Tushar Gaware

---

B. Pharm., M. Tech. BPT (Currently Ph. D. Student)

Email ID: ce07tj.gaware@ictmumbai.edu.in

 

Education Details
Course	Institute/University	Year of Passing
B. Pharm	University of Pune	2004
M. Tech. Bio Process Technology	University Institute of Chemical Technology, UICT, Mumbai	2007
Ph. D. Tech. Bio-Process Technology	University Institute of Chemical Technology, UICT, Mumbai	-

STUDIES IN DEHYDRATION OF FOOD AND BIOLOGICAL PRODUCTS

‘Dehydration’ is one of the oldest methods to offer a cost effective and very practical means of food preservation than canning, freezing etc. Over the last 50 years or so, the method of food preservation has changed with the introduction of novel techniques and technologies. Conventional use of sun drying is being replaced these days with solar dryer to assure the quality aspects of the dried food products. Although, the change over of the technology for food dehydration has been slow over the period, it is however necessary to accelerate this process with cost effective and modern drying technologies. With the ever growing population, it even becomes pertinent to adopt the modern technologies such as solar assisted drying followed by Infra-red (IR) drying or heat pump assisted dehydration followed by either IR drying or moderately high temperature solar drying or recently, the microwave drying. The solo technique or the combinatorial technique depends on the type of product that is under consideration. Also, the pretreatment of the food and agricultural can change to a certain extent the quality of the final dehydrated product.

Drying is different from frying, baking and roasting even though there is significant water removal by evaporation in all of them. In these processes, several additional changes occur in the products; for example, flavor and texture development, and they are intended for purposes other than to merely remove the moisture. The low water content attained by drying exceeds the shelf life of dried foods without the need for cold storage. As well, available surplus can be converted to stable forms.

Dehydration of vegetables such as chili, onion, ginger, tomato, spinach and the fruits like grapes, jack fruit, custard apple, sapota (chiku) etc. were carried out using solar assisted dehydration techniques. Various marine food products like Bombay duck and Shrimp are also dehydrated using osmotic dehydration followed by solar dehydration technique. Drying of various biological products like proteins, enzymes and bio-fertilizers and selection of dryer for particular products and study cost effectiveness of the process. The whole work demonstrates the use of cost effective dehydration technologies for the value addition of food and agricultural products in Rural India.