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Food quality testing evaluates product characteristics that affect stability, consistency, shelf life, and consumer acceptance.
Quality testing differs from food safety testing by focusing on the consistency, texture, chemical parameters, and sensory attributes of food. It ensures that every batch produced meets the established brand standards and performs as expected during its lifecycle.
PBR Laboratories provides certified quality testing services for food processors, ingredient suppliers, dairy processors, and pet food manufacturers throughout Alberta, Western Canada, and Canada.
Food quality testing evaluates physical, chemical, and sensory characteristics that affect how food products look, taste, feel, and behave over time.
Core quality parameters include:
By testing these parameters, food developers and manufacturers can ensure that products remain stable and acceptable throughout their storage life.
Food quality testing is essential for a broad range of sectors, including:
Water activity measures the availability of water that can support microbial growth, chemical degradation, or physical structure changes.
Importance: Controls spoilage potential, predicts shelf life, and ensures compliance with safe moisture-activity thresholds.
pH measures the relative acidity or alkalinity of food items. Keeping pH within optimal ranges is key to product consistency and preservation.
Importance: Prevents bacterial growth, supports shelf stability in acidified foods, and ensures consistency in flavor profiles.
Moisture content measures the total amount of water present in a food item, usually expressed as a percentage.
Importance: Affects product texture (e.g. crunchiness or softness), density, economic yield, and regulatory compliance parameters.
Sensory testing assesses product attributes using human senses, including appearance, color, smell, texture, and taste.
Importance: Evaluates consumer acceptability, verifies that product reformulations maintain brand-typical profiles, and identifies early signs of spoilage.
Food quality testing evaluates product characteristics that affect stability, consistency, shelf life, and consumer acceptance.
Food safety testing focuses on contamination risks while food quality testing evaluates product performance and consistency.
Water activity influences microbial growth, spoilage risk, and shelf life.
Moisture measures total water content, while water activity measures available water capable of supporting microbial growth.
pH affects microbial growth, stability, product quality, and shelf life.
Organoleptic evaluation assesses appearance, taste, odour, texture, and overall sensory performance.
Quality testing may be performed during product development, routine production, shelf life studies, investigations, and reformulation projects.
Food products, ingredients, dairy products, bakery products, beverages, ready-to-eat foods, and pet food.
PBR Laboratories provides food quality evaluations, moisture testing, water activity testing, and pH measurement to support product consistency and shelf-life requirements.