Bioscience, Biotechnology, and Biochemistry

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Food processing by high hydrostatic pressure

Kazutaka Yamamoto

To cite this article: Kazutaka Yamamoto (2017): Food processing by high hydrostatic pressure,
Bioscience, Biotechnology, and Biochemistry, DOI: 10.1080/09168451.2017.1281723

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Bioscience, Biotechnology, and Biochemistry, 2017
Review
Food processing by high hydrostatic pressure
Kazutaka Yamamoto*
Food Research Institute, National Agriculture and Food Research Organization, Ibaraki, Japan
Received November 14, 2016; accepted December 22, 2016
http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/09168451.2017.1281723
High hydrostatic pressure (HHP) process, as a
nonthermal process, can be used to inactivate
microbes while minimizing chemical reactions in
food. In this regard, a HHP level of 100 MPa
(986.9 atm/1019.7 kgf/cm2) and more is applied to
food. Conventional thermal process damages food
components relating color, flavor, and nutrition via
enhanced chemical reactions. However, HHP process
minimizes the damages and inactivates microbes
toward processing high quality safe foods. The first
commercial HHP-processed foods were launched in
1990 as fruit products such as jams, and then some
other products have been commercialized: retort
rice products (enhanced water impregnation),
cooked hams and sausages (shelf life extension), soy
sauce with minimized salt (short-time fermentation
owing to enhanced enzymatic reactions), and bever-
ages (shelf life extension). The characteristics of
HHP food processing are reviewed from viewpoints
of nonthermal process, history, research and
development, physical and biochemical changes, and
processing equipment.
Key words: high hydrostatic pressure; food process-
ing; review
Since the dawn of history, food processing and cook-
ing have been equal to the use of fire, which means
thermal process. Mankind has been processing foods
by using heat. The thermal process gives foods unique
flavors via roasting and grilling and/or extended shelf
lives via pasteurization. In modern society, people
started to use microwave and/or electric ovens which
are thermal processors replacing fire at home. Anyway,
these are examples of thermal processes as an active
use of heat. In 1987, Dr. Rikimaru Hayashi (then
Associate Professor at Kyoto University) suggested in a
journal in Japanese1) to apply high hydrostatic
pressures (HHPs) of several hundred MPa (~several
thousand atms) to food processing. A depth of 10,868–
10,916 m, which is found at the deepest bottom of the
Challenger Deep of the Mariana Trench in the Pacific
Ocean, is comparable to ca. 110 MPa. Thereafter,
research and development on the application of HHP to
food processing have become active in Japan.
*Email: kazutaka@affrc.go.jp
© 2017 Japan Society for Bioscience, Biotechnology, and Agrochemistry
Following this stream, the research and development
on HHP food processing have also spread out to the
world outside Japan. HHP joined food science as a
new operating parameter for food processing.
Use of pressure in food processing goes back to the
time of Napoleon Bonaparte. It is originated in the bot-
tled foods invented by Nicolas Appert during the time.
Pressure seemed to act as the processing parameter,
since the glass-bottled foods became canned foods.
Foods were hermetically sealed in a can and then
heated. Vapor in the can raised the inner pressure to
several atms and the foods were pasteurized/sterilized.
Based on the canned food technology, sterilized foods
have been realized as canned and retort foods and
cooking time has been reduced by home pressure coo-
ker. These technologies passively utilize pressurization
where a pressure of several atms is generated by heat-
ing in a closed system and the pressure plays a periph-
eral role of heat. The effect of high pressure on
creatures and biological materials has been studied as a
basic science since late 19th century.2) Thereafter, state
diagram of water (1912)3) and denaturation of egg
white albumen (1914) 4) were presented by Prof. P.W.
Bridgman, the father of high pressure science and tech-
nology. Relationship between high pressure treatment
and microbial preservability of fruits and vegetables
was reported in 1914.5) More than a half century later,
the above-mentioned suggestion1) ignited the research
and development toward the commercial application of
HHP in the food industry, and, thereafter, high pressure
science and technology with regard to food and biology
have developed dramatically.
