For companies in the food industry, maintaining the quality and safety of their products while extending their shelf life is crucial for success. Freezing, one of the safest and most effective methods of food preservation, is crucial in achieving these goals. However, not all freezing processes are equal, especially when it comes to applications where scale, efficiency, and product integrity are vital. This is why we’re here to look at some of the best commercial methods for freezing foods.
Blast Freezing
Blast freezing is a rapid freezing process widely used in the food industry. It involves circulating cold air at high speeds, quickly reducing the temperature to freezing levels. This swift freezing forms smaller ice crystals, which can maintain the texture and integrity of the product. This is especially useful for delicate items like fruits and vegetables.
The benefits of blast freezing are numerous. One of the main ones is it can significantly extend the shelf life of food, which is essential for preserving the nutritional quality of perishable items. Additionally, freezing foods quickly prevents the formation of large ice crystals that can damage the cell structure and, consequently, the texture of the food.
Contact Freezing
Contact freezing is a method where you place food on cold surfaces, usually in the form of plates or belts, operating at very low temperatures. This direct contact with a chilled surface accelerates the rate of removing heat from the product.
Contact freezing is best for more fragile food products that are unsuitable for tumbling or blowing in a blast freezer. You can also place these freezing plates on multiple sides of a product as long as they’re flat on all sides.
Cryogenic Freezing
Cryogenic freezing, or freezing with liquid nitrogen, is an ultra-rapid freezing method that can freeze products extremely quickly and effectively. With the use of liquid nitrogen at temperatures as low as -320 degrees Fahrenheit, this method can create individual quick freeze (IQF) products. This allows you to freeze each piece of food separately from the others. Nitrogen has many capabilities in the IQF process, so it’s good to learn about them before trying this method out.
Cryogenic freezing maintains the texture, shape, and quality of food, making it ideal for a wide variety of products. It’s also a versatile method that you can use for both solid and liquid foods, allowing for the preservation of nutritional content and the minimization of product dehydration.
Freeze Drying
While not a commercial food freezing method in the traditional sense, we’ve included freeze drying in our list since it starts with freezing the food. Then, you subject the product to a vacuum, which removes the ice by sublimation, turning it directly into vapor.
Freeze drying is a popular method for preserving food that you need to store at room temperature. It retains the original shape of the food and its nutritional content, and since it doesn’t involve high temperatures.
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