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Kinetic models are important tools for process design and optimization to balance desired and undesired reactions taking place in complex food systems during food processing and preservation. This review covers the state of the art on kinetic models available to describe heat-induced conversion of carotenoids, in particular lycopene and β-carotene. First, relevant properties of these carotenoids are discussed. Second, some general aspects of kinetic modeling are introduced, including both empirical single-response modeling and mechanism-based multi-response modeling. The merits of multi-response modeling to simultaneously describe carotene degradation and isomerization are demonstrated. The future challenge in this research field lies in the extension of the current multi-response models to better approach the real reaction pathway and in the integration of kinetic models with mass transfer models in case of reaction in multi-phase food systems.

During thermoforming, plastic sheets are heated and subsequently deformed through the application of mechanical stretching and/or pressure. This process directly impacts sheet properties such as material thickness in walls, corners, and bottom, crystallinity in the constituent layers, and particularly the oxygen gas permeability. The aim of this study was to quantify the impact of thermoforming on thickness and oxygen transmission rate (OTR) of selected packaging materials (polypropylene (PP), PP/ethylene-vinyl alcohol co-polymer/PP (PP/EVOH/PP), polystyrene/EVOH/polyethylene (PS/EVOH/PE), amorphous polyethylene terephtalate/PE (APET/PE), APET/PE/EVOH/PE, polyamide/PE (PA/PE), and (PE/)PA/EVOH/PA/PE). These materials were extruded in two different thicknesses and thermoformed into trays with the same top dimensions and variable depths of 25, 50, and/or 75 mm and a 50 mm tray with a variable radius of the corners. The distribution of the material thickness in the trays was visualized, showing the locations that were most affected by the deep drawn process. The OTR results indicate that the calculated OTR, based on a homogeneous material distribution, can be used as a rough approximation of the measured OTR. However, detailed analysis of crystallization and unequal thinning, which is also related to the tray design, remains necessary to explain the deviation of the measured OTR as compared to the predicted one.

The effect of thermal processing (85-130°C) and combined thermal/high pressure processing (100°C combined with 0.1 to 700 MPa and 700 MPa combined with 85-115°C) on β-carotene isomerisation in an olive oil/carrot emulsion and pure olive oil phase enriched with carrot β-carotene was investigated. Thermal processing always resulted in an increase in the contribution of the cis-isomers, with the increase being more pronounced at higher temperatures. In the oil/carrot emulsion, less β-carotene isomerisation was observed during combined thermal/high pressure processing compared to thermal processing. This effect was attributed to strengthening of the carrot cell walls under high pressure, thereby hindering the transfer of β-carotene to the oil phase and lowering its susceptibility to isomerisation. In an oil phase enriched with β-carotene, β-carotene isomerisation was not influenced by the applied pressure at 100°C and became almost temperature insensitive at 700 MPa.

The current work presents a pilot scale study in which the effect of in pack thermal preservation processes in a retort system on particular carrot quality aspects, more specifically nutritional and textural characteristics, was investigated. Pasteurization as well as sterilization processes with different intensities were included. The carrot hardness, analyzed by a compression test, and the β-carotene bio-accessibility, analyzed by an in vitro digestion method, were the main quality markers. As a main conclusion, it can be stated that the results of this pilot scale study are a good validation of results obtained during previous laboratory scale experiments on carrot nutritional and textural characteristics. The processes applied in this study only resulted in limited conversion of all-trans-β-carotene to its cis-isomers. Furthermore, it was shown that intense thermal processing is required to observe a significant increase in the β-carotene bio-accessibility. However, this was accompanied with a clear degradation of the hardness. When thermal processing was preceded by low temperature blanching, a technique to improve texture retention of thermally processed plant-based foods, a lower β-carotene bio-accessibility was observed. Both observations clearly illustrated the inverse correlation between textural and nutritional characteristics of (processed) carrots. Statistical analyses confirmed the trends observed. For process design, the choice of the process intensity was identified to be crucial: the required product safety needs to be achieved, while still reaching an acceptable structural and nutritional quality. Exploring strategies to enhance the β-carotene bio-accessibility while ensuring an acceptable carrot texture can therefore be useful.

