Texture technology

Texture analysis is a growing dynamic discipline within the food processing sector. A range of new cutting-edge technology will be undoubtedly be unveiled at the forthcoming Fi Europe show, and the EU is currently funding an investigation into improving the texture of food.

One of these products set to showcase at FiE si a new high speed heavy duty texture analyser from Stable Micro Systems​, a global designer and manufacturer of texture analysis equipment. The TA.HDplus as it is called has a maximum force capacity of 1000kg and is, the company claims, the most powerful and flexible texture analyser operating in the food industry.

A large amount of research has gone into this particular field of food processing. Texture has always been considering an important attribute in the processing, handling and consumer acceptance of food products, but in the last decade or so, technological advancements have meant that major breakthroughs in texture analysis have been achieved.

The TA.HDplus fits into this category. It allows for higher test speeds - particularly useful for matching specific operational conditions or imitating real life situations. Other new design features include a simple keypad integrated into the main body of the analyser to save desk space.

In addition, peripheral instruments can now be plugged into the instrument for multi-channel data acquisition. This enables other measurement devices, such as temperature and humidity monitors or acoustic envelope modules, to be used in conjunction with the TA.HDplus so that data can be simultaneously collected.

Increased flexibility can be achieved through the multi-stage test programming facilities as the user can now define individual arm movement sequences at various speeds and distances. This unique feature allows the most complex test protocols to be established. In addition, the texture analyser is no longer limited to fixed library tests.

Improving the texture of food products is also the focus the focus of a recently launched EU-funded project. Under the aegis of Prof. Anne-Marie Hermansson​ at the Swedish institute, the SIK-Institutet för Livsmedel och Bioteknik, researchers have set to work to develop a new technology that improves food emulsion quality that will ultimately provide the manufacturer with better opportunites to design the emulsion characteristics with the final product use in mind - for example margarines, dressings, fermented dairy products or soft drinks.

The objective of the EU project QLK1-2000-01543 (structure processing) is to develop a new emulsification technology that improves the texture of, in particular, low-fat products by micro-machining in combination with flow processing. According to the researchers, that have obtained a map of different drop shapes, the principle of this emerging technology is to deform the water droplets from the spherical form in an intelligent way and to conserve this new droplet shape obtained in the final emulsion.

The deformation of the water phase drops has been carried out by exposing them to drag forces in a hyperbolic flow while their shape was fixed simultaneously by introducing gel formation of a biopolymer suspended in the water phase. The droplet deforming flow has been generated in a four-roll mill (4-RM), with k-carrageenan as gelling agent (conservation of droplet form), locust bean gum to alter the drop viscosity, and different ions to regulate the gel strength, explain the scientists.

The researchers state that with the same type of flow, different shapes could be achieved with small process changes and with high reproducibility. The fixation of the drop features does not occur at the same time and position and the final shape of the produced drops could be graded into three classes, correlated to the position in the flow field where the drops were fixed.