This book combines the essentials of both flavor chemistry and flavor technology. Flavor chemistry is a relatively new area of study which became significant in the 1960s with the availability of gas chromatog raphy and mass spectrometry. Prior to this instrumentation, flavor chemistry focused on only the most abundant chemical constituents. It is a well-documented fact that often the trace constituents of flavors are the most important components. Flavor chemistry flourished in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Since money was readily available for flavor research great strides were made in understanding the biosynthetic pathways of flavor formation and the chemical constituents that are important to flavor. But the 1970s and early 1980s have not been good years for flavor research, especially in the United States. Since funding agencies have chosen to support re search in nutrition and toxicology, many of the research leaders in the flavor area have had to change their research emphasis in order to obtain funding. Today, European researchers turn out the majority of pub lished work in flavor chemistry. While all of the flavor houses conduct some basic flavor research, it is confidential and seldom becomes pub lished. Therefore, the reader will note that a lot of the references are from the late 1960s and early 1970s; and also that European authors dominate the flavor literature in recent years. Flavor technology is an ancient area of study. Man has searched for a means of making food more pleasurable or palatable since time began."

A much-anticipated revision of a benchmark resource, written by a renowned author, professor, and researcher in food flavors, Flavor Chemistry and Technology, Second Edition provides the latest information and newest research developments that have taken place in the field over the last 20 years. New or expanded coverage includes: -Flavor and the Information Age -Food/Flavor interactions -Flavoring materials and flavor potentiators -Changes to food flavors during processing -Off-Flavors in foods -Performance of flavors during processing and storage -Applications of flavorings in processing One of the many highlights of the new edition is the chapter on food/flavor interactions and flavor release in the mouth. Addressing one of the hottest topics in flavor today, the chapter presents current knowledge on critical issues such as why low-calorie foods do not taste as good as their full-calorie counterparts. The greatest changes in the book have been made to the chapter on food applications. The author supplies a compelling explanation of how flavors interact with basic food components and how these perform during processing and storage. The chapter on flavor production has been updated to include the latest information on the controlled release of flavorings. Actively involved in flavor research for 35 years, author Gary Reineccius is an award-winning flavor chemist. Drawing on his years of academic and practical experience, he focuses on the technology of flavors and applications in processing to provide a complete overview of the field.