Colour is an important quality attribute in the food and bioprocess industries, and it influences consumer's choice and preferences. Food colour is governed by the chemical, biochemical, microbial and physical changes which occur during growth, maturation, postharvest handling and processing. Colour measurement of food products has been used as an indirect measure of other quality attributes such as flavour and contents of pigments because it is simpler, faster and correlates well with other physicochemical properties. This review discusses the techniques and procedures for the measurement and analysis of colour in food and other biomaterial materials. It focuses on the instrumental (objective) and visual (subjective) measurements for quantifying colour attributes and highlights the range of primary and derived objective colour indices used to characterise the maturity and quality of a wide range of food products and beverages. Different approaches applied to model food colour are described, including reaction mechanisms, response surface methodology and others based on probabilistic and non-isothermal kinetics. Colour is one of the most widely measured product quality attributes in postharvest handling and in the food processing research and industry. Apart from differences in instrumentation, colour measurements are often reported based on different colour indices even for the same product, making it difficult to compare results in the literature. There is a need for standardisation to improve the traceability and transferability of measurements. The correlation between colour and other sensory quality attributes is well established, but future prospects exist in the application of objective non-destructive colour measurement in predictive modelling of the nutritional quality of fresh and processed food products.

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Modified atmosphere packaging (MAP) technology offers the possibility to retard the respiration rate and extend the shelf life of fresh produce, and is increasingly used globally as value adding in the fresh and fresh-cut food industry. However, the outbreaks of foodborne diseases and emergence of resistant foodborne pathogens in MAP have heightened public interest on the effects of MAP technology on the survival and growth of pathogenic organisms. This paper critically reviews the effects of MAP on the microbiological safety of fresh or fresh-cut produce, including the role of innovative tools such as the use of pressurised inert/ noble gases, predictive microbiology and intelligent packaging in the advancement of MAP safety. The integration of Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points-based programs to ensure fresh food quality and microbial safety in packaging technology is highlighted. a Review do not contain information on role of predictive microbiology b Review do not contain information on HACCP, good hygenic practice, GMP etc. c Review do not contain information on systemic MAP-i.e. modelling respiration and package permeability Food Bioprocess Technol (2013) 6:303-329 305 5, 10 and 15 Arrhenius-type Caleb et al. (2012a) ANN Artificial neural network, MMC Michaelis-Menten competitive inhibition, MMUC Michaelis-Menten uncompetitive inhibition, UCI uncompetive inhibition, MMNC Michaelis-Menten noncompetitive inhibition Food Bioprocess Technol (2013) 6:303-329 307

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The present study evaluated the nutritional quality and glycemic index of three sun-dried date varieties (Khalas, Khsab and Fardh) grown in Oman. Significant (P<0.05) differences were observed in the proximate chemical composition, dietary fiber contents, various sugar fractions and energy value of these dates. The moisture, ash, crude protein, total fat, and nitrogen-free extract values ranged between 18.77 and 23.71 g/100 g date flesh, 1.12 and 1.55 g/100 g date flesh, 1.28 and 1.89 g/100 g date flesh, 1.14 and 2.37 g/100 g date flesh, and 68.53 and 75.37 g/100 g date flesh, respectively. The dietary fiber and total sugar contents ranged between 8.83 and 13.11 g/100 g and between 52.17 and 59.96 g/100 g, respectively. The glycemic index (GI) of different varieties of dates collected from various regions of Oman ranged between 47.6 and 57.7. Overall no significant (P<0.05) differences were observed in the GI values of different varieties of dates. The regional effects on the GI values of dates were also non-significant (P>0.05). An inverse correlation (r(2)) was observed between the fructose fraction and the GI value of dates.