Projectname:
Residual oxygen and oxygen tolerance of packed food
Workgroup: Preservation of food quality
Scientific Partners and Guidance:
Fraunhofer Institute for Processing Engineering and Packaging (IVV), Mr. W. Danzl; Dr. K. Rieblinger
Financing: IVLV
Duration: 2007 – 2012
The interaction of packed food and oxygen is very complex. For the quality receipt, for the adjustment of the packing investment, for the correct shelf life dating and for the safe and optimal storage conditions this interaction has to be considered. This project should help to close the substantial knowledge gaps and should support creation of instrumentation conditions in order to determine missing data.
About oxygen solubility in food only few data are available, with except of water. There are relatively exact data for dissolved oxygen in mineral oils and fuels. For food there are only individual values from scientific investigations (e.g. UHT milk) available. Some data were given by HEISS. The solubility of oxygen in oils is calculated with the factor 5-6 higher than the solubility in water.
In the project the residual (dissolved) oxygen in freshly packed food is to be measured with adapted methods.
More knowledge on oxygen tolerance levels of food is necessary. The oxygen tolerance level means the amount of oxygen which a substrate may take up, until first sensory deviations can be observed. If this oxygen tolerance is known for individual foods, packaging may be adapted or tailor-made for foodstuffs and the required shelf-life.
In the project measuring methods should be developed which are capable to determine the oxygen uptake which causes sensory changes in foods.
