This website requires certain cookies to work and uses other cookies to help you have the best experience. By visiting this website, certain cookies have already been set, which you may delete and block. By closing this message or continuing to use our site, you agree to the use of cookies. Visit our updated privacy and cookie policy to learn more.
This Website Uses Cookies
By closing this message or continuing to use our site, you agree to our cookie policy. Learn More
This website requires certain cookies to work and uses other cookies to help you have the best experience. By visiting this website, certain cookies have already been set, which you may delete and block. By closing this message or continuing to use our site, you agree to the use of cookies. Visit our updated privacy and cookie policy to learn more.
Refrigerated Frozen Foods logo
search
cart
facebook twitter linkedin youtube
  • Sign In
  • Create Account
  • Sign Out
  • My Account
Refrigerated Frozen Foods logo
  • Home
  • Magazine
    • Current Issue
    • Digital Edition
    • Archives
  • Exclusives
    • Refrigerated Foods Processor of the Year
    • Frozen Foods Processor of the Year
    • Foodservice Distributor of the Year
    • Sustainable Processor of the year
    • State of the Industry
    • Top 150 Frozen Food Processors
    • Editor's Blog
    • Best New Retail Products
  • Topics
    • Case Studies
    • Energy Management
    • Food Safety
    • New Retail Products
    • Packaging
    • Supply Chain & Logistics
  • News
    • Industry News
    • Technology Showcase
    • People News
    • Supplier News
  • Directories & Guides
    • Cold Storage Warehouse Guide
    • Cold Storage Construction Guide
    • Take a Tour
    • Food Master
  • More
    • eNewsletter
    • Expert Columns
    • Trade Education
    • Partners
    • Polls
    • Directory of Associations
    • Market Research
    • Custom Content & Marketing Services
    • Nominations for RFF Awards
    • R&FF Store
    • Sneak Peeks
  • Events
    • Food Automation & Manufacturing (FA&M) Conference & Expo
    • Calendar of Events
  • Multimedia
    • Podcasts
    • Photo Galleries
    • Videos
    • Webinars
    • Video Spotlights
    • White Paper eBlast
  • Contact Us
    • Contact
    • Advertise
  • Subscribe
Home » Optimizing the quality of frozen foods with REV technology
Expert Columns

Optimizing the quality of frozen foods with REV technology

Dehydrofreezing, through the use of REV technology, is an innovative technique that removes specific levels of moisture homogeneously from fresh organic materials prior to freezing.

June 14, 2016
Brent Charleton
KEYWORDS dehydrofrozen vegetables / frozen foods / individually-quick frozen / IQF vegetables / Radiant Energy Vacuum / Radiant Energy Vacuum technology
Reprints
No Comments

The frozen food industry has long been stagnant in the adoption of new technologies, as the challenge of improving the quality of those products in a sustainable and profitable way has been difficult. An area of product development currently gaining traction involves dehydrofrozen applications, which are produced when a portion of the water is removed from the fresh product prior to freezing.

The present day industry standard for frozen food is known as individually-quick frozen (IQF), which prevents large ice crystals from forming at the cellular level because food pieces are frozen to prevent them from sticking and forming a frozen block. IQF is occasionally supplemented with a front-end hot air drying step for moisture removal, which compromises the physical structure of the food and causes excessive nutrient loss due to excessive heat.

Historically, like hot air drying, the use of microwave energy to remove moisture from food products has not been feasible due to the heat exposure and the uneven temperature distribution.

About two decades ago, a group of University of British Columbia food scientists completed several experiments that combined the use of microwave energy and a vacuum to successfully overcome the challenge of uneven microwave energy distribution while simultaneously lowering the boiling point of water through the development of a food technology innovation. This innovation is called REV, and eliminated the oxygen and heat damage typically associated with drying technologies and allowed for even, flexible water removal.

Dehydrofreezing, through the use of radiant energy vacuum (REV) technology, is an innovative technique that removes specific levels of moisture homogeneously from fresh organic materials prior to freezing. This method was pioneered to substantially enhance frozen food quality through the combination of two long-standing food preservation processes—dehydration and freezing. During the process, the organic materials are continuously conveyed through a vacuum microwave environment via a tray or belt system. The uniqueness of using REV technology to produce dehydrofrozen vegetables is derived from its ability to control the level of moisture that is evenly removed immediately before freezing.

This innovation also addresses the issue of food waste by increasing the quality of shelf-stable food products. Manufacturers are progressively deploying resources to serve a dual socioeconomic role in order to increase production efficiencies while addressing the food sustainability issue. This movement is not only trending on the corporate level; customers are also becoming increasingly mindful of their food choices. They advocate and support responsible manufacturers while simultaneously gravitating away from low-quality, empty calories.

Other advantages include decreased seepage and reduced shipping costs through lower product weight.

Subscribe to Refrigerated and Frozen Foods

Brent Charleton is senior vice president of business development for EnWave Corp., Canada

Related Articles

Optimize the freezer aisle with virtual reality, digital technology

2019 Frozen Foods Processor of the Year: B&G Foods—The giant of the frozen vegetables aisle

How supply chain virtualization with IoT preserves quality, freshness in frozen foods

Top 150 Frozen Foods Processors Report: The year of headlines for the frozen foods industry

You must login or register in order to post a comment.

Report Abusive Comment

Subscribe For Free!
  • Print & Digital Edition Subscriptions
  • What’s Hot in Cold eNewsletter
  • Online Registration
  • Subscription Customer Service

More Videos

Popular Stories

2019 Frozen Foods Processor of the Year

2019 Frozen Foods Processor of the Year: B&G Foods—The giant of the frozen vegetables aisle

ARYZTA Mixed Rolls

ARYZTA announces new frozen bread line at Ancaster, Canada, bakery

Gotham Greens Chicago greenhouse

Gotham Greens opens largest urban agriculture campus

Jeff Thomas, TransPlace

Transportation trends and 2020 market outlook

Zucchini

2019 Frozen Foods Processor of the Year: B&G Foods makes giant-sized footprint in frozen food category

ColdStorageConstructionGuide_360

Events

April 26, 2020

Food Automation and Manufacturing Conference and Expo

Food Engineering's Food Automation & Manufacturing Conference and Expo (FA&M) is a 2 ½ day event that brings food and beverage processors and suppliers together to gain valuable information on the latest trends and technologies in manufacturing, automation, sustainability and food safety.

January 1, 2030

Webinar Sponsorship Information

For webinar sponsorship information, visit www.bnpevents.com/webinars or email webinars@bnpmedia.com.

View All Submit An Event

Poll

How will your company be affected?

President Trump withdrew the United States from the Trans-Pacific Partnership deal. How will this decision affect the future of your company?
View Results Poll Archive

WarehouseGuide_360

Refrigerated & Frozen Foods Magazine

Refrigerated & Frozen Food November 2019

2019 November

Check out the November 2019 edition of Refrigerated & Frozen Foods: 2019 Frozen Foods Processor of the Year, trucking trends, renewable energy initiatives, and much more!
View More Create Account
  • Resources
    • Food & Beverage Brands
    • Packaging
    • List Rental
    • Exclusives
    • Privacy Policy
    • Survey and Sample
  • Want More
    • Connect

Copyright ©2019. All Rights Reserved BNP Media.

Design, CMS, Hosting & Web Development :: ePublishing