Aside from HHP food processing, application of
high dynamic pressure (HDP) including shock waves
has been studied toward commercialization.6)
I. Difference between HHP and heat
When food is heated, chemical reactions are acceler-
ated and new components related to color and flavor
can be produced and beneficial components can be lost.
Accordingly, food composition changes and unique
color and flavor are created.
On the other hand, HHP does not accelerate
chemical reactions in principle, and it induces instead
2 K. Yamamoto
physical changes in molecules microscopically and/or
macroscopically. For instance, from a microscopic
aspect, molecular motions are restricted while hydrogen
bonds are broken and the molecules are packed
together toward filling gaps between the molecules.
From a macroscopic aspect, air bubbles in gas-liquid
dispersion system are dissolved in the liquid phase. In
HHP food processing, those sorts of physical changes
are utilized.
HHP process does not require active heating,
although passive heating by adiabatic compression and
passive cooling by adiabatic decompression are inevita-
ble.7) Therefore, HHP process is neither a non-heating
process nor, strictly speaking, a nonthermal process.
However, in a broad sense, it is categorized into a
group of nonthermal processes as well as irradiation
and low temperature plasma process due to its passive
aspect of heating.
Change in temperature during compression or
decompression process in HHP food processing
depends on the rate of compression or decompression,
dimensions of the HHP vessel, compressibility of pres-
sure medium, and others. Water, mostly used as pres-
sure medium for food processing, is compressed by a
ratio of a few percent which is extremely lower than in
the case of gas. An ideal gas can be compressed by
1/1000 when compressed under 1,000 atm (ca.
100 MPa). Accordingly, the heat generated by adiabatic
compression of water will be much smaller than that of
gas. However, in some specific HHP treatments,
relatively a large temperature increase by ca. 10 °C/
100 MPa can be observed. Some may concern about
the effect of co-existing air bubbles in pouched foods
on the adiabatic heating. However, most of raw food
materials contain sufficient amount of water for dissolv-
ing air and thus the heating due to gas compression is
reduced significantly. Other than the adiabatic heating,
air bubbles in a pouched food may be problematic due
to the prolonged compression time and thus decreased
number of process cycles. The food industry, in gen-
eral, has a mission to process foods in a large amount
at a low price, and thus it is wise to minimize the
amount of air in the pouched food.
As for the energy consumption, it is relatively high
in thermal process, since heating and cooling processes
require continuous input and removal of heat, respec-
tively. On the other hand, HHP process is environmen-
tally friendly as compared with thermal process: once
pressure is raised, no energy consumption is required
to hold the pressure without pressure leakage.
II. Dawn of HHP food processing
The effect of heat in food processing on microbial
inactivation and quality has been conventionally and
intensively studied and useful information is much
available. However, the effect of pressure, especially
HHP, on the characteristics is tremendously less studied
than that of heat.
Industrial high pressure installations such as hot iso-
static press (HIP) and cold isostatic press have been
modified and utilized as HHP food processing equip-
ment after the suggestion by Dr. Hayashi in 1987.1)
Implementation of low-temperature control and
hygienic processing into HHP food processors were
studied thereafter.
III. Research and development for HHP
food processing
The first commercial HHP-processed foods in the
world were realized as fruit products such as fruit jams
in 1990 in Japan8, 9) (Fig. 1). In the Food Sanitation
Law in Japan, there were (or have been as of
December 2016) no criteria specified for HHP-pro-
cessed foods, and thus the microbial qualities of the
fruit products were approved by the authority on a
case-by-case basis. In addition, the HHP process was
not aiming at inactivation of endogenous enzymes, and
thus the products were distributed and stored at refrig-
erated conditions so that the enzymes did not act on
the pectic substances which contribute to the texture of
the fruit pastes. The HHP-processed fruit products had
long shelf lives while retaining the fresh attributes, and
thus they attracted much attention as novel foods.
Since then, HHP food processing has been studied
mostly for microbial control of foods with retained
freshness.
