Every food item you buy goes through intensive processes to ensure it will be safe for people to eat. The study of food science explores how to delay food from decaying while keeping food as nutritious as it is when harvested, all while ensuring an accessible and abundant food supply for consumers. It is the study of the biological, chemical, and physical make up of food. The field is broken down into areas of expertise, ranging from quality assurance, food law, packaging, processing, and much more! Today, we are able to enjoy a wide range of food due to years of research and practice from everyone in this field.

Food processing involves changing a given food’s properties to preserve it, improve its quality, or make it functionally more useful. Food processors take raw animal, plant, or marine materials and transform them into edible products through the application of labour, machinery, energy, and scientific knowledge. The processors include canners, producers, wineries, and other food and beverage manufacturers and distributors. There are many different types of machines that are engineered to process specific types of food. Product grading machines help to inspect, assess, and sort products and then sell based on quality. Packaging assembly lines expedite the food to table and its scale allows mass production of items.

The benefits of food processing include longer-life food products, protection from harmful bacteria, year-round availability of many food items, and reduced preparation time on the consumer’s end. Some examples of food processes include: dehydrating, refrigerating, fermentation, and packaging. Historic Burlington’s prominence in the agricultural landscape of Ontario required them to build infrastructures to support their role in the food industry. As a result, local inventions and businesses emerged to better serve their community and economy.

Disclaimer: Throughout our research, we found no set definition for each of the different processing methods that are discussed here. Sometimes, there was overlap in how examples of primary, secondary, or tertiary processes were explained by different sources. Using a number of industry resources as guidance, the definitions used here attempt to provide a generalized understanding of the steps involved in food processing.