Research project Evaluation of food quality throughout the vegetable processing chain

General introduction

Processed (frozen, pre-processed or prepared) vegetables are an important component of ready-to-eat meals for 21st century consumers. This project works on innovative regeneration techniques for prepared vegetables while maintaining quality in important health care settings. "Regeneration" means reheating and preparing prepared and cooled (or frozen) vegetables for tasty consumption in the best possible way. Ultimately, the goal is to increase the consumption of prepared vegetables of the highest possible quality.

Research approach

VeggieChain develops innovative processing strategies for vegetables, aiming to maximize the preservation of taste, color, odor and health-related components. The project provides the necessary scientific and technological basis around 'processed vegetables' as healthy and quality products.

Relevance/Valorization

Various sectors of the agro-food industry will benefit from this project. The processed vegetable (especially frozen vegetables) is an important industry in Flanders that can strengthen its position as market leader in Europe through the new knowledge and through the use of (better than) state-of-the-art technology. The cultivation of field vegetables strengthens the Flemish industry position through cultivation contracts between nearby farmers and the processing industry. Furthermore, the ready-to-eat meal sector, together with caterers and restaurants, benefits from the project results, as the process of regeneration (as a vegetable processing step) is intensively studied. Finally, the project consortium also focuses on technology suppliers and machinery companies to optimize their technologies and implement the results with B2B customers.