In the present study, the effect of equivalent thermal and high pressure processes at pasteurization and sterilization intensities on some health related properties of high pressure homogenized tomato puree containing oil were investigated. Total lycopene concentration, cis-lycopene content and in vitro lycopene bioaccessibility were examined as health related properties. Results showed that pasteurization hardly affected the health related properties of tomato puree. Only the formation of cis-lycopene during intense thermal pasteurization was observed. Sterilization processes on the other hand had a significant effect on the health related properties. A significant decrease in total lycopene concentration was found after the sterilization processes. Next to degradation, significant isomerization was also observed: all-trans-lycopene was mainly converted to 9-cis- and 13-cis-lycopene. High pressure sterilization limited the overall lycopene isomerization, when compared to the equivalent thermal sterilization processes. The formation of 5-cis-lycopene on the other hand seemed to be favoured by high pressure. The in vitro lycopene bioaccessibility of high pressure homogenized tomato puree containing oil was decreased during subsequent thermal or high pressure processing, whereby significant changes were observed for all the sterilization processes.

The effect of thermal processing (85-130 °C) on the stability and isomerization of β-carotene in both an olive oil/carrot emulsion and an olive oil phase enriched with carrot β-carotene was studied. During processing, degradation of total β-carotene took place. Initially, total β-carotene concentration decreased quickly, after which a plateau value was reached, which was dependent on the applied temperature. In the oil/carrot emulsion, the total β-carotene concentration could be modeled by a fractional conversion model. The temperature dependence of the degradation rate constants was described by the activation energy and was estimated to be 45.0 kJ/mol. In the enriched oil phase, less degradation took place and the results could not be modeled. Besides degradation, β-carotene isomerization was studied. In both matrices, a fractional conversion model could be used to model total isomerization and formation of 13-Z- and 15-Z-β-carotene. β-Carotene isomerization was similar in both the oil/carrot emulsion and enriched oil phase as the simultaneously estimated kinetic parameters (isomerization reaction rate constant and activation energy) of both matrices did not differ significantly. The activation energies of isomerization were estimated to be 70.5 and 75.0 kJ/mol in the oil/carrot emulsion and enriched oil phase, respectively.

The effect of some process and product factors (addition of olive oil, high pressure homogenisation, subsequent thermal or high pressure pasteurisation) on β-carotene bioaccessibility and isomerisation of carrot puree was investigated. High pressure homogenisation could improve β-carotene bioaccessibility by disrupting cells, but only at a pressure higher than 50 MPa. Softening of the cell walls during a subsequent thermal pasteurisation resulted in a further increase in β-carotene bioaccessibility. Unfortunately, the high temperature also induced formation of some undesirable cis-isomers. As cell walls are probably strengthened by high pressure, high pressure pasteurisation could not positively affect the amount of bioaccessible β-carotene. Moreover, the high pressure process induced β-carotene oxidation. A positive effect of olive oil on β-carotene bioaccessibility could only be noticed in combination with a thermal pasteurisation process when β-carotene was solubilised in the oil droplets. Under high pressure however, oil can be crystallised which hinders the solubilisation of β-carotene.

In the present study, the effect of thermal and equivalent high pressure processes on structural (texture and microstructure) and health-related (total β-carotene concentration, β-carotene isomerisation and β-carotene bio-accessibility) properties of carrots was investigated. Both a mild and strong pasteurisation process and a sterilisation process were considered. Both for pasteurisation and sterilisation, the high pressure process resulted in a similar or improved (2.6–4.5 times higher) hardness of the carrots compared to the equivalent thermal process. In contrast to the thermally treated samples, almost no β-carotene isomerisation was observed for the high pressure processed samples. However, the effect of high pressure on β-carotene bio-accessibility was dependent on the intensity of the process. Going from mild pasteurisation, over strong pasteurisation to sterilisation, the β-carotene bio-accessibility of the high pressure treated samples changed from 1.2 times higher, over 1.2 times lower to 2.5 times lower than that of the thermally treated samples.

