ABSTRACT
The existence of undesirable side effects of thermal processing and the desire for flexibility in process and storage methodology have provided the incentive to explore nonthermal methods of food processing. In the present chapter we limit ourselves, in line with the objective of this book, to physical treatments which may be considered nonthermal. The qualification implied in the previous sentence arises from the fact that all of the physical treatments proposed have some thermal effects, but the preservation effect is not primarily due to the thermal component of the treatment.
