ABSTRACT
Enzymes are proteinaceous substances that act as catalysts for various biochemical reactions and their study is known as enzymology. As far as postharvest processing industry is concerned, they have a plethora of applications in the area of dairy, fruits and vegetables, confectionery, food preservation etc. Moreover, depending on the scenario, enzymes need to be activated or inactivated for obtaining favorable processing conditions. This is usually carried out through control of pH, temperature, concentration of species, etc. that affect the enzyme–substrate chemical reaction. The fundamentals and primary working mechanism regarding the enzymes are documented here along with their applications in post-harvest technology. This chapter also deals with chemical enzyme inactivation methods and their recent advancements.
