Baby food has been a common part of our society since the 1920s when Gerber began jarring baby food for sale in pharmacies. This form of feeding was new to consumers, but essentially called for natural fruits and vegetables to be strained and canned to make them easier on a baby’s stomach. Before this, baby food was generally mashed up fruits and vegetables without the thought of how problematic fibrous foods might be on the baby’s still growing digestion system. Today’s baby food is processed to eliminate harmful fibers without diminishing the overall nutritional value of the product.
Although various processes for making baby food exist, typically, most baby foods, at least the jarred varieties, are processed with the retort or hot fill hold process. During these processes, heat is utilized to maintain safety of the product and then vacuum sealed to further maintain freshness. Tamper evident and heat seals are used to help ensure the product maintains its freshness until its expected expire date. Baby food is processed to maintain nutritional integrity without the use of preservatives and artificial flavors, so the baby does not have additional sugars and sodium added to their diet.
Apart from baby food, baby formula is among the most common ways babies are fed. Where there is an ongoing debate over baby formula vs. breast feeding, some mothers simply cannot breast feed their babies due to body limitations and certain health conditions. Baby formula is available for those who do not make enough breast milk or for those who cannot breast feed babies. It provides adequate nutrition and is made in a wide range of varieties to accommodate individualized digestive systems.
During baby formula production, methods for both wet and dry formula is used. For both processes, baby formula is sealed to ensure no metal or additives are able to make it into the machine, but is that enough? Both baby formula and baby foods have been impacted by various recalls and even with all processing measures in place, potential risks to the food can happen. However, these measures have become standardized across American manufacturers and have become the norm, but is there a better way to process baby food?
Modern baby food processing measures are designed to ensure the nutritional value of the natural product is not impacted. However, even with measures in place to guard the food’s nutritional integrity, a certain level of vitamins and minerals will be lost due to heat exposure. Gentle Processing™, is a different way to process baby foods and all consumables. With Gentle Processing™, baby food is made safe for babies without diminishing the overall nutritional value of the product. Babies get more nutrition and parents get peace of mind in providing optimal nutrition for their loved ones. Gentle Processing™ is a revolutionary tool that can be used on every aspect of food production. Is your baby’s food as safe as it could be with traditional processing measures?