One of the early applications was rice cake (Fig. 2)
mixed with a green herb (Japanese mugwort: Artemisia
indica var. maximowiczii). Fruits and vegetables includ-
ing herbs are often contaminated with microbes, and
thus they are HHP-treated for enhanced food safety
instead of heat treatment which damages their fresh
color, flavor, and nutrients. HHP-treated rice products10)
are also commercialized (Fig. 3). They are HHP-treated
for improved water impregnation into the grains so that
the texture should be improved. It is noteworthy that
the HHP treatment is aiming at the water impregnation
but pressure-induced gelatinization of rice starch.
HHP food processing in Japan was mostly aiming at
pasteurization in its early applications and a lot of
effort was devoted to the research and development on
microbial inactivation. However, among the food indus-
try in Japan, it was gradually recognized that spores of
bacteria such as Bacilli and Clostridia are quite resis-
tant to HHP food processing and that the initial invest-
ment for HHP food processors was too high for small
and medium-sized food companies which dominate
Japanese food industry in terms of the number. Accord-
ingly, many of interested parties have given up the
research and development and/or withdrawn from the
market. Thereafter, HHP food science seemed to lose
the early enthusiasms in Japan, while some food com-
panies in other countries continued to work on the
development intensively.
On the other hand, the effect of HHP on various
organisms and biomolecules has been studied steadily
both in Japan and in the other countries. In fact, inter-
national conferences specialized on the effect of high
pressure on bioscience and biotechnology have been
organized in La Grande Motte, France (1992), Kyoto,
Japan (1995), Leuven, Belgium (1996), Reading, UK
(1997), and Heidelberg, Germany (1998), and thereafter
International Conference on High Pressure Bioscience
and Biotechnology (HPBB) has been hold every two
 Food processing by high hydrostatic pressure 3

Fig. 1. Strawberry, apple, and blueberry jams as the first commercial HHP-processed foods in the world51): Kiwifruit jam was in the line at the
first commercialization, and the blueberry jam replaced it later.

Fig. 2. Rice cake (Mochi in Japanese) flavored with HHP-pasteurized green herb, Japanese mugwort (Yomogi in Japanese).51)

years: Kyoto, Japan (2000), Dortmund, Germany
(2002), Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (2004), Tsukuba, Japan
(2006), San Diego, USA (2008), Freising, Germany
(2010), Otsu, Japan (2012), Nantes, France (2014), and
Toronto, Canada (2016). Numazu, Japan (2018) and
Copenhagen, Denmark (2020) are going to follow.
Other than the HPBB, HHP food processing has been
discussed as an emerging technology in other interna-
tional academic fora such as Institute of Food Technol-
ogists, International Association for the Advancement
of High Pressure Science and Technology/Association
Internationale pour Avancement de la Recherche et de
la Technologie aux Hautes Pressions, and European
High Pressure Research Group.
IV. Effect of HHP on food
The effect of HHP on food has been studied from
viewpoints of microbial food safety, physical
changes in food components, and food nutrition and
functionality.
4 K. Yamamoto
Fig. 3. Retort rice products cooked after HHP-enhanced water
impregnation.51)
IV.i. Mircobial food safety
Food safety is very important in food processing,
and microbial food safety is the first priority. Ensuring
microbial food safety is often referred to as pasteuriza-
tion and sterilization. However, it is recommended to
describe the phenomena as lethal and sublethal inacti-
vations, since the events of microbial injury and recov-
ery should be considered. When the microbes are
lethally inactivated, they are judged as dead and thus
pasteurization (partial population death) and steriliza-
tion (total population death) describe the phenomenon
properly. On the other hand, when the microbes are
sublethally inactivated, they are injured.
