Reflection On Juice Production

Please reflect on (a) the theories of what you have learnt in school and how it is applied in the workplace, (b) tasks you did well and (c) tasks you will like to improve in. (Please do not write beyond the given space)

I was first exposed to juice production this week. The juice processing in the laboratory was similar to the commercial juice production. However, the juice production in the laboratory is much more simplified. For commercialized juice production, the fruits are harvested in an orchard. The harvested fruits are cleaned and graded in the food factory. Extraction of fruit juice is then performed. Following that, the fruit juice is concentrated to extend the shelf life of the juice and make storage and shipping more economical. The process usually involves an equipment known as a Thermally Accelerated Short-Time Evaporator (TASTE) that uses steam to heat the juice under vacuum and force water to be evaporated. The concentrated juice is discharged to a vacuum flash cooler, which reduces the product temperature to about 13° C. For laboratory production, the former steps are skipped and a concentrate is used. The latter steps are then similar to that of the commercial production. When the juice processor is ready to prepare a commercial package for retail sale, the concentrate is blended with water to achieve the desired sugar to acid ratio, colour, and flavour. The finalised product is then pasteurised to minimise flavour changes from heat treatment and is