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Guide to Quality Control in the F&B Industry |
With an estimated value of US$4.6 trillion in 2016, the global processed food and beverage (F&B) industry is wide-reaching and consists of many steps: from food manufacturing and processing, quality control, wholesale and distribution, research and development, to standards and regulations compliance.
F&B quality control: Why does it matter?
Food safety regulations (e.g. American FDA, European EC, etc.) apply to all manufacturers involved in the handling or sale of F&B products. In addition, customers expect the products they purchase are safe to consume. To ensure high-quality products that meet F&B quality control regulations and retain consumer trust, manufacturers and suppliers must be able to verify the safety and quality of their products: not just for consumers, but also for their export markets and other businesses.
There are a few ways to evaluate the quality of raw materials and intermediate and final products. Depending on the ingredient of interest, the following properties can be studied to verify the purity and identity of the ingredient:
- Melting point
- Boiling point
- Cloud point
- Slip melting point
- Dropping point
- Softening point
Preview the F&B Guide for Melting Point, Dropping Point, and More
Melting point
Melting point is the temperature at which a phase transition occurs from solid to liquid. Numerous companies utilize the melting point to evaluate quality and to characterize and identify raw materials and products. Many F&B additives, such as food coloring or sweeteners, are crystalline powders in their original forms, making them excellent candidates for quality control via melting point determination.
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Boiling point
The boiling point provides useful information on the identity and purity of substance: it is the temperature at which a liquid transitions to the gas phase at 1 atm. Liquid additives are typically used in food and drinks as preservatives, flavor enhancers, stabilizers, and more. Because the boiling point of each liquid is unique and often listed in material safety data sheets (MSDS), manufacturers use it as a quality control parameter. Propylene glycol is a non-toxic, odorless, and colorless liquid, commonly used in both food and…
Cloud point
In the F&B industry, additives such as polysaccharides or surfactants are added to solutions as processing aids, thickening agents, or stabilizers (see Table 3). The cloud point of a substance can be used to determine the optimal processing and operating temperatures: During the production process, manufacturers occasionally have trouble obtaining a homogenized solution...
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Cloud point of a solution. At 54.0 °C, the solution is clear. At 55.1 °C, the solution has started to become turbid and has reached its cloud point.
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Slip melting point
The slip melting point can be used to characterize raw and formulated waxy products such as fats, oils, and even butter – substances for which conventional analysis techniques are difficult to apply or do not deliver sufficient information. As natural and renewable raw materials, stearic acid, palm oil, and their derivatives are used in a wide range of processed food products: ice cream...
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Dropping point
Raw materials and final products that are a combination of different substances, from fats to ice cream to maple syrup, do not exhibit a defined melting point. These products, which gradually soften as the temperature rises and melt over a large temperature interval, can be characterized using the dropping point (DP) to ensure that products meet industry standards and regulations.
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Softening point
The softening point can be used to characterize materials that melt over a wide temperature range. It is the temperature at which a substance softens and stretches under a defined weight, and it is used as a quality control parameter for various products in the F&B industry. Many different resins and rosins can be used in the production of chewing…
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Standards & Norms
Standard | Application | Sample |
AOCS Cc 18-80 Dropping point of edible fats and oils | Dropping point | Edible fats, oils |
ASTM D6090 Softening Point Resins (Mettler Cup and Ball Method) | Softening Point | Resins |
ISO 6321 Animal and vegetable fats and oils- Determination of melting point in open capillary tubes (slip point) | Slip melting point | Fats, oils |
Ph.Eur. 2.2.14 Melting point – capillary method | Melting point | Crystalline solids |
USP<741> Melting range or temperature | Melting range | Crystalline solids |
For a complete list of international standards and norms with which METTLER TOLEDO Melting and Dropping Point instruments comply, please visit www.mt.com/mpdp-norms