Study on HHP inactivation of microbes, especially
bacteria, has a long history in HHP food science since
18992) and the knowledge has drastically increased
since the first commercialization of HHP food process-
ing in 1990.8, 9) In the past decades, HHP-injured bac-
teria which are not detected immediately after HHP
treatment have been studied intensively to reveal their
recovery behaviors during the storage of HHP-
processed food.11)
HHP food processing inactivates microbes lethally
and/or sublethally while minimizing the degradation of
flavor, color, and nutritional and functional compo-
nents, and it enables to produce minimally-processed
high quality safe foods. HHP-processed meat products
followed the HHP-processed fruit products in 199812)
as commercially available HHP-processed products
aiming at microbial inactivation. In conventional large-
scale meat processings, thermal process has been indis-
pensable for primary pasteurization objectives where
pathogenic microbes are inactivated. Following the pri-
mary pasteurization, block hams are sliced, chain sau-
sages are cut into pieces, and the resulting slices and
sausage pieces are pouched. In these processes, spoi-
lage microbes may contaminate the products and thus
food additives are used to suppress the growth of such
microbes as lactic acid bacteria and extend the shelf
life. Lactic acid bacteria may produce unfavorable acids
and polysaccharides which reduce pH and produce vis-
cous materials, respectively. The food additives can be
replaced with HHP process, which may inactivate the
spoilage microbes and extend the shelf life without
food additives as a secondary pasteurization method.
Recently, the demands for HHP-processed beverages
such as juice, smoothie, and coconut water are increas-
ing rapidly and large-scale HHP food processors (420
and 525 L) have been installed for the production. The
market of HHP-processed beverages is growing in
these years in many countries such as USA, European
countries, Korea, and Taiwan. In Japan, the first coun-
try of commercial HHP-processed foods in the world,
the HHP-processed beverages face a kind of difficulty
in the approval based on the Food Sanitation Law (as
of December 2016). The law requires equivalences
with the conditions for thermal processes, and those
who wish to commercialize their HHP-processed bever-
ages have to prove the equivalences. However, it is not
easy to prove the equivalences since there is no clear
criterion how to prove them: target microbes, required
log reduction, and so forth. In addition, there is no
international standards for HHP-processed beverages
and, therefore, it should be requested to Codex Alimen-
tarius Commission to establish relevant standards and
recommendations which would contribute to avoid
international controversy on non-tariff barrier issue
raised by World Trade Organization.
It is difficult to inactivate bacterial spores with a
commercial HHP (600 MPa) at low temperatures (e.g.
10 °C), but combinations of HHP and high tempera-
tures (e.g. 80 °C) can inactivate the spores.13) Further-
more, shock wave, which can be generated when a
HHP is released instantly, is reported to be effective to
inactivate bacterial spores.14) However, no commercial
application of shock wave has been found in the food
industry. On the other hand, it is reported that germina-
tion of bacterial spores can be induced by medium
HHPs (MHHPs) of 100–200 MPa or HHPs of 500–
600 MPa.15) Once the spores germinate to vegetative
cells, they can be inactivated by conventional thermal
processes as well as non-spore-formers such as Escher-
ichia coli and Listeria monocytogenes. Therefore, the
resulting vegetative cells can be killed after spore ger-
mination is induced by MHHP. Another option is “sui-
cidal germination” where MHHP induces spore
germination into vegetative cells at medium high tem-
perature at around 55–75 °C, which kills the germi-
nated cells upon germination.16)
Predictive microbiology is a strong tool to optimize
operating conditions of food processing efficiently.
Experimental data on microbial growth/death behaviors
during food storage/processing are accumulated under
various environmental conditions (e.g. pH, temperature,
salt concentration, and water activity) and the growth/
death behaviors are predicted by using predictive equa-
tions which are optimized by the experimental data.
Statistical approach to describe static live/dead bound-
aries of HHP-treated bacteria has been presented17) in
 Food processing by high hydrostatic pressure
addition to the dynamic approach where time-depen-
dent bacterial growth/death behaviors are predicted. It
is expected to develop predictive methods for describ-
ing microbial behaviors in HHP-processed foods.
