Emerging Technologies for the Food Industry

This new 3-volume collection, Emerging Technologies for the Food Industry, is a compilation of emerging and futuristic food processing technologies, presenting fundamental concepts of food technology, trending applications, and a range of interdisciplinary concepts that have found numerous interwoven applications in the food industry.

Over the years, the science of food processing has made tremendous advancements. With changing consumer preferences and the never-as-before focus on developing resilient food systems, food processing is finding its place in key policies, government interventions, global trade, and the overall food and nutritional security. Given this, this multi-volume set covers a range of aspects, starting from an introduction to food processing technology, emerging thermal and nonthermal processing technologies, ICT applications for the food industry, and concluding with future technologies.

Volume 1: Fundamentals of Food Processing Technology presents the basics of food preservation, covering hurdle technology, aspects of minimal processing, ohmic heating of foods, edible coatings, and electromagnetics and allied applications in food processing. It also introduces various unit operations in the food industry. This volume also discusses novel methods of food quality evaluation and covers the fundamentals of and increasing applications of nanotechnology in the food sector.

The second volume in the set, Volume 2: Advances in Nonthermal Processing Technologies, focuses on the interesting field of nonthermal processing and its applications. This includes high-pressure processing, ultrasound processing, high intensity pulsed light technology, pulsed electric field processing, cold plasma, ozone processing, as well as the use of sub- and supercritical processing. It also discusses emerging electrohydrodynamic technologies: electrospinning and electrospraying. This volume provides rich content on fundamental concepts, applications, and challenges in nonthermal processing, throwing light on the scope of developing sustainable technologies for the food industry.

Volume 3: ICT Applications and Future Trends in Food Processing is an exploration of the future of food processing, highlighting emerging and disruptive technologies and their gaining influence in the food sector. The first five chapters focus on computer and information technology-linked applications such as CFD modeling, robotics, automation, artificial intelligence, big data, the Internet of Things, cloud computing, and blockchain management for the food industry. The book then details selected concepts that have made phenomenal advancements in recent years: approaches for improved delivery of nutrients, micro- and nanofluidics, novel drying technologies, smart and intelligent packaging, as well as 3D food printing technology.

Together or as a set, this three-volume Emerging Technologies for the Food Industry provides a substantial contribution to the field of food processing. It is an excellent resource for students and young researchers in this booming field as well as for scientists, researchers, and faculty.