Unit Operations
The term for a single physical, chemical, or biological step used in food manufacturing to transform raw ingredients into finished products.
Unit Operation
The level of processing that involves cleaning, sorting, and turning raw crops into basic items like shelled nuts, cut apples, or flour
Primary Processing
The two main biological processes or causes responsible for food spoilage
microbial growth (bacteria/mold) and enzymatic reactions (browning/breakdown)
he environmental factor altered when raw beef is sliced, salted, and placed in a dehydrator to make beef jerky.
Moisture
The federal agency responsible for regulating packaged canned foods or processed products shipped across state lines.
FDA
Washing, peeling, sorting, and grading raw fruits or vegetables fall under this basic unit operation category.
preperation
The main reason food processors apply different processing pathways to the exact same raw commodity (like raw milk).
To alter final end use, texture, and target shelf life
High-temperature thermal processing (like canning at 240°F / 116°C under pressure) stops spoilage by doing this to bacterial proteins and enzymes.
denaturing (destroying/inactivating) them
The environmental factor altered when fresh green beans are sealed in airtight cans and processed at $240^\circ\text{F}$ under pressure
Temperature and oxygen/air
True or False: USDA Prime beef is safer to eat than USDA Select beef.
False
Slicing potatoes for chips or milling wheat into flour are examples of this unit operation category.
Size Reduction
Turning fresh pork into bacon/ham, or turning fresh milk into cheese or yogurt, are examples of this processing level.
Secondary Processing
This preservation method freezes a product first and then removes water through sublimation.
freeze drying
Dipping fresh apple slices in lemon juice prevents enzymatic browning because it lowers this environmental factor
pH/ acidity
The term for official federal regulations that define what a food product must contain to legally be labeled by its common name.
Standards of Identity
Skimming cream off raw milk or filtering pulp out of orange juice represents this unit operation category.
Seperation
Mass-produced, highly ultra-processed foods like Doritos, Pop-Tarts, and boxed Mac & Cheese fall under this processing level.
Tertiary
Removing water through dehydration or adding salt alters water activity, stopping microbial growth because microbes need water for this cellular function.
metabolic activity / cellular function / reproduction
The preservation method that slows down microbial growth and enzymatic reactions without destroying or killing the bacteria.
Refrigeration/ freezing
If a manufacturer makes a frozen dessert with only 5% milkfat, can they legally label and sell it as "Ice Cream"? Why or why not?
No, because federal Standards of Identity require ice cream to contain at least 10% milkfat
Name TWO sequential unit operations required to transform raw poultry (chicken) into packaged frozen chicken nuggets
Deboning/ Slaughering, grinding/shaping, mixing, cooking ingredients, freezing, packaging
Name TWO distinct final products made from raw corn through different processing pathways.
cornstarch, corn oil, high fructose corn syrup, or ethanol
High-heat treatment used specifically to kill disease-causing pathogens in raw drinking milk while preserving liquid form.
pasteurization
The preservation process that reduces liquid volume through evaporation or reverse osmosis while leaving the product as a concentrated liquid (e.g., tomato paste or orange juice concentrate).
Concentration
The four core goals of food processing that benefit consumers in modern grocery distribution systems.
safety, extended shelf life, convenience, and nutrition