Innovations in food chemistry provide us with safer and more nutritious food, and mitigate food waste
Chemistry and food are inseparable. Natural foods are also made up of molecules and, thanks to chemistry, we now know how to grow them better, maintain and increase their nutritional properties, and even extract or add compounds to improve our health.
In addition, the transport and preservation of food also depend on advances in chemistry. Almost half of the fruits and vegetables produced in the world are wasted, and food waste causes 10% of greenhouse gas emissions. Protective packaging, smart packaging with protective atmospheres and better technologies to freeze, transport and store food, preserving its properties and prolonging its shelf life. This is how chemistry improves our food, from farm to table.
smart farms
Agriculture in Smart Farms is using sensors and robots to produce more food with fewer resources in an overpopulated world. Drones fly over crops with cameras to identify, along with sensors present in the soil, what the specific needs of each plot of the farm are and provide, through robots, the correct amounts of fertilizer and water and eliminate pests when necessary. Vertical farming, using hydroponic crops, allows you to control all plant growth factors, from light to nutrients, and get bountiful crops in very little space, even in places with a lack of sun or fertile land.
the aromatic atmosphere
The Aroma MAP system, by Carburos Metálicos, offers the possibility of introducing natural aromas, such as essential oils, into the packaging gas stream in a protective atmosphere. In this way, it would be possible, for example, that when we open the container of our fried chicken, we arrive at a pleasant aroma of thyme.
cryogenic freezing
It is used to freeze food at an extremely fast rate. Food is sprayed with liquid nitrogen which “boils” around the food at a temperature of -196°C and extracts a large amount of heat, thus reducing food spoilage during the freezing process. Carburos Metálicos has a tunnel called Freshline capable of freezing up to 350 kg of food per hour, from meat and fish to fruits, vegetables and prepared foods.
More Omega-3
Omega-3 fatty acids are polyunsaturated fats that are found throughout nature, from nuts to fish. In our body, the omega-3 fatty acid DHA is essential for building gray matter in the brain and as an agent to prevent inflammation. Unfortunately, we are getting less and less omega-3s from our diet. The company Solutex has developed a method to obtain concentrates of the omega-3 fatty acids DHA, EPA and DPA in powdered algae and fish that are sustainable and can be preserved for up to 24 months.
The magic of supercritical CO2
Carbon dioxide is a gas. The application of great pressure can solidify it into dry ice, but increasing the temperature and pressure above its critical point, 31°C, it remains in an intermediate state: it expands like a gas, but has the density of a liquid. It is assumed that there may be oceans of supercritical CO2 on Venus. At the Altex factory belonging to the AINIA technology center, this supercritical fluid is produced for numerous applications, including the decaffeination of coffee avoiding the use of other chemical solvents, the distillation of herbal extracts and essential oils, the production of gluten-free foods and even the elimination of pesticides from agricultural products. products that arrive at our table.
nutrition against inflammation
Inflammation is a natural process against the aggressions of our body, but if it becomes chronic it produces all kinds of diseases, from obesity and diabetes to cancer and cardiovascular disease. Azur Global Nutrition, a division of Solutex, has developed compounds called SPMs (Specialized Pro-Resoluting Mediators), metabolites derived from omega-3 fatty acids. Instead of suppressing inflammation like other medications, these supplements facilitate the natural resolution of the inflammatory process in the patient’s body.
protective atmosphere
Oxygen is primarily responsible for food spoilage, either directly by oxidation or by promoting the multiplication of aerobic bacteria. Modified or protective atmosphere technology consists of removing oxygen from the packaging and replacing it with inert gases such as nitrogen or CO2. The exception is raw meat, which requires a high concentration of O2 to maintain an appetizing red color produced by myoglobin, the protein responsible.
