Non-Thermal Pasteurization of Milk Using CHIEF Technology

The concentrated high intensity electric field (CHIEF) is a new process for nonthermal pasteurization of liquid foods developed by researchers at the University of Minnesota. The purpose of this chapter is to provide interested researchers useful information on the basic principles of the CHIEF process and physical structure, and its effects on microorganisms and food components, so that more research and development efforts can be undertaken to understand and improve this new nonthermal technology. In addition to milk and orange juice, a whey beverage was also tested using CHIEF technology. Bacterial kill appears to increase with increasing proportions of fruit juice, which may be attributed to the lowered pH and/or diluted protective effect of whey by fruit juice. Most of the recent studies on pulsed electric fields (PEF) tend to adopt an approach combining multiple factors, such as the addition of heat, antimicrobial compounds and thermosonication.