The effect of HHP on microbes has been studied
intensively to understand the mechanisms of HHP-in-
duced microbial inactivation. Recent development of
genomics, transcriptomics, proteomics, and metabolo-
mics may contribute to identify specific biomolecules
which are up-regulated or down-regulated by HHP
treatment.18) Those methodologies may be applied to
elucidate the pressure tolerance of deep sea microor-
ganisms and others.
IV.ii. Physical changes in food components
HHP treatment may induce microscopic changes of
food biopolymers such as starch gelatinization, protein
denaturation, and lipid phase transition.
Starch is a major food component, contributing as
energy source and gel-forming texture modifier. Heat
gelatinization of starch can be induced when heated
sufficiently in the presence of water. Likewise, pressure
gelatinization can be induced when HHP-treated. The
effect of pressure and temperature on various starches
of different botanical origins has been studied since
1929.19) Susceptibility of enzymatic degradation of
HHP-treated starch is enhanced,20) and characteristic
visco-elastic behaviors of HHP-treated starch is
reported.21, 22) Retrogradation, where gelatinized starch
re-crystalizes and stiffens, is a slow event for heat-
gelatinized starch, but rapid retrogradation23) of HHP-
gelatinized starch can be observed immediately after a
HHP process. Systematic understanding of pressure
gelatinization and rapid retrogradation was enhanced by
depicting state diagrams of HHP-treated starches-water
mixtures.24,25) Especially, state diagrams of HHP-trea-
ted mixtures of potato starch and water at various water
contents26–28) will help food technologists set desired
operating conditions to process HHP-processed starch.
Various food proteins have been studied in terms of
HHP-induced physical changes: gelation of milk pro-
teins such as α-lactoglobulin,29) β-lactoglobulin,29) and
whey protein isolate,30) gelation of egg protein,29) and
gel-sol transition of actomyosin.31, 32)
Lipids are important food components in fat foods
such as chocolates and are indispensable substances for
cell membrane. HHP can induce various phase transi-
tions of lipids, and the phase transitions can be con-
trolled by temperature and HHP: solid–liquid phase
transition of oils such as cacao butter, soybean oil, and
palm oil33) and gel–liquid crystal transition of double
layered membrane of phospholipids.34)
IV.iii. Physical changes in foods
Macroscopic physical changes can be observed
mostly in MHHP treatments: freezing and thawing at
subzero temperatures, enhanced water impregnation,
extraction, and shucking of bivalves and crustaceans.
Ice I is the most popular ice crystal among others,
since pure water freezes at 0 °C under the atmospheric
pressure of 0.1 MPa. According to the state diagram of
water,3) for example, ice I at –10 °C can be thawed
5
when pressurized over 100 MPa, and pure water at
more than 0 °C under 100 MPa can be frozen when
cooled to less than –10 °C (Fig. 4). As application of
the phase transition of water, pressure shift thawing of
tofu35) and pressure-induced freeze denaturation of agar
and carrageenan gels36) are reported. It should be noted
that water in food is not usually pure.
Long time process to impregnate water into dry
grains is time- and place-consuming. Dry soybean has
to be soaked in water for a long time of ca. 16–18 h
before its successive processes such as steaming. HHP-
accelerated water impregnation can shorten the time.
Soaking time of brown rice before its cooking can be
reduced to 30 min from a long time of 12 h,37) which
might allow microbial growth.
HHP treatment may reduce allergens via extraction.
Hypoallergenic cooked rice and wheat bread were
developed by HHP-enhanced extraction of rice and
wheat allergens, respectively.38)
It is known that HHP can open bivalves and detach
their flesh,39) although the mechanism is not revealed.
However, it can be speculated that the difference
between the compressibilities of high flesh and low
shell may separate the soft flesh including adductor
from the hard shell. HHP-shucked oysters, clams, and
lobsters have been commercialized for raw servings
and further processes. The shucking process has some
advantages over conventional one. Conventional shuck-
ing causes contamination of shell pieces which are not
perfectly avoidable even by X-ray monitoring. How-
ever, the risk of shell piece contamination is signifi-
cantly reduced by adopting HHP shucking. Shucking
requires time and labor of shuckers, but HHP shucking
can minimize them. Recently, it is getting difficult to
recruit shuckers in Japan since they are getting old and
Fig. 4. Schematics of water state diagram and pressure shift freez-
ing/thawing.
