Quality of fresh and processed foods

Quality is a composite term encompassing many characteristics of foods. These include color, aroma, texture, general nutrition, shelf-life, stability, and possible presence of undesirable constituents. Obviously deterioration of quality may lead to changes in the attributes that characterize the food in its fresh or freshly processed state. In addition, quality enhancement of products may be carried out using appropriate processing techniques. Interaction of different components present with one another could have a profound effect on sensory quality of products. Meanwhile, presence of extraneous matter such as pesticides and debris may also contribute to a compromise in the quality of foods. In addition, processing often brings about changes in many attributes of food including its nutritional value. Thus, examination of process-induced changes in food products is important. In this book, a cursory account of quality attributes of fresh and processed foods is provided.