EFEITOS DO CONGELAMENTO NAS CARACTERÍSTICAS FÍSICO-QUÍMICAS, SENSORIAIS E MICROBIOLÓGICAS DOS ALIMENTOS

Abstract

Freezing, although one of the main procedures for food preservation, can cause unwanted changes in the rheology of food products, affecting their quality. Thus, the present work is a survey of the bibliographic information about the changes that occurred during freezing in food structures, as well as the consequences for frozen products and their characteristics. Based on searches in the databases of the Portal de Periódicos da CAPES and the Google Scholar portal, scientific studies were analyzed based on the search for the descriptors: "Food freezing", "Frozen foods" and "Effects of freezing on foods". As a result of this bibliographic survey, the main freezing methods used by the food industries and the main damages caused by freezing were described. The most researched physical-chemical characteristics in frozen foods were also reported. In general, pH and humidity values did not show significant changes during freezing, while the values of vitamins C and total carotenoids showed a decline during freezing time. Among the sensory characteristics of frozen products that were most frequently analyzed in the studies, in general, the appearance and texture underwent changes during storage that interfered sensorially with the quality. As for color, in general, there was a reduction in the luminosity parameter of the samples during the storage period. As for the microbiological parameters in frozen products, a decrease in the microbial load was observed during the storage period, which is a characteristic condition in products subjected to freezing. Thus, with this study, it was evident that knowledge of the effects of freezing on food quality provides subsidies for the adoption of best practices according to each type of food.