Dr. Claire Sand, PhD and President of Packaging Technology and Research
Challenges are faced in the food industry to keep foods fresh and to extend the freshness of packaged foods and baked goods. Dr. Claire Sand, PhD and President of Packaging Technology and Research says that: “Packaging to extend shelf life to preserve consumer spending dollars, decrease food waste, and increase food safety is being addressed using three main packaging technologies: Barriers, Modified Atmosphere Packaging (MAP), and Low Temperature Packaging.”
Moxiyo with its CO2 (carbon dioxide) emitter provides help in the MAP area to create a low-oxygen environment to stall lipid oxidation and microbial growth. The growth of mold and the oxidation of lipids in the presence of oxygen are major causes of reduced shelf life in baked goods and other packaged products. Moxiyo reacts with oxygen to reduce oxygen and increase CO2. It also helps all packaged foods by reducing oxygen and surrounding the product with natural, organic CO2 which extends the products freshness and shelf life.
Understanding Packaging Solutions
1. Barriers: Packaging barriers for bakery products are either high or poor oxygen barriers. If oxygen levels are not low enough to stall oxidation, off-odors or off-flavors from secondary reaction by-products such as hexanal are generated and remain in the package. This is most common in baked goods with high levels of polyunsaturated fats.
2. MAP: Used to create a low-oxygen environment to stall lipid oxidation and microbial growth. However, since the growth of mold and the oxidation of lipids in the presence of oxygen are major causes of reduced shelf life in baked goods, low-oxygen environments extend product shelf life. To achieve an oxygen level below 21%, headspace is partially or entirely replaced with either nitrogen or carbon dioxide or a combination of the two. A ratio of 60%-75% of carbon dioxide and 25%-40% nitrogen has been found to extend the shelf life while not impairing the product’s texture.
3. Low-Temperature Packaging: By using packaging that is compatible with low temperatures (i.e. freezing) it will stall deteriorative reactions so that preservatives are unnecessary. In many instances, baked goods are frozen during distribution and sold at ambient conditions.
(Claire K Sand, PhD, President Packaging Technology and Research, Food Technology Magazine, 01/2019)
MOXIYO CO2 TEST RESULTS
2/16/2019
LaFlors Uncooked Flour Tortillas
Use By Date 3/21/2019
CO2 Level 3109 ppm
Tortilla Land Uncooked Flour Tortillas
Use By Date 4/23/2019
CO2 Level 954 ppm
