How sugar play a major role in preservation?
In so many products, sugars play a major role in preservation. The addition of monosaccharides, like glucose or fructose, to jams and jellies inhibits microbial growth and following spoilage. Sugars comprise a great affinity for water, so slowing moisture loss in foods, such as baked foods and extending the shelf life of these products. Both honey and invert sugar assist to retain moisture because of their high fructose content, as do sorbitol (sucrose alcohol) and corn syrup. Sugars are added to canned vegetables both to keep firmness and minimize oxidation while the can is opened. Inhibiting oxidation reactions not just protects against deterioration of texture and flavour, but as well the loss of colour resultant from the breakdown of pigments.
The interaction among sugars and water controls the moisture in products such as cakes and biscuits, to avoid drying out and staleness. The method of superior osmotic dehydration which is similarly to offer better tasting, more nutritious, environmentally-friendly dried foods for consumers, depends on the principle of osmosis (movement of water and dissolved substances via the membrane to equalize this concentration difference). The principle of osmosis has been utilized for some time in the food industry. Food material of plant or animal origin is immersed in concentrated solutions of water, consisting of solutes such as sugar or salt. There is a transfer of water out of the food (dehydration) and a concurrent transfer of solute into the food (impregnation). Through controlling the extent of dehydration and impregnation, it is possible to alter the functional properties of foods. There is a growing interest by the food industry in the method of osmotic dehydration, with the goal of extending the shelf life whereas improving the overall quality of the final products.