Overcoming technical culinary challenges of preserving food quality gets a leg up from a unique source
Americans invented, and once even embraced, those cardboard-like frozen TV dinners back in the 1950s, but today’s consumers won’t tolerate anything but the freshest tasting foods. Even if it’s not farm-to-table or made from scratch, the foods consumers buy need to have a top quality look and taste that could rival their favorite restaurants. Consumers determine freshness by judging a food’s appearance, texture and mouthfeel, as well as flavor and aroma.
But as much as consumers value freshness, they also value time, making convenience foods more critical than ever to a high-paced environment. People don’t want to wait long for entrées to hit the table, even in high-end restaurants, much less when they are hungry and tired after a long day and a stressful commute. The constant challenge for food makers, however, is to marry the seemingly conflicting demands of just-made freshness with long shelflife convenience and speed of preparation.