Flash pasteurization
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Flash pasteurization, also called "High Temperature Short Time" processing, is a method of heat pasteurization of perishable beverages like fruit and vegetable juices, beer, and dairy products. Compared to other pasteurization processes, it maintains color and flavor better.
It is done prior to filling into containers in order to kill spoilage microorganisms, to make the products safer and extend their shelf life.
The liquid moves in a controlled, continuous flow while subjected to temperatures of 71.5 °C (160 °F) to 74 °C (165 °F), for about 15 to 30 seconds, a ratio expressed as pasteurization units.
The process is more prevalent in Europe and Asia than in North America.[citation needed]
Flash pasteurization is widely used for fruit juices. Tropicana Products has used flash pasteurization since the 1950s.[1] The juice company Odwalla switched from non-pasteurized to flash-pasteurized juices in 1996 after tainted unpasteurized apple juice containing E. coli O157:H7 sickened many children and killed one.[2]
