New technologies for extending shelf life

Some of the most important factors that reduce the shelf life of many foods are oxygen, light, spoilage bacteria and inadequate cooling. The strategies followed by Matforsk - Norwegian Food Research Institute in efforts to prevent or limit the damage caused by these factors are 1) to understand the effects of oxygen and light of varying wavelengths on different foods and 2) to develop protection for the food using adequate light and oxygen barrier packaging and protective cultures and antioxidative marinades. Application of the right packaging gas for different types of food, including the use of an active packaging concept such as a CO 2 -emitter, is also crucial for ensuring sensory and microbial shelf life. Fighting spoilage and pathogenic bacteria may also be done by means of protective, bacteriocin-producing bacterial cultures. Inadequate cooling may be detected by means of an intelligent packaging concept such as Time-Temperature Indicators. This paper is a review of seven recent studies conducted at Matforsk that were undertaken in an effort to extend the shelf life of different types of food, including extruded oats, cheese, butter, fresh salmon, smoked salmon, fresh cod, ground beef and cooked poultry meat cuts.