The globalisation of the food industry coupled with stricter regulatory oversight means the ability to guarantee the shelf life of products has become essential.

Longer supply chains provide significant opportunities for brand owners to broaden their market reach. But such prospects rely on technical innovation to extend the shelf life of foodstuffs as they travel greater distances across the globe.

These trends, combined with the burgeoning consumer appetite for more natural tasting processed foods, have spurred the emergence of a raft of novel technologies that seek to maintain food quality while lengthening shelf life.

High pressure processing, active and intelligent packaging and predictive modelling are all driving advances as packaging and processing technology providers bid to meet consumer and food manufacturer aspirations.

The Controlling Shelf Life Virtual Conference 2011 will bring together leading industry voices in these key areas to discuss cutting edge technology, market trends and brand owner requirements.

On Thursday 27th May 2010, beverage formulators from all over the world connected with industry experts and ingredients suppliers during an 8 hour virtual conference and expo. From their desktops, they were all able to attend live conferences, visit stands and network with industry peers, all on the Internet!