Notes: A, cooling and freezing at freezing point; B, thawing upon
compression over the phase transition line; C, freezing upon decom-
pression over the phase transition line; D, heating and thawing at
thawing point.
6 K. Yamamoto
youngsters do not wish to work as shuckers. Thus,
HHP shucking draws much attention in Japan recently.
Some obligatory piezophiles which can optimally
grow under 100 MPa are found in the deep sea.40)
However, growth of most miscellaneous microbes are
suppressed at a MHHP of 60.8 MPa (600 atm),41)
although some lactic acid bacteria and heat-resistant
bacteria can grow.42) Meanwhile, high concentration of
salt may inhibit enzyme activities in food and thus fer-
mentation of salty products such as soy sauce and miso
(Japanese fermented soybean paste) requires months of
fermentation and maturation periods. However, the
enzyme activities are drastically improved under
MHHP where no salt is required to inhibit unfavorable
microbial growth during enzymatic degradation of per-
ishable food materials. Taking advantage of the princi-
ple, novel methods were suggested to produce fish
sauce or soy sauce without adding salt, which is indis-
pensable in conventional process of fish and soy sauce
fermentations.43, 44) Since yeasts are not able to grow
and no yeast fermentation occurs under MHHP, charac-
teristic flavors of fish and soy sauces are not produced.
However, the products with no salt added may con-
tribute to improve the quality of life of the patients suf-
fering from kidney disease. The MHHP-accelerated
enzymatic process has been applied to produce various
broths and hydrolysates for food and cosmetic uses.
IV.iv. Biochemical changes in foods
The first commercial HHP-processed foods were fruit
products with fresh attributes and long shelf life. For
instance, HHP-processed jam12) retained significantly
high level of flavor compounds such as linalool and 2-
methyl butyric acid while suppressing increase in unfa-
vorable furfural during refrigeration.
HHP treatment of fresh fruits and vegetable may
increase the amount of food components such as vita-
min C45) and gamma-amino butyric acid.46) The mech-
anism for the increments is still unclear. However, it
can be speculated that the interactions between sub-
strates and enzymes separated by membranes and cell
walls might be enhanced by cell tissue raptures upon
decompression.
Enzymes, playing important roles in biochemical
changes in HHP-processed foods, may be inactivated
by HHP and heat, depending on the levels of pressure
and temperature.47) Combination of HHP and heat may
enhance the inactivation of enzymes such as alkaline
phosphatase, lipoxygenase, myrosinase, hydroperoxide
lyase, β-glucosidase, pectin-methylesterase, peroxidase,
trymethlyamine-N-oxide demethylase, polygalactur-
onase, polyphenoloxidase, and xylanase. The inactiva-
tion of enzymes is mostly irreversible, and the
inactivation efficacy is largely dependent on the
enzyme types and sources. Denaturation of enzymes
may occur reversibly at a MHHP of less than
200 MPa, being followed by slow refolding process
after pressure release. At pressures beyond 300 MPa,
irreversible protein denaturation may take place.
V. HHP food processing equipment
In MHHP and HHP food processing, MHHPs of 100–
200 MPa and HHPs of 400–600 MPa are imposed in
general. As mentioned above, industrial equipment was
converted for food use, since 1990s. Two options are
available in terms of the compression type. Direct com-
pression type intrudes a piston into the vessel so as to
reduce the volume and thus raise the pressure. Indirect
compression type adopts exterior compression system
which pressurizes pressure medium using one or more
pressure intensifiers and intrudes the pressurized med-
ium into the vessel for compression. The former is
sometimes used for laboratory studies and the latter is
for industrial applications. As industrial applications,
vertical and horizontal types are commercialized
(Fig. 5). In the early times of HHP food processing, the
vertical type was dominant. However, recent

Fig. 5. HHP food processing equipment of vertical and horizontal installations.52)

Notes: V-1, Pouched food in the basket is dipped in water (pressure medium) by crane; V-2, the lid is closed and HHP is applied; V-3, the lid is
opened and the food is taken out by crane; H-1, the food in the basket is conveyed into the vessel; H-2, the lid is closed and the vessel is filled
with water by water pump; H-3, HHP is applied by HHP pump; H-4, pressure is released, water in the vessel is recovered, the lid is opened, and
the food is conveyed out.
