Читать книгу Food Chemistry - Dennis D. Miller - Страница 14

Many food components may be classified as acids or bases due to their capacity to donate or accept protons (hydrogen ions). These components perform numerous important functions including flavor enhancement, control of microbial growth, inhibition of browning, alteration of texture, prevention of lipid oxidation, and pH control.

Acids and bases are key metabolites in living plant and animal organisms, for example as intermediates in the TCA cycle, and are mostly retained when the plant is harvested or the animal is slaughtered so they are naturally present in foods. They may also be added during processing or synthesized during fermentation to produce desired characteristics in the final food product.

The concentration and relative proportion of acids and bases determine the pH of a food, an extremely important characteristic. pH can affect the flavor, color, texture, stability, and behavior in food processing situations. For example, commercial sterilization of acid foods (pH less than 4.6) [1] can be achieved under milder processing conditions than in foods with a higher pH.