Soy sauce has been produced for centuries using salt, fermentation and carefully controlled formulations to create a product that is flavorful, stable and, in many cases, suitable for ambient storage. The same principle applies to many other Asian sauces, including fish sauce, hoisin sauce, teriyaki sauce, stir-fry sauces and sweet-and-sour sauces. What is changing is…
Dried fruit is simple to make. Producing it consistently is not. Drying fruit is one of the oldest preservation methods in the world. Remove enough available water and microbial growth becomes increasingly restricted, allowing products such as raisins, dates, figs, apricots, mangoes and cranberries to remain stable for months rather than days. What sounds straightforward…
For nuts, “drier is better” is not a good water-activity strategy At first sight, moisture control in nuts seems easy. Nuts are low-moisture foods. Keep them dry and they should remain crisp, stable and safe. In reality, nuts are one of the best examples of why water activity management requires more than simply pushing a…
When food manufacturers think about water activity, they often think about the finished product. Measuring the final water activity is essential for confirming shelf-life and product stability, but it may not tell the whole food safety story. Many products pass through high-moisture processing stages before they become shelf stable. Doughs, slurries, batters, fillings, and hydrated…
Water activity is an important quality control parameter in many industries, especially when product safety, microbial stability and shelf life need to be evaluated. For QC teams, the key point is simple: a water activity result is only useful if it is measured with a suitable method, a reliable instrument and proper calibration standards. Why…
There can be an abundance of confusion with water activity instruments concerning test time. Some instruments claim a 5-minute test time, while others offer fast or quick modes. Water activity test time is primarily driven by the physical and chemical characteristics of the sample, not by the instrument itself. Since water activity is an equilibrium…
Since July 1, 2026, the regulatory requirements for Listeria monocytogenes in ready-to-eat foods have become stricter in the European Union. For QC, QA and food safety teams, this is more than a regulatory update. It is a clear signal that scientific evidence, shelf-life validation and documented product control are becoming even more important for ready-to-eat…
In critical quality applications, water activity measurement is more than a routine laboratory parameter. It can influence decisions on product release, shelf life, chemical stability, microbial safety, packaging, and quality assurance. For this reason, accuracy, repeatability, and long-term measurement reliability are essential. Novasina is known for highly reliable and precise water activity measurement technology. The…
Functional foods and nutraceuticals are growing strongly because consumers expect products that do more than provide basic nutrition. They want products that support immunity, digestion, energy, sports performance, beauty, healthy aging, or overall wellbeing. This creates a major challenge for manufacturers: many of the ingredients that create this added value are sensitive. Probiotics must remain…
In pharmaceutical development and quality control, water is often treated as a simple number. A product contains a certain percentage of water. This value is measured by Loss on Drying or Karl Fischer titration, compared with a specification, and used as part of release or stability testing. But for many pharmaceutical products, the key question…
