Important Terminologies (FST)

Abattoirs

Types of slaughterhouses where animals are slaughtered for meat and offal. Abattoirs usually include lairage (a holding area for live animals), a slaughtering line and cold stores. Facilities for processing of by-products (blood, intestines, skins, fat, bristle, unusable waste products), and treatment of wastewater and air are often included.

Acceptable daily intake

A safety level for substances used as food additives. Usually calculated as 1/100th of the maximum dose of the substance that causes no adverse effects in appropriate test organisms. Abbreviated to ADI.

Acetic fermentation

The process by which acetic acid bacteria such as Acetobacter and Gluconobacter spp. metabolize an alcoholic substrate to form acetic acid, the main constituent of vinegar. Alcoholic substrates can be obtained from a variety of sources, such as fruits, vegetables and grain.

Acetobacter

Genus of Gram negative, strictly aerobic, rod-shaped acetic acid bacteria of the family Acetobacteraceae, that are capable of oxidizing ethanol to acetic acid. Occur on fruits and flowers. May be responsible for spoilage of beer and wines. Acetobacter aceti and A. pasteurianus are used in commercial production of vinegar.

Acesulfame K

One of the non-nutritive artificial sweeteners (trade name Sunett). A white crystalline powder, approx. 200 times sweeter than sucrose. Often blended with other sweeteners to give a more sugar-like taste and to mask aftertaste. Stable under heat, and moderately acid or basic conditions. Used in foods and beverages since 1983 and approved by >100 countries worldwide. Used in beverages, dairy products, preserves, bakery products, confectionery, salad dressings and breakfast cereals.

Acetaldehyde

Aldehyde, synonym ethanal. One of the common flavour compounds in many foods and beverages. May cause taints in some foods. Toxic at excessive concentrations.

Acetates

Salts or esters of acetic acid. Flavour compounds in many foods and beverages. May be used as preservatives.

Acetic acid

Member of the short chain fatty acids group, which occurs in a range of foods and beverages. May be one of the flavour compounds, or cause taints, depending on food or beverage type and the concentration at which it is present. Acetic acid is the main constituent of vinegar. It may be used for preservation or flavouring of foods.

Acetone

Smallest of the ketones, synonym propanone. Widely used as a solvent in food analyses, particularly for lipids and related compounds. Produced along with butanol and ethanol as a microbial fermentation product from unconventional feedstocks including food processing wastes.

Acetic acid bacteria

Any aerobic, rod-shaped Gram negative bacteria, e.g. Acetobacter spp. and Gluconobacter spp., capable of oxidizing ethanol to acetic acid. Occur on the surface of fruits, vegetables and flowers, and in soil. Used industrially in the manufacture of vinegar. May cause spoilage of beer and wines.

Acidification

Process by which the pH of a substance is decreased to below 7 making it acidic.

Acidity

The degree to which a substance or solution is acidic, being dependent upon the concentration of hydrogen ions. Level of acidity is expressed using pH.

Acidolysis

Esterification reactions of acids with esters. Used to produce structured lipids (e.g. acidolysis of tristearin with long chain fatty acids) or to modify the lipid composition of fats and oils (e.g. acidolysis of seal blubber oils with lauric acid and interesterification of butterfat with CLA). Catalysed by lipases or chemical catalysts.

Acid values

The level of free fatty acids present in lipids. The acid value, also known as the acid number, is determined by measuring the amount of KOH in milligrammes that neutralizes 1 g of the lipid. Acid values of fresh edible fats tend to be low and increase with storage as the glycerides present in the lipids break down to generate free fatty acids.

Acids

Chemical compounds which release hydrogen ions when dissolved in water, or whose H can be replaced by metal atoms or basic radicals, or which react with bases to form salts and water. Include both organic acids and inorganic acids. Inorganic acids may be used in food processing or cleaning of equipment. Organic acids of many types are constituents of a wide range of foods, both as natural constituents and as processing aids. Important types of organic acids in foods include fatty acids, amino acids and carboxylic acids.

Acoustics

Study of the physical properties of sound; also refers to techniques based on transmission, generation or reception of sound. Acoustic devices have been used to detect insects infestation of grain. Acoustics has also been employed in examining the structure of materials, e.g. pasta, and as the basis of non-destructive methods to determine the texture of foods, such as fruits, cheese and bakery products.

Acids resistance

Ability of organisms to withstand acidic conditions. Important for survival of microorganisms in acid environments such as the gastrointestinal tract and during fermentation of foods.

Acidulants

Organic acids used in foods to control pH and fulfil a variety of functions. Applications include preservation of meat products, flavour enhancement, prevention of discoloration in sliced fruits, and prevention of development of rancidity in oils and fats. Commonly used acidulants in the food industry include citric acid, acetic acid, propionic acid and lactic acid.
 

Acrylamide

Synonym 2-propenamide (C3H5NO). Member of the amides which is a neurotoxin and exhibits carcinogenicity in animal models. Formed in foods during thermal processing as a product of the Maillard reaction between asparagine and reactive carbonyl compounds, e.g. in reducing sugars. Forms gels of polyacrylamides on polymerization under specified conditions which are used for PAGE.
 

Actins

A family of multifunctional intracellular proteins, best known as a myofibrillar component of striated muscle fibres. They constitute about 13% of muscle proteins and are the major components of the Iband or thin filament of the sarcomere. Actins contain high levels of the amino acid proline. Imino-groups within proline contribute to the folding of actin molecules and result in formation of G-actin (globular actin). G-actin, a spherical molecule approximately 5.5 nm in diameter, constitutes the monomeric form of actin. In the presence of potassium chloride and ATP, Gactin polymerizes into long fibres of F-actin. Most vertebrate genomes contain numerous actin genes with high sequence homology in protein coding regions, but considerable variability in intron size and number. This genetic diversity can be utilized for livestock speciation and meat authenticity tests. Determination of actin content has been proposed as a means of calculating the meat content of meat products.
 

Activated carbon

Amorphous forms of elemental carbon, particularly charcoal, which have been treated, e.g. by acid or heat, to improve their powers of absorption. Used for a variety of food and industrial applications, including drinking water purification, decoloration of sugar solutions and sorption of residues of pesticides from wines.

Activation energy

Minimum energy required for a chemical reaction to proceed; the difference in energy between that of the reactants and that at the transition state of the reaction. Activation energy determines the way in which the rate of a reaction varies with temperature.

 

Active packaging

Packaging materials which have functions additional to their basic barrier action. Used for packaging a wide range of foods and beverages. Types of active packaging include: packs which adsorb ethylene to control ripening of fruits; packs which regulate moisture levels; packs which contain oxygen scavengers; packs which contain CO2 scavengers or generators; packs which release or absorb flavours or aromas; antimicrobial packaging (e.g. packs which release ethanol to control the growth of fungi); packs with special microwave heating properties; and packaging with monitoring systems (time/temp. exposure indicators or temp. control).

Additives

Ingredients added in low quantities to foods during processing for one or more specific purposes. These include prevention of chemical and microbial spoilage, enhancement of flavour or colour, improvement of nutritional values or as an aid to processing. The most common types of additives include preservatives, colorants, sweeteners, flavourings, emulsifiers, thickeners and stabilizers.

Active sites

Locations on the surface of catalysts at which reactions occur. On enzymes, substrates are bound at the active sites, the shape of the site being important for strong and specific binding to occur.

Adenine

Purine, synonym 6-aminopurine. Component base of nucleic acids, nucleosides and nucleotides.

Adenosine

Nucleoside of adenine and ribose, synonym adenine riboside. Constituent of nucleotides and nucleic acids