pH probe | Food & Beverage Industry
Food & Beverage Industry
In many industries, pH and ORP are critical parameters. These industries include food (e.g. meat, dairy beverage, wine and beer), pharmacy, textile and water treatment. pH testing during the manufacturing process can enhance production usability, accuracy and excellence.
Measurement of pH in Meat and Fish
Meat quality is determined by the muscle pH and its change in time, which in turn is strongly dependent on pre-slaughter conditions (i.e. stress) imposed on the animals. Monitoring the pH of meat is important for quality control.
pH is an indicator of freshness, which is fundamental to fish quality. A few hours after death, the glycogen in the muscle will be metabolized to lactic acid, causing a drop in pH. This drop in pH will contribute to an increased shelf-life of the fish and also to a good nutritional state of the fish. Alkaline bacterial metabolite production increases the pH and initiates fish spoilage. Hence, pH can be used as a measurement for quality and shelf life prediction in the fish marketing sector.
In non-frozen meat or fish, the pH can be measured by piercing it with the LanceFET pH probe through its PEEK tip with stainless steel point. For those situations where high force and stabbing penetration is required, Sentron offers the LanceFET probe with thick handle for a comfortable grip while measuring.
The positions of the ISFET and reference electrode have been designed to be clog and pollution resistant. In the event debris has accumulated on the sensor it can be easily cleaned by high pressure flushing, which benefits the probe’s performance and prolonged life.2
Milk
In the milk industry, pH is a parameter for impurities or signs of infection. Higher pH values in fresh milk indicate udder infection (mastitis) and lower values indicate bacterial activity. In processes such as sterilization, pH is checked, since a lower pH value helps to speed up the sterilization process.
Cheese
Milk used for cheese manufacturing must be of excellent quality and its pH value determines whether the cheese will be soft or hard. pH is checked during cheese preparation, souring of milk and cream maturation. For example, during the production process of cheese, it is standard to monitor the pH value before the cheese goes into the brine bath. Therefore, it is an important measure for the quality of the end-product.