Food Technology
Home Canning
Many approved canning, freezing, and drying processors for safe food production.
The "USDA Complete Guide to Home Canning" contains preparation and heat processing methods that have been scientifically determined to be safe.
The Cooperative Extension system has been publishing safe home food preservation recommendations since 1909. In the nearly 100 years, we have come a long way in making home food preservation exceptionally safe.
Acidified Foods
Table of pH values for common foods FDA Bad Bug Book
Technical manual on pH theory and the use of pH electrodes to measure product acidity. GLI International and Hach Company
Dressings, sauces, marinades, and similar food products depend on their acidity to prevent spoilage. Because foods without adequate acidity may allow the growth of microorganisms that cause foodborne illness, the federal government regulates the manufacture of these products. North Carolina State University Department of Food Science
From Breidt, F and others. 2010. Use of Linear Models for Thermal Processing of Acidified Foods. Journal of Food Protection Trends. 30(5): 268-272.
Dressing and Sauces
Clemson University extension
Food Product Design magazine. April 2009
Dairy Products
Technical resources, fact sheets, equipment, newsletter, courses on cheese making. University of Wisconsin, Center for Dairy Research.
Established in 1998 to assist small commercial dairies in finding information about on-farm and artisan processing, this site now also serves homesteaders, suburban kitchen cheese makers and food-lovers seeking sources of wholesome dairy foods and the tools to produce them.
Jams and Jellies
Definitions, standards, and calculation methods. North Carolina State University
Nebraska Extension: Food Processing for Entrepreneurs Series
Venture Newsletter. Cornell University New York State Agriculture Experiment Station
Preservatives
Northeast Center for Food Entrepreneurship
Northeast Center for Food Entrepreneurship
Center for Science in the Public Interest
Refrigerated Products
Refrigerated foods are usually preserved by maintaining low temperatures, but the FDA recommends other hurdles to prevent bacterial growth such as low water activity or pH below 4.6. North Carolina State University Department of Food Science
Concerns associated with producing foods requiring refrigeration. North Carolina State University Department of Food Science
Fruit and Vegetable Processing
Online book containing information on how to start a small scale fruit and vegetable processing company, including processing, production and financial information. FAO Agricultural Services Bulletin - 127
Meat Products
The origin of meat processing is lost in antiquity but probably began when mankind learned that salt is an effective preservative. Sausage making evolved as an effort to economize and preserve meat that could not be consumed fresh at slaughter. In sausage making, quality standards are maintained while using most parts of the animal carcass. North Dakota State University
An organization of approximately 70 meat goat producers dedicated to the development of stable, prosperous meat goat enterprises under humane and environmentally sound conditions in New York State.
