ABSTRACT
Health consciousness consumers prefer ‘healthy food products’ devoid of contaminants and food-borne microorganisms and this has led to use of novel food processing methods, such as pulsed electric field (PEF), infrared (IR) processing, cold plasma, high hydrostatic pressure (HHP), ultrasound, radiation, and many more. Amongst these, being operative on the principle of pressure and independent of mass and time, HHP is becoming the choice of modern processors due to benefits, such as ‘fresh-like’ appearance of food products, decreased microbial load, enhanced desired attributes like digestibility, and extended shelf-life. Applications of HHP is not only limited to the food industry but it offers its advantages to dairy, meat, and seafoods. Inactivation of bacteria within a pressure ranging from 300–700 MPa is not only effectual in terms of long-term preservation but also helps in manipulating the textural characteristics of foods. Therefore, HPP is a potent processing method to obtain novel food products with improved nutritional properties and increased shelf-life. This chapter covers the basic information on HHP, mechanisms of action, process categorization, and applications of HHP in food and dairy industries.
