adhesives, or by curing of chemically-reactive systems. With two notable exceptions - self-adhesive labels used on items of fruit or vegetables, and heat-sealable layers on packaging films - adhesives are in general not intended to touch the packaged food directly. 

Taylor, A.H. Encapsulation systems and their applications in the flavor industry. Food Flavor Ingredients Packaging and Processing 5(9), 48-51, 1983. 

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