METHOD FOR PASTEURIZING/SANITIZING/STERILIZING FOOD PRODUCTS VIA ULTRA-HIGH TEMPERATURE PROCESSING AND OPTIONAL EXPOSURE TO AN ELECTROMAGNETIC RADIATION SOURCE

Abstract

A method for pasteurizing/sanitizing/sterilizing a food product to reduce the microbial load thereof, including the steps of: (1) providing a food product, wherein the food product comprises a plant seed and/or an aqueous plant seed medium; (2) optionally fermenting the food product; (3) controllably exposing the food product to ultra-high-temperature processing for a period of time; and (4) at least one of pasteurizing, sanitizing, and sterilizing the food product without materially altering the flavor profile and/or the nutritional profile of the food product.

Claims

1. A method for pasteurizing/sanitizing/sterilizing a food product to reduce the microbial load thereof, comprising the steps of: providing a food product, wherein the food product comprises a plant seed and/or an aqueous plant seed medium; optionally fermenting the food product; controllably exposing the food product to ultra-high-temperature processing for a period of time; and at least one of pasteurizing, sanitizing, and sterilizing the food product.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the step of providing a food product includes providing celery seed.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein the step of providing a food product includes providing an aqueous plant seed medium comprising celery seed, yeast powder, peptone, sodium chloride, and water.

4. The method according to claim 1, wherein the step of optionally fermenting the food product includes fermenting the food product in a fermentation medium comprising celery juice, yeast powder, peptone, sodium chloride, disodium hydrogen phosphate dodecahydrate, and water.

5. The method according to claim 1, wherein the step of controllably exposing the food product to ultra-high-temperature processing includes the step of exposing the food product to flash heating via a direct heating system.

6. The method according to claim 5, wherein the step of exposing the food product to flash heating via a direct heating system includes an injection-based system.

7. The method according to claim 5, wherein the step of exposing the food product to flash heating via a direct heating system includes an infusion-based system.

8. The method according to claim 1, wherein the step of controllably exposing the food product to ultra-high-temperature processing includes the step of exposing the food product to flash heating via an indirect heating system.

9. The method according to claim 1, wherein the step of controllably exposing the food product to ultra-high-temperature processing for a period of time includes heating the food product to at least approximately 135 degrees Centigrade for between approximately one and approximately ten seconds.

10. The method according to claim 1, wherein the step of controllably exposing the food product to ultra-high-temperature processing for a period of time includes heating the food product to at least approximately 148 degrees Centigrade for between approximately one and approximately three seconds.

11. The method according to claim 1, further comprising the step of controllably exposing the food product to an electromagnetic radiation source.

12. The method according to claim 11, wherein the step of controllably exposing the food product to an electromagnetic radiation source comprises exposing the food product to an electromagnetic radiation source which is substantially mercury free.

13. The method according to claim 11, wherein the step of controllably exposing the food product to an electromagnetic radiation source comprises exposing the food product to an electromagnetic radiation source which is substantially free from generating ozone during operation of the same.

14. The method according to claim 11, wherein the step of controllably exposing the food product to an electromagnetic radiation source comprises controllably exposing the food product to pulsed UV-B electromagnetic radiation.

15. The method according to claim 14, wherein the step of controllably exposing the food product to pulsed electromagnetic radiation comprises exposing the food product to electromagnetic radiation having a pulse duration of less than approximately 5 milliseconds.

16. The method according to claim 14, wherein the step of controllably exposing the food product to pulsed electromagnetic radiation comprises exposing the food product to electromagnetic radiation for a total duration of less than approximately seconds.

17. The method according to claim 11, wherein the step of controllably exposing the food product to electromagnetic radiation for a period of time comprises controllably exposing the food product to pulsed electromagnetic radiation having a percent transmission of less than approximately 80% at below approximately 240 nanometers.

18. The method according to claim 11, wherein the step of at least one of pasteurizing, sanitizing, and sterilizing the food product comprises the step of providing a greater than approximately 8 Log reduction in undesirable matter in less than approximately 1 to approximately 10 seconds.

19. The method according to claim 1, wherein the step of at least one of pasteurizing, sanitizing, and sterilizing the food product occurs without materially altering the flavor profile and/or the nutritional profile of the food product.

