What is hot filling in the beverage industry?
A wide range of packaging methods are used to protect and extend the life of food. A popular type of packaging in beverage factories is called hot fill. This type of packaging process is used for liquid food such as drinks. This method is provided to the consumer in a sterile form “without germs and without the use of preservatives.”
What is hot filling?
Hot filling is a packaging method that uses heat to sterilize acidic liquid foods and drinks to increase their shelf life in non-refrigerated conditions without using preservatives. This method prevents the growth of harmful microorganisms that cause spoilage. Sour and alcoholic. Molding and spoilage of the product. It helps.
Why is the hot filling method used for packaging in food factories?
Commercial sterilization is done to destroy food microorganisms and microbes that are already inside the bottle. This sterilization is also required and approved by the microbial requirements and standards of the Iranian Food and Drug Organization. The hot filling method is an efficient and fast method to eliminate spoilage microbes. Factories widely use this method to preserve the produced food
Choosing a bottle for hot filling:
Determining which container is compatible with the hot filling process is important. Hot packaging can be done for a certain type of plastic “glass and cans” that are heat resistant. Therefore, choosing the bottle and container for hot processing is very important..
Improve products that have preservatives and chemicals as preservatives. The correct use of the process of filling the package with the hot filling method can increase the freshness of the product and the taste of the product compared to the hot filling, and it can increase the shelf life of a product from 6 months to 12 months
.Applications of packaging with hot filling method: hot filling is not for alcoholic or carbonated liquids. The use of this method is more suitable for acidic drinks and food with a pH of 4.6 or more, such as the following foods:
• Apple, orange, grape juice and diluted juices
• Nectars
• Sports drinks
• Flavored waters
• Flavored teas
• Iced tea
• Vegetables and herbal drinks
What are the advantages of hot filling packaging?
• It increases and protects the product’s lifespan and shelf life.
• Disinfects both the bottle and the product.
• They do not need to use preservatives to increase the shelf life of the product.
• To maintain nutritional value. The taste, consistency and quality of the food product helps.