Effectively sterilizing sauces or soups that contain whole pieces of vegetables, meat or seafood without in some way damaging the contents is a notoriously difficult feat to manage. More often than not, conventional heat sterilization burns or overheats the sauce or leaves delicate ingredients closer to puree than their original form.
JBT Ohmic Heating based on the Joule effect offers an alternative. Far from damaging the contents, Ohmic Heating offers a way to quickly heat sauces, soups and other liquid or semi-solid foods in a homogenous manner.
“Ohmic Heating offers an important way of preserving the integrity of whole pieces within sauces,” says JBT’s Research & Technology Centers Manager, Antonio Aldini. “Conventional heat sterilization struggles to maintain product quality and viscosity.
“Conventional heat sterilization heats the first layer of the product before gradually moving into the center. This often results in overcooking or even burning, which negatively affects the taste, color and nutrients within the food.”
The JBT Sterideal® Ohmic Heat Exchanger: using high voltages for homogenous heating.
Why Ohmic works
Ohmic Heating works by applying a high voltage to products inside a heat exchange unit. The liquid food reacts as an electric resistance and generates heat through the Joule effect. Ohmic systems are especially effective for diced foods as the whole product area is heated evenly, preventing overheating and preserving quality.
Effective for applications such as hot filling into glass jars or plastic pouches, Ohmic Heating is fast, homogenous and helps avoid the risk of overcooking products.
“If you use a conventional heat sterilization process, you will damage or destroy pieces inside the sauces, or even end up with a kind of puree,” says Aldini. “With Ohmic Heating, you can preserve intact pieces with good edges and a good crunch.”
Ohmic Heating Training
Interested in learning more about how Ohmic Heating can benefit your business?
JBT will be holding a series of in-person and remote workshops where you can benefit from in-depth training on how Ohmic Heating works and can be applied.
JBT will be holding its Better Process Control School (BPCS) – a US FDA, USDA and FSIS required course for processors of low-acid or acidified foods who export to the USA – on the following dates:
Puebla, Mexico from 5-9 August, 2024.
Parma, Italy from 23-27 September, 2024.
Interested participants who are unable to attend in person can also take the course online.
Full information about JBT Better Process Control School courses can be found here.