Food Preservation in First Industrial Evolution

The Industrial Revolution, which took place from 1760 to 1840, started in Great Britain.As the industrial
revolution opened greater transport opportunities, food items could be shipped to varying destinations.
Villages no longer needed to be self sufficient, they could now focus on growing the crops that best
suited their land and climate and trade with farmers growing different crops. As the transport grew even
further, so did the quantity of people that were accessible to trade with. No longer were communities
limited to localised trade. Food could now be transported and traded over large distances. Some food
items were suitable for long distance trading as they had a long storage life, like soups and salted meats.
Other items were perishable and needed to be preserved. There became a need to develop a food
storage system that would enable food items to be handled and transported without compromising the
food. It was these circumstances that lead to the development and use of food canning.

The idea of the tin can first came into being when the French government decided to offer a cash reward
for anyone who could come up with a cheap and effective method of preserving food. In 1809 Nicolas
Appert observed that food cooked in air-tight glass jars wouldn’t spoil unless it leaked. Why the food was
kept edible wasn’t discovered until 50 years later when Louis Pasteur (the discoverer of Pasteurisation)
demonstrated the roll bacteria played in food expiry.

in 1772 the Dutch Navy developed an earlier technique of preserving food similar to the tin can. The
Dutch would catch salmon, clean it, and boil it in brine and the place it in tin-plated iron boxes

During the Industrial Revolution, factory workers often ate leftover pie at lunch. They would pack it in a
tin pail and eat it cold, much like we do today — but minus the ice cream or whipped cream on top. In
fact, pies were so common that pie stalls were set up outside the factories.

FOOD PREPARATION AND PRESERVATION OF ANCIENT EGYPTIANS

By:Hylene Faye B. Navalta

FOOD PREPARATION

Food could be prepared by baking, grilling, stewing boiling or roasting. Spices and herbs were added for
flavor, though the former were expensive imports and therefore confined to the tables of the wealthy.
The staples bread and beer were usually prepared in the same locations, as the yeast used for bread was
also used for brewing.

1.Baking

The baking techniques varied over time. In the Old Kingdom, heavy pottery molds were filled with dough
and then set in the embers to bake. During the Middle Kingdom tall cones were used on square hearths.
In the New Kingdom a new type of a large open-topped clay oven, cylindrical in shape, was used, which
was encased in thick mud bricks and mortar.

Bread- Wheat was made into bread which is one of the main ancient Egyptian foods eaten by both rich
and poor ancient Egyptians. First, the grain was made into flour. It was then made into dough with water
and yeast which was placed into a clay mould before being cooked in a stone oven. To add some flavor,
additives such as salt , coriander, dates and eggs were added just before the bread was cut into baking
pieces. Bakers used to shape bread dough into various figures, including animals and humans,

3.Brewing

In Egypt, beer was a primary source of nutrition, and consumed daily. It was an important source of
protein, minerals and vitamins and was so valuable that beer jars were often used as a measurement of
value and were used in medicine One batch of grain was sprouted, which produced enzymes. The next
batch was cooked in water, dispersing the starch and then the two batches were mixed. The enzymes
began to consume the starch to produce sugar. The resulting mixture was then sieved to remove chaff,
and yeast (and probably lactic acid) was then added to begin a fermentation process that produced
alcohol. This method of brewing is still used in parts of non-industrialized Africa. Ancient Egyptians made
beer by half cooking barley, soaking it in water and leaving it to set. They had to strain the clumps of
barley out before drinking it.

3.Boiling and Roasting

Meat, fish and poultry was roasted or boiled. The ancient Egyptians flavored their food with salt, pepper,
cumin, coriander, sesame, dill and fennel.
A variety of vegetables were grown and eaten by the ancient Egyptians including onions, leeks, garlic,
beans, lettuce lentils, cabbages, radishes and turnips. They were eaten as a complement to the
ubiquitous beer and bread; the most common were long-shooted green scallions and garlic but both also
had medical uses. Various tubers of sedges, including papyrus were eaten raw, boiled, roasted or ground
into flour and were rich in nutrients.

