Computational Shelf-Life Dating: Complex Systems Approaches to Food Quality and Safety

Abstract

Shelf-life is defined as the time that a product is acceptable and meets the consumers expectations regarding food quality. It is the result of the conjunction of all services in production, distribution, and consumption. Shelf-life dating is one of the most difficult tasks in food engineering. Market pressure has lead to the implementation of shelf-life by sensory analyses, which may not reflect the full quality spectra. Moreover, traditional methods for shelf-life dating and small-scale distribution chain tests cannot reproduce in a laboratory the real conditions of storage, distribution, and consumption on food quality. Today, food engineers are facing the challenges to monitor, diagnose, and control the quality and safety of food products. The advent of nanotechnology, multivariate sensors, information systems, and complex systems will revolutionize the way we manage, distribute, and consume foods. The informed consumer demands foods, under the legal standards, at low cost, high standards of nutritional, sensory, and health benefits. To accommodate the new paradigms, we herein present a critical review of shelflife dating approaches with special emphasis in computational systems and future trends on complex systems methodologies applied to the prediction of food quality and safety.

Smart Artificial Intelligence Computerized Models for Shelf Life Prediction of Processed Cheese

“…Martins et al [4] defined shelf life as the length of time that a product is acceptable and meets the consumer's expectations regarding food quality. It is the result of the conjunction of all services in production, distribution, and consumption.…”

Desenvolvimento do produto de conveniência Quenelle de tilápia (Oreochromis niloticus)

“…É o resultado da conjunção da produção, distribuição e consumo. Definir a vida útil do produto é um grande desafio para as indústrias, uma vez que testes em laboratórios podem não reproduzir fielmente o que acontece na realidade (MARTINS et al, 2008).…”

“…Um sistema de datas compreende a data da produção, de distribuição e de venda, em que as características de sanidade sensoriais e nutricionais estão aceitáveis, além da data limite em que o alimento não pode mais ser consumido (MARTINS et al, 2008).…”

Time – Delay Simulated Artificial Neural Network Models for Predicting Shelf Life of Processed Cheese

“…Moreover, traditional methods for shelf-life dating and small-scale distribution chain tests cannot reproduce in a laboratory the real conditions of storage, distribution, and consumption on food quality. The consumer demands foods under the legal standards, at low cost, high standards of nutritional, sensory, and health benefits [4].Food engineers are facing the challenges to monitor, and control the quality and safety of food products. The new technologies, viz., nanotechnology, multivariate sensors, information systems, and complex systems have revolutionized the food industry.…”