Natural Food Preservatives

Safety, quality, and prolonged shelf life of food products are the three most important aspects of the food industry. To ensure a satisfactory scale, both traditional and modern preservatives are widely used. However, as eating habits have upgraded with a focus on what is popularly termed "a healthy diet," there has been a growing demand for food with natural additives over synthetic ingredients. As a result, there have been major developments in the field of food preservation, which are presented in this book.

The book provides detailed information on the range of natural food preservatives with their applications in different product sectors. It delves into microbiological food spoilage and discusses natural food preservatives as well as natural antioxidants and antimicrobials as food ingredients. It reviews prevalent preservation technologies, the chemistry behind them, and new nonconventional preservatives. It focuses on innovative technologies, including biological antimicrobial systems such as LABs or their metabolites, bacteriophages, and bacteriophage-encoded enzymes. It provides knowledge about preservatives, such as bacteriocins and ε-polylysine, as well as their usage in achieving the right balance of safety, quality, and shelf-life for specific products. The book is a collection of the research and experiences of an international team of experts and is a valuable tool for all those who are related to the advancements and production of safe and healthy foods. It is a significant reference book for professionals who teach food microbiology courses, conduct research and epidemiologic investigations, analyze food samples, and craft food safety policies.