IQF is Individual Quick Freezing. By using this technique, every piece or item is frozen individually. The final product does not need to be frozen in a huge block. All the foods are kept for freezing separately and that makes IQF different and better than other freezing methods. This is mostly considered the ideal method because every food requires a different temperature and time for freezing and with this, it is possible.
Difference between IQF and frozen
The major difference between these two techniques is the quantity. In IQF, small quantities of food are frozen, while the other method is used to freeze large amounts of food at once. Because of this reason, the quality also varies. The quality of food frozen by IQF is better than the other one. As food is frozen separately, it gets the exact amount of time and the right temperature for freezing.
The products frozen using cold storage freezing also lose the texture and nutrients. This is due to ice formation. The food frozen by using IQF technique does not experience that. When IQF is used, food does not experience loss of colour also. Overall, the food is more fresh and stays fresh for a longer period of time.
Advantages of using the IQF technique
There are a number of benefits of using IQF. This is why it has become really popular in the food industry these days.
- Reduction of food loss: Loss of food is reduced as when we use IQF for freezing, the food stays fresh for longer periods of time, the taste remains the same. The food does not change its colour and there is no loss of nutrients as well. As the food is frozen separately, you only take out the amount of food that is required at the amount. Hence, no loss of food.
- Labour and manufacturing cost is reduced: With the use of IQF technique, the freezing time is also reduced. Due to this, the cost of labour is also very less. The quality of food can be maintained by freezing.
- Cost reduction: Due to the use of IQF, the market does not have to incur any additional expenditure. The food is frozen properly at the required temperature for the required amount of time and the food stays fresh for a longer period of time, no loss of nutrition value and the taste and colour also remain the same. No additional cost is required to keep all these things in check.
All of the points mentioned above prove that IQF technique is very beneficial, especially for the food industry. It has helped in reducing cost and also manpower. It is a technique that helps keep the food fresh for longer periods of time. The reason that it has become so popular these days is because it keeps the food fresh, the colour and taste of the food remains the same. Wastage of food is also reduced due to separate freezing of food. This technique has really helped the food industry.