FOOD PRESERVATION

1. Drying or Dehydration

Perhaps the easiest and earliest method of food preservation is drying. It makes sense because water in
food becomes a breeding ground for microorganisms. Therefore, once water has dried out,
microorganism may not be able to spoil the food further. As early as 12000 B.C., ancient Egyptians were
already dehydrating nuts, fish, fruits and meat under the sun.

2. Curing

Earlier civilizations used salt and smoking technique in desiccating food. Salt hastens the drying
process by osmosis. It also inhibits the growth of some common bacteria. Smoking deposits phenols,
syringol, guaiacol and catechol on the food. Thus, the food becomes cured in the process. Sometimes
salt was relatively easy to extract; in other parts it was more difficult. Fish curing, depicted in the tombs
of ancient Egypt, was so highly regarded that only temple officials were entrusted with the knowledge of
the art, and it is significant that the Egyptian word for fish preserving was the same as that used to
denote the process of embalming the dead.

3.Cooling

Cooling slows down the reproduction of microorganisms in food. It also slows down enzymatic
actions that may cause food to spoil. Thus, men in ancient times put their food inside cool caves or under
cool water to preserve it.

4.Sugaring(Jams and Jellies)

Ancient cultures have used sugar as preservative. It was common during that time to store food in honey
in clay jars. Sugar draws water away from the microbes, leaving them dehydrated and eventually killed.

5.Fermentation
Fermentation was considered as a way of both preserving food and retaining its nutritional value, aids
the preservation of vitamin C and actually produces vitamins B and K, makes food more digestible
particularly some hard-to-digest starches

The discovery of fermentation in Egypt also led to the first production of wine and alcohol. All these
discoveries were largely phenomenological and it would be another 3000 years before the exact cause of
fermentation was uncovered. It was Louis Pasteur, in 1857, who was able to demonstrate that alcohol
can be produced by yeast when grown in particular conditions. This discovery revolutionised the modern
food industry: for

he first time the agent of fermentation was identified and could be used commercially.

6. Pickling

Pickling began by using wine or beer since both liquids have low pH levels and transform into vinegar.
Common pickling agents also include brine, alcohol and vegetable oil. Egyptians pickled fish such as
sturgeon, salmon, and catfish, as well as poultry and geese.

CONCLUSION

It is clear from the above list that the ancient Egyptians had so many eating habits and ways to prepare
their foods. Their foods can be baked, boiled, grilled, stewed, fried and even roasted then served with
seasonings, along with beer or occasionally wine. On the other hand, ancient Egyptians preserve their
foods through drying or dehydration, curing, cooling, sugaring(Jams and Jellies), fermentation It is also
clear that the food staples that prevailed in ancient Egypt have had a significant impact on the food
habits of generations to come.

Ancient China

Ancient China was very different from the modern factory of the world that we know today. It was the
ancient Chinese beliefs to live with the land and let it provide food for you.
Cooking Styles

Dating back to the 7th century BC, ancient Chinese food can be divided roughly into the Northern and
the Southern style of cooking. Generally, Northern Chinese dishes tend to be oily, although they are not
cloyingly so, and garlic and vinegar flavoring are more pronounced. Northern Chinese food also includes
a lot of pasta; some of the favorite flour-based treats being steamed bread; fried meat dumplings;
steamed stuffed buns; dumplings resembling ravioli; and noodles. The best known cooking styles of
Northern Chinese food are perhaps the methods used in Shantung, Tientsin, and Peking. The Chinese
wish for satiation and plenitude is symbolized by an elaborately made stuffed chicken.

Some of the distinguishing Southern styles of cooking are Hunan and Szechuan cuisine which are well-
known for the liberal utilization of chili peppers; the Chekiang and Kiangsu styles of cooking with their
emphasis on tenderness and freshness; and Cantonese cuisine which has a tendency of being a little
sweet and includes a lot of variety. Rice as well as rice products like rice cake, rice congee, and rice
noodles usually accompany Southern main dishes.