20. The method according to claim 1, further comprising the step of flash cooling the food product.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0034] Certain embodiments of the present invention are illustrated by the accompanying figures. It will be understood that the figures are not necessarily to scale and that details not necessary for an understanding of the invention or that render other details difficult to perceive may be omitted.

[0035] It will be further understood that the invention is not necessarily limited to the particular embodiments illustrated herein.

[0036] The invention will now be described with reference to the drawings wherein:

[0037] FIG. 1 of the drawings is a schematic representation of a method for pasteurizing/sanitizing/sterilizing a food product according to the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0038] While this invention is susceptible of embodiment in many different forms and applications, there are shown in the drawings and described herein in detail several specific embodiments with the understanding that the present disclosure is to be considered as an exemplification of the principles of the invention and is not intended to limit the invention to the embodiments illustrated.

[0039] It will be understood that like or analogous elements and/or components, referred to herein, may be identified throughout the drawings by like reference characters. In addition, it will be understood that the drawings are merely schematic representations of one or more embodiments of the invention, and some of the components may have been distorted from their actual scale for purposes of pictorial clarity.

[0040] The thermal processing methods of the present invention provide for pasteurizing/sanitizing/sterilizing food products (e.g., seeds and/or aqueous seed solutions (e.g., unfermented, fermented, etcetera)) derived from, for example, Apium graveolens via UHT. Optionally the food products are exposed to an electromagnetic radiation source either before or after UHT treatment. Notably, the food products of the present invention maintain their flavor and nutritional profile.

[0041] Referring now to the drawings, and to FIG. 1 in particular, a first embodiment of method 100 is shown as generally comprising the steps of: (10) providing a food product, wherein the food product comprises a plant seed and/or an aqueous plant seed medium; (12) optionally fermenting the food product; (14) controllably exposing the food product to ultra-high-temperature processing for a period of time; and (16) at least one of pasteurizing, sanitizing, and sterilizing the food product. Method 100 may also comprise the steps of: (18) controllably exposing the food product to an electromagnetic radiation source; and (20) flash cooling the food product. Method steps 10-20 may be carried out simultaneously and/or in any sequential order.

[0042] The food products of the present invention preferably comprise celery seed and/or an aqueous plant seed medium including celery seed, yeast powder (0.3-0.7%), peptone (0.1-0.5%), sodium chloride (0.1-0.3%), and water (Q.S. 100%), and the fermentation medium of the present invention preferably comprise celery juice (25-40%), yeast powder (0.5-5.0%), peptone (0.1-0.5%), sodium chloride (0.1-1.0%), disodium hydrogen phosphate dodecahydrate (0.1-0.5%), and water (Q.S. 100%).

[0043] In accordance with the present invention, the step of controllably exposing the food product to ultra-high-temperature processing includes the step of exposing the food product to flash heating via a direct heating system (e.g., an injection-based system, an infusion-based system, etcetera) and/or an indirect heating system (e.g., plate exchangers, tubular exchangers, scraped-surface exchangers, etcetera). These systems are commercially available from, for example, Tetra Pak (Pully, Switzerland). These systems provide for controllably exposing the food product to ultra-high-temperature processing for a period of time such as heating the food product to at least approximately 135 degrees Centigrade for between approximately (+/?10%) one and approximately (+/?10%) ten seconds, and more preferably to at least approximately (+/?10%) 148 degrees Centigrade for between approximately (+/?10%) one and approximately (+/?10%) three seconds.

[0044] The methods of the present invention, optionally include the step of controllably exposing the food product to an electromagnetic radiation source. Preferably, the electromagnetic radiation source which is substantially mercury free and/or substantially free from generating ozone during operation of the same. Suitable examples of electromagnetic radiation sources include, but are not limited to, those commercially available from Pro Mach (Cincinnati, Ohio). In one embodiment, the electromagnetic radiation source comprises pulsed UV-B electromagnetic radiation. In this embodiment, the food product is exposed to electromagnetic radiation having a pulse duration of less than approximately (+/?10%) 10 milliseconds, and more preferably less than approximately (+/?10%) 5 milliseconds, and yet more preferably less than approximately (+/?10%) 2 milliseconds. Moreover, the food product is preferably exposed to electromagnetic radiation for a total duration of less than approximately (+/?10%) 30 seconds, and more preferably less than approximately (+/?10%) 5 seconds, and yet more preferably lees than approximately (+/?10%) 2 seconds.

