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. 2025 Nov 16;35(1):95-104.
doi: 10.1007/s10068-025-02012-9. eCollection 2026 Jan.

Effects of temperature distribution and heat penetration during retort sterilization on the quality characteristics of canned whelk (Buccinum striatissimum)

Ye-Shin Lee #  1 , Hee-Jeong Hwang #  2 , Hye-Jae Choi  1 , Ji-Yoon Lee  1 , Myong-Soo Chung  1
Affiliations

Effects of temperature distribution and heat penetration during retort sterilization on the quality characteristics of canned whelk (Buccinum striatissimum)

Ye-Shin Lee et al. Food Sci Biotechnol. .

Abstract

This study analyzed the temperature distribution and heat penetration characteristics during canned whelk production using two retort sterilizers. The quality characteristics of the products were also analyzed. The structural characteristics of the retorts, product loading methods, and product quantity affected various characteristics of the thermal profiles, including the range of secondary sterilization temperatures, the cold and hot locations in the two retorts, and the heat penetration characteristics. Regarding the physicochemical quality characteristics of processed whelk, as the F 0 value increased, pH decreased slightly from 6.92 to 6.63, color ΔE values increased from 16.87 to 22.37, the hardness decreased from 14.60 to 10.55 N, and the chewiness decreased from 36.50 to 26.00 mJ, while the initial solid weight of 186 g decreased to the range from 145.16 to 136.67 g. The findings of this study confirm that ensuring a uniform secondary sterilization temperature is important for achieving a high-quality final product.

Keywords: Heat penetration; Retort; Secondary sterilization; Temperature distribution.

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Conflict of interest statement

Conflict of interestThe authors hereby declared no conflict of interest.

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