Development of Packaging and Products for Use in Microwave Ovens

Ulrich Erle is an expert for cooking technologies and food science at the Nestlé Development Center in Solon/Ohio. During his assignments as project manager and senior scientific advisor he gained experience in the industrial application of microwaves in vacuum drying and sterilization processes. More recently, he concentrated on the performance of food products for household microwave ovens, including innovative packaging solutions. Ulrich is a member of the Board of Governors of the International Microwave Power Institute (IMPI) and also chaired the 50th IMPI Symposium in Orlando. He represents Nestlé in the Center for Advanced Processing and Packaging Studies (CAPPS) and in the RF Energy Alliance. Peter Pesheck is currently Principal at Food Biophysics, LLC. In his 34-year R&D career at Pillsbury and General Mills he worked primarily in cross-business Strategic Technology groups, where he specialized in structure-function relationships, microscopy, modeling, microwave heating (food dielectric properties, simulation, product design and problem resolution), and wheat flour doughs and their structural transformations in proofing and baking. He has published 4 papers in reviewed journals and holds 19 U.S. patents. Matthew Lorence is currently a Packaging Technology Manager at Bellisio Foods, Inc. He is a leader in the field of packaging R&D for consumer and industrial products, and medical devices. He was previously Packaging Technology Manager at General Mills. He holds 13 U.S. patents and has extensive experience in identifying, developing, and commercializing convenient Total Product Offerings leveraging Open Innovation for new packaging and product technologies.

• Part 1 – Principles1. Electromagnetic basis of microwave heating 2. Influence of food geometry and dielectric properties on heating performance3. Advanced topics in microwave heating uniformity - Theory and Experimental Methods4. Microwave ovens 5. Measurements of dielectric properties of food and associated materials6. Microwave dielectric properties of food and some other substances Part 2 – Microwave packaging materials and design7. Passive microwave packaging forms8. Susceptors in microwave packaging 9. Shielding and field modification – thick metal filmsPart 3 – Product development, food, packaging and oven safety10. Flavors and colors for microwave foods 11. Texture modifying ingredients for microwave foods 12. Package and product development testing in a microwave oven13. Sensory Science for Microwaveable Products14. Food Safety and Cooking Validation15. The impact of Solid State Technology on product development16. Regulatory issues in microwave packaging 17. Microwave oven safetyPart 4 – Modelling of microwave heating18. Modelling of cavities and Loads with FDTD and FEM Methods19. Space-discrete modelling of microwave susceptors 20. Problems in the modelling of magnetron-fed ovens 21. Special regimes for modelling ovens fed by solid-state sources

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