[0045] In one aspect of the present invention, the step of controllably exposing the food product to electromagnetic radiation for a period of time preferably comprises controllably exposing the food product to pulsed electromagnetic radiation having a percent transmission of less than approximately 80% at below approximately 240 nanometers.

[0046] In another aspect of the present invention, the step of at least one of pasteurizing, sanitizing, and sterilizing the food product preferably comprises the step of providing a greater than approximately (+/?1 Log) 8 Log reduction in undesirable matter in less than approximately (+/?10%) 1 to approximately (+/?10%) 10 seconds.

[0047] Method 100 of the present invention may also include the optional step of flash cooling the food product, preferably as a final step. Non-limiting examples of flash coolers include, but are not limited to, those commercially available from Griffin Industries (Vancouver, B.C., Canada).

[0048] The foregoing description merely explains and illustrates the invention and the invention is not limited thereto except insofar as the appended claims are so limited, as those skilled in the art who have the disclosure before them will be able to make modifications without departing from the scope of the invention.

[0049] While certain embodiments have been illustrated and described, it should be understood that changes and modifications can be made therein in accordance with ordinary skill in the art without departing from the technology in its broader aspects as defined in the following claims.

[0050] The embodiments, illustratively described herein may suitably be practiced in the absence of any element or elements, limitation or limitations, not specifically disclosed herein. Thus, for example, the terms comprising, including, containing, etcetera shall be read expansively and without limitation. Additionally, the terms and expressions employed herein have been used as terms of description and not of limitation, and there is no intention in the use of such terms and expressions of excluding any equivalents of the features shown and described or portions thereof, but it is recognized that various modifications are possible within the scope of the claimed technology. Additionally, the phrase consisting essentially of will be understood to include those elements specifically recited and those additional elements that do not materially affect the basic and novel characteristics of the claimed technology. The phrase consisting of excludes any element not specified.

[0051] The present disclosure is not to be limited in terms of the particular embodiments described in this application. Many modifications and variations can be made without departing from its spirit and scope, as will be apparent to those skilled in the art. Functionally equivalent methods and compositions within the scope of the disclosure, in addition to those enumerated herein, will be apparent to those skilled in the art from the foregoing descriptions. Such modifications and variations are intended to fall within the scope of the appended claims. The present disclosure is to be limited only by the terms of the appended claims, along with the full scope of equivalents to which such claims are entitled. It is to be understood that this disclosure is not limited to particular methods, reagents, compounds compositions or biological systems, which can of course vary. It is also to be understood that the terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only, and is not intended to be limiting.

[0052] In addition, where features or aspects of the disclosure are described in terms of Markush groups, those skilled in the art will recognize that the disclosure is also thereby described in terms of any individual member or subgroup of members of the Markush group.

[0053] As will be understood by one skilled in the art, for any and all purposes, particularly in terms of providing a written description, all ranges disclosed herein also encompass any and all possible subranges and combinations of subranges thereof. Any listed range can be easily recognized as sufficiently describing and enabling the same range being broken down into at least equal halves, thirds, quarters, fifths, tenths, etcetera. As a non-limiting example, each range discussed herein can be readily broken down into a lower third, middle third and upper third, etcetera. As will also be understood by one skilled in the art all language such as up to, at least, greater than, less than, and the like, include the number recited and refer to ranges which can be subsequently broken down into subranges as discussed above. Finally, as will be understood by one skilled in the art, a range includes each individual member.

[0054] All publications, patent applications, issued patents, and other documents referred to in this specification are herein incorporated by reference as if each individual publication, patent application, issued patent, or other document was specifically and individually indicated to be incorporated by reference in its entirety. Definitions that are contained in text incorporated by reference are excluded to the extent that they contradict definitions in this disclosure.

[0055] Other embodiments are set forth in the following claims.