Zusammenfassung der Ressource
FOOD TECH - Packaging & Labelling
- LABELLING
- Legally required
- Food Labelling Regulations 1996, food labels must include:
- Name of the food, Ingridients listed in descending order,
Additives, Instructions for use, cooking & storage, net values,
name & address of the manufacturer, place of origin, special
claims, processing treatments, date mark system.
- Date marking
- 'USE BY' - for high risk perishable foods.
day and month is shown as well as
conditions. After this date food may look or
taste different, unsafe should be thrown
away.
- 'BEST BEFORE' - Low risk foods. Date,
month, year will be shown. After this
the sensory characteristics will
deteriorate
- Barcodes
- Barcodes are good for the
manufacturers because they are
quick, monitor stock control, have a
computer link and may tracing
products easy (traceability).
- PACKAGING
- Why?
- Contains it; protects it from damage; helps to
preserve it; protects it from contamination; carries
id/description if contents; information; tamper
evidence; promotes the protect.
- Different materials
- PAPER & CARD - cheap, recyclable, easy to print on, light but not waterproof or strong
- THERMOPLASTICS - easy to shape, light, good for liquids but difficult to recycle.
- METAL - strong, can be heat treated, expensive to produce
- GLASS - recyclable, good for liquids, but can break easily and heavy.
- Storage systems may require:
temperature control; gas control
(oxygen and carbon dioxide);
humidity control.
- Modified Atmosphere packaging (MAP) and Controlled Atmosphere packaging
(CAP) are techniques used to prolong shelf-life. A system which alters the
natural gases in a package. The product is gas flushed and hermetically sealed,
it often has to be chilled as well. Can be used for fish, meat, peanuts. Spoilage is
decreased and shelf life increased.
- Tamper evident seals
- Used to ensure that food
hasn't been contaminated or
misused.
- E.g. plastic collars, tear-way
strips, tin-foil seals, plastic
film wraps on cardboard
boxes, plastic film on
ready-meal trays.
- Specialist Packaging Materials
- Gas flushed - mixture
of gases designed to
delay deterioration
- Hermetically sealed - heat treated
- Environmentally friendly packaging
- Reusable packaging -
cleaned and re-used
(e.g. glass milk
bottles)
- Recyclable packaging -
made of materials that
can be used again,
usually after processing
- Biodegradable packaging -
easily breaks down in the soil
or the atmosphere
- Advantages to the environment of using
paper in packaging: recyclable, reduces
carbon footprint, reduces transport costs
because lighter.