Modified atmosphere is the practice of modifying the composition of the internal atmosphere of a package (commonly food packages, drugs, etc.) in order to improve the shelf life.
The modification process often tries to lower the amount of oxygen (O2), moving it from 20.9% to 0%, in order to slow down the growth of aerobic organisms and the speed of oxidation reactions. The removed oxygen can be replaced with nitrogen (N2), commonly acknowledged as an inert gas, or carbon dioxide (CO2), which can lower the pH or inhibit the growth of bacteria. Carbon monoxide can be used for keeping the red color of meat.
Re-balancing of gases inside the packaging can be achieved using active techniques such as gas flushing and compensated vacuum or passively by designing “breathable” films known as equilibrium modified atmosphere packaging (EMAP). Packets containing scavengers may be used.
Read more about Modified Atmosphere: Scientific Terms, History, Products, Modified Atmosphere Packaging (MAP), Equilibrium Modified Atmosphere Packaging (EMAP), Technology, Gases, Packaging Films, Quality Assurance of MAP Packages, Quality Assurance: MAP Analysers
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