May 2021 - TFTAK

TFTAK to Present at 2021 BIO Digital

TFTAK to Present at 2021 BIO Digital

Center of Food and Fermentation Technologies (TFTAK) announced today that it has been selected to deliver a company presentation at 2021 BIO Digital, the premier biotech event. BIO Digital is scheduled June 10-11 & 14-18, 2021.

Ranno Nahku, PhD Microbial Bioprocess Group Leader will present the TFTAK’s bioprocess optimization service and human gut microbiota model consortium for evaluation of dietary supplements. The presentation will be available to registered attendees at 9 am ET June 10.

Attendees at BIO Digital will be able to view TFTAK’s Company Presentation before live meetings in the BIO One-on-One Partnering™ system begin on June 14. To meet with us at BIO Digital, you can find registration information here.

About TFTAK

Center of Food and Fermentation Technologies (TFTAK) is an Estonian multidisciplinary CRO founded in 2004. TFTAK is focused on two main research areas: bioprocess optimization and food research. The organization harbors a wide range of expertise with more than 100 highly skilled personnel and specializes in the use of modern analytical methods, systems biology, and synthetic biology principles, aiming at the development and implementation of innovative food and fermentation technologies. Broad knowledge of microbial metabolism and fermentation enables us to provide an array of services through a comprehensive understanding of the molecular components. TFTAK combines bioinformatics with sophisticated instrumental analytical methods and a pilot-scale cultivation facility to find solutions to even the most complex questions and help our customers optimize the production of single strains or microbial consortia.

About BIO

BIO is the world’s largest advocacy organization representing biotechnology companies, academic institutions, state biotechnology centers and related organizations across the United States and in more than 30 other nations. BIO members are involved in the research and development of innovative healthcare, agricultural, industrial and environmental biotechnology products. BIO also produces the BIO International Convention, the world’s largest gathering of the biotechnology industry, along with industry-leading investor and partnering meetings held around the world. Subscribe to Good Day BIO.

In collaboration with Enterprise Estonia

A picture containing text, clipart

Description automatically generated

Saving the Food, accelerated shelf-life test and more

TFTAK researcher Kärt Leppik performed in Estiko Plastar webinar “Saving the Food: The Role of Packaging’s Functionality & Attractiveness” on April 13th-14th 2021. The webinar focused on different factors affecting food shelf-life and sharing a valuable know-how to extend food products shelf-life, reduce packages environmental impact and furthermore – even improve the attractiveness of products by combining the right packaging and properties of food products.

TFTAK presentation gave an overview of main factors affecting food shelf-life stability, including introduction about chemical, physical, microbiological and biochemical processes happening with food products during storage. For example, the presentation introduced the meaning of water activity value and how it impacts the reactions in food products during shelf-life. Also, possibilities to avoid different processes, like fat oxidation, starch crystallization, syneresis, lipolysis and proteolysis were introduced. The main internal and external factors affecting food shelf-life were presented and discussed.

One part of the presentation was an overview of different shelf-life tests, their pros, cons and possibilities of use. For example, it was introduced that real-time tests are used for short shelf-life products with mainly microbiological processes, but accelerated shelf-life tests are conducted with long-storaged products which main reactions are physico-chemical processes. The methodology of acceleration was introduced, where it was emphazised that with changing the storage environment it is possible to accelerate the processes happening during storage. This is a time-effective way to assess the quality of long shelf-life products with shorter time. The models for accelerated storage tests are unique for each food product, depending on the main processes occurring during storage.

Our researcher Kärt Leppik concluded in her presentation that in order to achieve the expected shelf-life of a food product, it is necessary to define the product properties, find possible quality degradation causes, describe necessary storage conditions, determine the expected shelf-life, choose suitable packaging materials and environments and conduct a suitable shelf-life test.

Presentation in Estonian: Estiko Webinar: Toidu raiskamise vähendamine: pakendi funktsionaalsus & atraktiivsus – YouTube
Presentation in English: Estiko’s Webinar: Saving the Food: The Role of Packaging’s Functionality & Attractiveness – YouTube

Contact Kärt Leppik with additional questions by e-mail using the contact form below.