The Upside of Blast Freezing

The benefits of blast freezing and blast freezers

Flash freezing is a process in which food is very quickly frozen at an extremely cold temperature. In commercial processing, foods are flash frozen so that as many nutrients are retained as possible, and to make sure that the food is as fresh and flavorful as it can be. On the industrial scale, this process is done in large freezers that get well below the freezing point. Want to know more about blast freezing and blast freezers? Read more below.

Benefits of blast freezing

One of the key challenges in the food industry is the effective control or – even better – elimination of bacterial activity. And one of the most effective weapons in the fight against bacteria is chilling and freezing. When the temperature is lowered below freezing point, the growth of microorganisms decreases rapidly. This is due not only to the lowering of the product temperature but also to the reduction in free liquid water activity – thus depriving microorganisms of the water they need to metabolize.

Blast freezing also maintains the natural quality of food. When food is frozen, the water inside it crystallizes. If freezing takes place at a relatively warm temperature, the ice crystals which form will be large. In a blast freezer, the extremely cold temperature promotes very rapid freezing, which creates small ice crystals. The smaller the crystals, the less damage to the food as large crystals can rupture cells. Once the food has been frozen, it can be moved to a more conventional freezer, for storage, as long as the freezer stays cold enough, to keep the food frozen.

Benefits of blast freezers

A blast freezer is a temperature controlled unit which is extremely cold. It may also be known as a shock freezer. Such freezers are intended to rapidly bring the temperature of foods down, freezing them extremely quickly. These specialized freezers are used in the frozen food industry for everything from ice cream to television dinners and they are also utilized in commercial kitchens and other organizations dealing with food production or distribution.

Many blast freezers operate with blowers which force chilled air over the products in the freezer to cool them down rapidly. These freezers can be equipped with movable trays for positioning products and they may also include an assortment of compartments for freezing. The freezer can usually handle foods which are chilled, at room temperature, or hot, as long as it is not overloaded.

Source: https://dawsongroup.ie/news/the-benefits-of-blast-freezing.html