Food production is the process of transforming raw materials into edible food products. It involves cultivating, harvesting, managing crops, conserving, fermenting, producing crops, pickling, cooking in restaurants, and washing, cutting and combining ingredients to create manufactured foods. The production process also involves dispersing food products into suitable reheating and serving sizes. Centrally producing food involves preparing food in one place and then transporting it to another place for serving.
This is commonly seen in a restaurant environment, where food can be cooked off-site and then served to guests at a particular location. Processing means turning plants or animals into what we recognize and buy as food. In the case of products, processing can be as simple as washing and sorting, or it can involve trimming, slicing or shredding. Milk is generally processed by pasteurizing it; sometimes it is made into cheese.
Nuts can be roasted, chopped, or ground (for example, with peanut butter). In the case of animals, the first step in processing is slaughter. The meat and poultry can then be cut into pieces or ground. They can also be smoked, cooked or frozen and can be combined with other ingredients to make a sausage or a main course, such as a pot.
Food processing is the transformation of agricultural products into food, or from one form of food into other forms. Food processing includes many forms of food processing, from grinding grains to make raw flour to cooking at home and complex industrial methods used to prepare precooked foods. Some food processing methods play an important role in reducing food waste and improving food conservation, thus reducing the total environmental impact of agriculture and improving food security. Secondary food processes may vary depending on the type of food group, but may include physical processes such as pressing, milling and dehydration, and chemical processes such as hydrolysis, hydrogenation, or the use of enzymes. The benefits of food processing include eliminating toxins, conserving resources, facilitating marketing and distribution tasks, and increasing food consistency.
New research that highlights the importance for human health of a rich microbial environment in the gut indicates that abundant food processing (not food fermentation) endangers that environment. It also addresses the management of consumer needs and demand and broader issues such as minimizing food waste. Food manufacturing refers to the industrial processes that convert fresh produce into consumable food products. The sous vide method of food production has recently gained popularity for its ability to add intense flavors to a unique preparation. The food manufacturing process includes many elements similar to other products such as clothing and cars. Tertiary food processing has been criticized for promoting overnutrition and obesity since it contains too much sugar and salt, too little fiber, and is otherwise unhealthy compared to the dietary needs of humans and farm animals.
Secondary food processing is the daily process of creating food from ready-to-use ingredients. While there's no need to limit the sugars found naturally in whole unprocessed foods such as fresh fruit eating too much added sugar found in many processed foods increases the risk of heart disease obesity tooth decay and type 2 diabetes. Processed foods freed people from the large amount of time involved in preparing and cooking natural unprocessed foods. Food processing companies marketed their products especially to middle class wives and working mothers.