Flavor, Aroma, and Color

Carefully imbibing Confucianism and Taoism, the Chinese always laid a lot of emphasis on satisfying the
olfactory, visual, as well as the gustatory senses, which they do by giving equal importance to
incorporating aroma, color, and flavor. They usually have a combination of 3-5 colors, which are chosen
from ingredients that are caramel, black, white, yellow, red, dark green, and green in color. Typically, a
vegetable and meat dish is cooked using one principle ingredient and then including 2-3 ingredients of
secondary importance which have contrasting colors. It is then prepared according to ancient methods
of cooking, adding sauces and seasonings, resulting in an aesthetic dish full of aroma, color and flavor.

Ancient Methods of Cooking Chinese Food

Some of the main methods of cooking are pan-frying, flash-frying, deep-frying, steaming, stewing, and
stir-frying. Since the Chinese always knew that the fragrant aroma of a dish whets the appetite, they
used various flavoring agents like black, dried Chinese mushrooms, sesame oil, pepper, cinnamon, star
anise, wine, chili peppers, garlic, fresh ginger, and scallions.
One of the most important aspects of cooking any dish was to preserve the natural, fresh flavor, and
remove all unwanted game or fish odors, which ginger and scallion served to do. Ingredients like vinegar,
sugar, and soy sauce were used to enhance the richness of a dish without smothering the natural flavors.

Ancient methods

Ages-old food preservation techniques include drying, smoking, cooling, freezing, fermenting, salting,
pickling, and canning.

Drying and smoking. One of the most ancient methods of food preservation is sun- or air-drying. Drying
works because it removes much of the food's water. Without adequate water, microorganisms cannot
multiply and chemical activities greatly slow down. Dried meat was one of the earliest staple foods of
hunters and nomads (people who constantly moved about). Once fire was discovered, prehistoric cave
dwellers heat-dried meat and fish, which probably led to the development of smoking as another way to
preserve these foods. The Phoenicians of the Middle East air-dried fish. Ancient Egyptians stockpiled
dried grains. Native North Americans produced a nutritious food called pemmican by grinding together
dried meat, dried fruit, and fat.

Cooling and freezing. Early northern societies quickly learned that coolness as well as freezing helped
preserve foods. Microbe growth and chemical changes slow down at low temperatures and completely
stop when water is frozen. Pre-Columbian natives in Peru and Bolivia freeze-dried potatoes, while the
early Japanese and Koreans freeze-dried their fish. Water evaporating through earthenware jars was
used as a coolant in 2500 B.C. by Egyptians and East Indians. Ancient Chinese, Greeks, and Romans
stored ice and mountain snow in cellars or icehouses to keep food cool.

Fermenting. Fermentation was particularly useful for people in southern climates, where cooling and
freezing were not practical. When a food ferments, it produces acids that prevent the growth of
organisms that cause spoilage. Grapes, rice, and barley were fermented into wine and beer by early
people. Fermentation also was used to produce cheese and yogurt from milk.

Salting and pickling. Salting, which also inhibits bacteria growth, was a preferred method of preserving
fish as early as 3500 B.C. in the Mediterranean world, and also was practiced in ancient China.
Substances besides salt were found to slow food spoilage. The Chinese began using spices as
preservatives around 2700 B.C. Ancient Egyptians used mustard seeds to keep fruit juice from spoiling.
Jars of fruit preserved with honey have been found in the ruins of Pompeii, Italy. Melted fat—as Native
North Americans discovered with pemmican—preserved meat by sealing out air. Pickling—preserving
foods in an acid substance like vinegar—also was used during ancient times.

Early canning. By the Middle Ages (400–1450), all of these ancient methods of preserving foods were
widely practiced throughout Europe and Asia, often in combination. Salted fish became the staple food
of poor people during this time—particularly salted herring, introduced in 1283 by Willem Beukelszoon
of Holland. As the modern era approached, the Dutch navy in the mid-1700s developed a way of
preserving beef in iron cans by packing it in hot fat and then sealing the cans. By the late 1700s, the
Dutch also were preserving cooked, smoked salmon by packing it with butter or olive oil in sealed cans.

