Book excerpt: Extending the shelf-life of foods whilst maintaining safety and quality is a critical issue for the food industry. As a result there have been major developments in food preservation techniques, which are summarised in this authoritative collection. The first part of the book examines the key issue of maintaining safety as preservation methods become more varied and complex. The rest of the book looks both at individual technologies and how they are combined to achieve the right balance of safety, quality and shelf-life for particular products. - Provides an authoritative review of the development of new and old food preservation technologies and the ways they can be combined to preserve particular foods - Examines the emergence of a new generation of natural preservatives in response to consumer concerns about synthetic additives - Includes chapters on natural antimicrobials, bacteriocins and antimicrobial enzymes, as well as developments in membrane filtration, ultrasound and high hydrostatic pressure