 Food processing by high hydrostatic pressure
installments are of horizontal type. Food processing has
a mission to produce in a large amount at a low cost,
and HHP food processing requires large vessels, too. For
increasing the vessel volume, it is required to increase
either the diameter or the length. Larger diameter
requests exponentially thick vessel wall, raising the
investment. Longer vessel may ensure larger volume as
well as higher height, requiring a ceiling by at least two
times higher than the vessel in order to lift the food cage
over the vessel. Therefore, a large vessel of horizontal
type is realistic and its industrial application is growing
in recent years. In the horizontal equipment, water as
pressure medium must be drained from the vessel after
each treatment. However, a high-speed pump recycles
most of the drained water and the loss of water is mini-
mized. As of December 2016, the largest volume of
HHP food processing equipment is 525 L.
Large HHP food processing equipment is ideal for the
food industry. However, small- and medium-sized com-
panies dominate the number of food companies. There-
fore, it is very difficult or often impossible for most of
them to install such an expensive equipment into their
factories. This situation may be solved by utilizing toll
processing or tolling system where they can use HHP
food processing equipment without capital investments
for the equipment. All they have to do is to pay for the
processing per volume, batch, or time. Toll processing
for HHP-processed food is recently growing in the
world: USA, Canada, China, Taiwan, New Zealand,
Netherlands, Spain, Ireland, Italy, Germany, UK, and so
forth. Toll processing will be a clue for further dissemi-
nation of HHP food processing in Japan.48)
VI. Cost of HHP food processing49)
Initial investment costs of HHP equipment may be
estimated from 0.6 to 4 million US dollars. The capital
cost of the equipment dominates the investment (75–
80%), and operating costs must be considered: labor
(5–10%). Utilities (2–4%), and space (1–2%). Volume
efficiency of HHP vessel can be estimated to be 60%
approximately and thus a vessel of 100 L may be filled
with packages of total 60 L. However, the efficiency
may vary depending on the packaging types. The least
efficient types are MAP trays (volume efficacy: 25–
40%) and the most efficient ones are vacuum-sealed
bag-in-box big pouches (volume efficacy: 75–85%).
Number of process cycles can be estimated from 8 to
10 cycles/h in a HHP process at 600 MPa for a holding
time of 3 min. Processing costs are estimated to range
from 0.14 Euro/kg (55 L vessel) to 0.071 Euro/kg (525
L vessel) with 5-year amortization, 300 working days/
year, 16 h/day, 60% volume efficiency, and costs for
wear parts and utilities.
VII. Concluding remarks
In recent international conferences, many topics in
the field of food processing are related to microbial
inactivation for pasteurization and extended shelf life.
However, in Japan, some HHP processes, especially
MHHP processes, are commercially utilized for
7
non-pasteurization objectives such as liquid impregna-
tion and efficient enzymatic degradation.50) It is
expected that MHHP food processing will further be
studied to extend the range of application.
Further study will be required for solving conven-
tional problems in food processing and, in addition, for
creating novel properties toward high quality safe foods
which will meet consumers’ demands and will explore
new markets. I hope this article could contribute to
give a brief overview on HHP food processing,
although all the related science and technology have
not been covered only by these limited pages.
Acknowledgments
The author is grateful to the current and past mem-
bers of his research group for their contributions to
extend knowledge in HHP food science and technology
and supports for the research and development.
Disclosure statement
This paper should not be viewed as an endorsement of a particular
product.
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