Carotenoids represent an example of micronutrients for which processing-induced food structure changes (e.g., matrix disruption) strongly influence their bioavailability. The available scientific information on this topic resulting from both in vivo and in vitro studies shows however the complexity of this problem. Although in vitro studies have been shown useful to better understand the relation between processing and carotenoid bioavailability, there is still conflicting information. To expand our current knowledge on this topic in order to allow rational design of food processing solutions resulting in products with maximal carotenoid accessibility and (bio)availability, it is suggested (i) to further evaluate and standardize in vitro models to be used as high throughput screening tools to determine the effect of extrinsic (process-related) and intrinsic (product-related) factors and (ii) to integrate food structure information as a useful approach for understanding and quantifying the bioavailability of carotenoids in foods. However, it will be necessary to validate the information obtained from these in vitro methods thoroughly against human studies (in vivo studies).

Strawberries were infused with fungal pectinmethylesterase (PME) and calcium chloride, followed by a thermal (70 °C–0.1 MPa), a high pressure (25 °C–550 MPa) or a combined thermal-high pressure (70 °C–550 MPa) process. Macroscopic (firmness) and microscopic characteristics were assessed to evaluate the texture of the fruits. In order to interpret the texture changes, the chemical structure of pectin was investigated. Processing of strawberries caused a decrease in firmness, which was limited by infusion of PME and calcium chloride, although the extent of beneficial effects depended on the type of processing. PME was able to decrease the degree of methoxylation of pectin, which was accompanied by an increased crosslinking of the chains. During high pressure or combined thermal-high pressure processing, the degree of methoxylation of pectin in infused strawberries was even further decreased, probably due to a higher activity of the fungal PME under high pressure. In case of the high pressure process, this was reflected in a very firm texture. However, the combined thermal-high pressure process caused more severe tissue damage, in spite of the advantageous pectin properties. Industrial relevance During high pressure processing of strawberries many nutritional and sensorial characteristics are quite well preserved. Unfortunately, texture of strawberries deteriorates during such processes. This paper provides mechanistic insight into how infusion of fungal pectinmethylesterase and calcium ions in strawberries can preserve the firmness of these fruits during high pressure processing.

Strawberries were infused with fungal pectinmethylesterase (PME) and/or calcium chloride with the aim of minimising tissue damage during subsequent thermal processing (95 °C). Firmness measurements and micrographs provided information on the extent of tissue damage. These observations were linked to the chemical structure of pectin. When PME was infused in absence of Ca 2+ , the degree of methoxylation of pectin was lowered, but chains remained water soluble, indicating that they were not crosslinked. Thermal processing of PME-infused strawberries resulted in pectin solubilisation and depolymerisation which was reflected in pronounced firmness decrease and tissue damage, comparable to non-infused processed strawberries. On the other hand, when a combination of both PME and Ca 2+ was infused, an important decrease in processing-related tissue damage was perceived. This can be explained by increased crosslinking of pectin chains with low degree of methoxylation, rendering them insoluble and less susceptible to thermal depolymerisation.

β-Carotene, which is largely present in carrots, is an important micronutrient as a result of its health-related properties. Processing might have a double effect on β-carotene. On the one hand, processing might negatively affect β-carotene stability as a result of isomerization and degradation. On the other hand, processing might alter β-carotene bioaccessibility, i.e., the amount of β-carotene that can be released from the carrot matrix during digestion and is made accessible for absorption into mucosa. Whereas thermal processing mostly results in an increase in β-carotene bioaccessibility, high-pressure processing can not in most cases improve β-carotene bioaccessibility. For thermal processing, even when processing results in β-carotene loss by isomerization and/or degradation, the increase in β-carotene bioaccessibility is probably high enough to transcend this negative effect. It can be concluded that high-pressure processing does not have a clear advantage over thermal processing concerning the nutritional quality (in terms of carotenoids) of carrot products.