Food preservation is beneficial for a variety of reasons. However, is it all that necessary? Must you preserve a food? And if you do not, does it imply any negative significance? This is what we will delve into.
Indeed, food preservation has various benefits, making it necessary. Among them being:
Deactivating enzyme and microbial activity-Among the most common factors for food spoilage are chemical factors i.e. enzyme activity and microbial factors. When a food has just been harvested i.e. crops or slaughtered i.e. meat, its deterioration process starts immediately. The bacteria multiply and enzyme processes hasten. As such, food preservation is undertaken to counter these factors that trigger its spoilage. Most methods of food spoilage destruct micro-organisms and slow down chemical processes. micro-organisms and enzymes.
Reducing spoilage-Since food preservation is essential for the limiting of spoilage factors, its application contributes to reduced rates of spoilage.
Increasing shelf-life-Once a food is preserved, it can last longer than it would have without any form of preservation. Most foods as mentioned, start to deteriorate immediately thus undertaking food preservation measures becomes imperative to extend the shelf-life of a food.
Destroying anti-nutritional elements– Several foods usually have anti-nutritional elements in them. These elements include lectin, tannins etc. Anti-nutritional elements make it difficult for you to obtain the most of nutrients in a food because some may combine with nutrients forming indigestible compounds that you cannot digest and utilize. Through food preservation, you can prevent this indigestibility of nutrients.
Preserving the organoleptic properties of a food – Certainly, most food preservation methods not only destroy spoilage micro-organisms, but also preserve the organoleptic properties of a food. For example, the blanching method (a heating preservation method) enhances the green colour of dark-green vegetables. Not only that, some food preservatives maintain the texture and appearance of foods.
Enhancing food accessibility-Usually, there are seasons when particular foods are scarce. Perhaps, because they are not grown or were in excess demand, without consistent production, leading to their decline. However, when foods are preserved, they can be accessed at different times of the year.
Enhancing easy transportation and distribution-Perishable foods, especially vegetables and meats easily spoil. Nevertheless, their preservation guarantees their ease in transportation and distribution. To illustrate, if you were to transport some vegetables to far distances for several days, those vegetables can easily spoil before their arrival. But if those vegetables are well-preserved i.e. through canning or refrigeration, they will likely arrive while in good condition.
The above described points are among the more significant reasons that make food preservation essential. It is not that all foods have to be preserved because some are intended for immediate consumption but if you want to store a food longer while preventing its spoilage, food preservation becomes key. Ensure that you follow the recommended instructions in regard to maintaining right conditions i.e. temperatures, handling foods after preservation etc, when preserving different foods.