Understanding the Uses of Acids in Food Processing

For industries rooted in food preservation, the importance of acids cannot be overstated. However, acids easily find uses across food processing as well. Bell Chem, your food ingredient supplier, shares many of those functions along with why they are important to your processing operation.

Add Tartness

Acidic flavor enhancers and adjuvants are designed to add a “tang” or “tartness” to flavors without overpowering or changing the intended flavor. For this reason, a larger amount of citric acid or malic acid are regularly added to lemon-flavored candies and beverages while a much lower amount is necessary for strawberry flavoring. 

Balance Powdered Mixes

While fumaric acid is utilized less frequently because of its extreme flavor, its inexpensive cost gives it a seat at the acid table. Fumaric acid is much less soluble than other acids, but is often found in powdered mixes.

Enhance Soda

While the preceding acids are easily transferred from one food or beverage to another, some acids are specific as ingredients. For instance, phosphoric acid is on the nutrition label of dark colas and tartaric acid is regularly added to grape-flavored foods and beverages.

Pickle Foods

Lactic acid finds uses in boiled sweet foods and in pickling. For baking, lactic acid acts as a feedstock for emulsifiers. In contrast, acetic acid’s uses focus on pickling. Many pressurized canned goods, such as jams, jellies, and gelatins necessitate specific pH ranges to ensure the proper viscosity and mouthfeel. In dairy products, the creation of curds relies on stringent pH ranges.

Sterilize and Stabilize

Acids are canning powerhouses, decreasing the energy needed to sterilize since low pH zones are unfriendly for microbial growth. This same function also inactivates enzymes that negatively affect canning sterilization. Salt and vinegar chips derive their flavor not from vinegar, but from acetic acid, which is more stable and offers the same flavor chip after chip.

Along with adding acids to foods and beverages, acids are ideal during aseptic processing and packaging, when both foods and containers are sterilized with acids, often in different formulations depending on the food and type of packaging.

Mask Other Flavors

Acids have another important role: masking the flavor of existing ingredients, specifically saccharine, where malic and citric acid remove saccharine’s unsatisfactory aftertaste.

Make Raw Foods Safe

Raw meats destined to be sushi may be marinated in diluted acetic acid, which defers bacteria infiltration as it denatures the proteins making up the meat, helping to change the mouthfeel without affecting the flavor.

Bell Chem is a food ingredient supplier based in Longwood, FL (just north of Orlando) with hundreds of products stocked in their 50,000+ square-foot warehouse, including CSANTM sanitation products. You can expect the highest quality products, expedited shipping options for maximum efficiency, and unrivaled personalized customer service. Let our knowledgeable and friendly customer service representatives and accounting staff personalize all your needs by either calling 407-339-BELL (2355) or by sending us an online message.