Analysis of food microstructure by confocal microscopy (CLSM)

Real-time visualisation of complex food microstructures

Confocal microscopy (CLSM) helps you to understand your food product’s and ingredient’s performance. A very efficient approach to tackle stability issues and tailor mouthfeel of food products and optimise production processes.

Ingredient distribution within the microstructure of food products

Confocal Laser Scanning Microscopy (CLSM) is a technique to visualise the food microstructure with minimal sample preparation. Different ingredients can be visualised simultaneous in one sample by the addition of fluorescent dyes. Dyes are available to identify protein, fat, and starch granules within the food microstructure.

Changes in food microstructure during processing and eating

The effect of processing conditions, such as heating, mixing, homogenisation and aeration, on the food microstructure determines largely product stability. Visualisation by CLSM allows an efficient approach for food product optimisation.
Identifying the changes in the food microstructure during oral processing is of crucial importance in the understanding and tailoring of mouthfeel attributes relevant for food perception, such as creaminess, grittiness, juiciness.

Food microstructure analysis applied to:

• Understand ingredient functionality
  optimise food product formulations
•  Understand and improve perception of foods
  design of healthy foods
• Analyse real-time changes in food microstructure
  understand and optimise food processing
• Characterise microstructure of non-food materials
  improve material properties 
• Understand causes of instability in food products
  improve shelf life 
 

Read our our leaflet on Microstructural analysis by confocal microscopy