Reverse Osmosis in the Food Industry

Reverse osmosis has been used in the food industry for many years.

Concentrating Juices
Research on the concentration of orange juice and tomato juice shows that reverse osmosis is more economical than heat treatment processes. Operating costs are lower and the heat treatment processes that destroy enzymes and affect the quality of protein in foods can be avoided.

Maple Syrup Production
In the 1970s, some maple syrup producers began using reverse osmosis to remove the water from sap before boiling the sap down to syrup. This removed approximately 75 to 80 percent of the water from the sap and reduced energy consumption and exposure of the syrup to high temperatures. When this process is used, microbial contamination and degradation of the membranes have to be closely monitored.

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