Fourth industrial Revolution is the stage where we are connected in everything with the help of New
inventions or New Technology. In this Revolution, Food Preparation and Preservation is been easy to be
done because of the Science and technology. There are many ways on how to prepare and preserve
foods nowadays and this are some examples

1. Fermentation

2. Refrigeration

3. Injecting Chemicals

4. Adding Preservatives

5. Canning Foods
Ancient Mesopotamia

FOOD AND DRINK IN ANCIENT MESOPOTAMIA

Just as water was vital to the creation of organic life on this planet, so was it vital to the birth of
civilization. The first civilizations of the world began in river valleys where abundant supplies of water
made it possible to grow sufficient crops to support large populations. The world’s first cities began in
Mesopotamia, an event that could not have taken place had it not been for large-scale agriculture and
the plentiful water upon which it depended.

Grain and Its By-Products

The staple crop of ancient farmers around the world was always grain: wheat, barley, rice, or corn. In
Mesopotamia, the chief crop was barley. Rice and corn were unknown, and wheat flourished on a soil
less saline than exists in most of Mesopotamia. Thus barley, and the bread baked from its flour, became
the staff of life.

Mesopotamian bread was ordinarily coarse, flat, and unleavened, but a more expensive bread could be
baked from finer flour. Pieces of just such a bread were, in fact, found in the tomb of Queen Puabi of Ur,
stored there to provide her spirit with sustenance in the afterlife. Bread could also be enriched with
animal and vegetable fat; milk, butter, and cheese; fruit and fruit juice; and sesame seeds.

Though bread was basic to the Mesopotamian diet, botanist Jonathan D. Sauer has suggested the
making of it may not have been the original incentive for raising barley. Instead, he has argued, the real
incentive was beer, first discovered when kernels of barley were found sprouting and fermenting in
storage.
Whether or not Sauer is right, beer soon became the ancient Mesopotamian’s favorite drink. As a
Sumerian proverb has it: “He who does not know beer, does not know what good.” The Babylonians had
some 70 varieties, and beer was enjoyed by both gods and humans who, as art shows, drank it from long
straws to avoid the barley hulls that tended to float to the surface.

There was even a goddess of brewing, named Ninkasi, who was celebrated in a Sumerian hymn that
dates to about 1800 B.C.E. Using the details of the brewing process recorded in this hymn, in 1989 the
Anchor Brewing Company of San Francisco duplicated the recipe. According to one expert, the beer
dubbed “Ninkasi” “had the smoothness and effervescence of champagne and a slight aroma of dates,”
which had been added as an ancient sweetening agent (Katz and Maytag 1991: 33).

Fruits and Vegetables

The gardens of Mesopotamia, watered by irrigation canals, were lush with fruits and vegetables, whose
ancient names survive in cuneiform dictionaries and commercial records. Among the fruits were apples,
apricots, cherries, figs, melons, mulberries, pears, plums, pomegranates, and quinces. The most
important fruit crop, especially in southern Mesopotamia, was the date. Rich in sugar and iron, dates
were easily preserved. Like barley, the date-palm thrived on relatively saline soil and was one of the first
plants farmers domesticated.

Should you wish to sample a fruitcake fit for a Sumerian king or queen, the recipe survives: one cup
butter, one-third cup white cheese, three cups first-quality dates, and one-third cup raisins, all blended
with fine flour. As for vegetables, the onion was king, along with its cousin, garlic. Other vegetables
included lettuce, cabbage, and cucumbers; carrots and radishes; beets and turnips; and a variety of
legumes, including beans, peas, and chickpeas, that could be dried for storage and later use. Together,
the vegetables served as the basic ingredients for soup. Cooking oil, for its part, came from sesame
seeds.

Curiously, two mainstays of the Mediterranean diet—olives and grapes (as well as wine)—were seldom
found in Mesopotamian cuisine, largely because of the salinity of the river-valley soil and the absence of
significant rainfall needed for their growth. Even honey was a luxury item since the Mesopotamians,
unlike the Egyptians, did not keep bees but relied on hives found in the wild.
Spices and Herbs

Our contact with ancient Mesopotamia mostly takes place in the rarified atmosphere of museums, but
to appreciate Mesopotamian daily life our imagination must breathe in the pungent aroma of the
seasonings that once rose from ancient stoves and filled the air of once-populous cities. Coriander, cress,
and cumin; fennel, fenugreek, and leek; marjoram, mint, and mustard; rosemary and rue; saffron and
thyme once comprised the odoriferous litany of the Mesopotamian cook. Cumin, in fact, still echoes the
Babylonian name, kamu¯nu, by which it was known 4,000 years ago.

Livestock and Fish

According to legend, prosperity came to Mesopotamia when the gods “made ewes give birth to lambs,
and grain grow in furrows.” Sheep played an important role in the Mesopotamian economy. Shepherds
tending their flocks are among the earliest images on seal-stones, and woolly rams are proudly pictured
on the Royal Standard of Ur. The Sumerians, in fact, used 200 different words to describe sheep. Like
goats and cows, ewes produced milk that was converted into butter and cheese, but sheep were also
slaughtered for meat.

Beef was in short supply because meadowlands for grazing large herds were limited. The meat supply,
however, was augmented by pork from pigs that foraged in marshlands. Game birds, deer, and gazelle
were hunted as well. On farms, domesticated geese and ducks supplied eggs, while from the rivers and
the sea, and from canals and private ponds, came some 50 types of fish, a staple of the Mesopotamian
diet.

Generally, meats were either dried, smoked, or salted for safekeeping, or they were cooked by roasting,
boiling, broiling, or barbecuing. Housed at Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut, are the Yale
Culinary Tablets, a collection of 35 recipes that seem to have survived from a “cordon bleu” cooking
school that operated in Babylonia around 1700 B.C.E. Among the more exotic recipes is one for partridge
sprinkled with vinegar and rubbed with salt and crushed mint.
Third industrial revolution

Food preservation in third industrial revolution refers to any one of a number of techniques used to
prevent food from spoiling. It includes methods such as canning, pickling, drying and freeze-drying,
irradiation, pasteurization , smoking, and the addition of chemical additives. Food preservation has
become an increasingly important component of the food industry as fewer people eat foods produced
on their own lands, and as consumers expect to be able to purchase and consume foods that are out of
season.

, a host of dehydrating techniques are known and used. The specific technique adopted depends on the
properties of the food being preserved. For example, a traditional method for preserving rice is to allow
it to dry naturally in the fields or on drying racks in barns for about two weeks. After this period of time,
the native rice is threshed and then dried again by allowing it to sit on straw mats in the sun for about
three days. Modern drying techniques make use of fans and heaters in controlled environments. Such
methods avoid the uncertainties that arise from leaving crops in the field to dry under natural
conditions. Controlled temperature air drying is especially popular for the preservation of grains such as
maize, barley, and bulgur.

Vacuum drying is a form of preservation in which a food is placed in a large container from which air is
removed.

Food preservation and preparation in Middle ages of Roman

Food was a very important aspect of the Roman Empire. The rich & poor Romans ate very different diets
& the supply of food was very important to the emperor to express his relationship to the Roman
people.

The Romans prepared their foods in a style comparable to our own in that they used simple ovens,
roasted various meats & fish, & pot-boiled vegetables & grain foods.
-Romans had an open hearth called the focus which was often portable, with four legs made of marble
or stone & a large cauldron attached with chains above the fire, or something similar to a grill.

-Most Romans could not affored to have a separate kitchen & kitchens & ovens were often shared.

-Refrigerators & freezers did not exist back in the ancient world & preserving food was always a
challenge.

-Food preservation was essential not only to avoid poisoning but also in order to import foods from the
provinces.

-The Romans used herbs & spices to flavour their food.

-They used honey as a sweetener.