The Drip by AQUALAB

Today I am joined by Mohammad Hossain, the Director of Food Safety, Quality and Compliance at Virginia Park Foods based in California. Virginia Park Foods manufactures gluten-free certified pasta. In this episode, Mohammad talks about oven drying, moisture content, water activity, and his hopes of building a culture of food safety. Let's hear what he has to say on Water In Food.

Today I’m joined by Dr. Allison Justice who is the founder of The Hemp Mine located in South Carolina. Dr. Justice has combined her scientific education from Clemson University and her experience with cannabis producers in California to supply premium hemp in her home state. The Hemp Mine is known for its transparency to its customers and sound research, and in this episode, we discuss her highly regulated industry, current experiments, and use of water activity measurements. Let’s hear what Dr. Justice has to say on Water in Food...

In this special episode of Water in Food, we explore two articles published by Purdue University and Pfizer that address hydrate formation boundaries.

Today I'm joined by Fabienne Latournel-Perrot, a French research and development team manager at Arkopharma Laboratories. In this special episode, we're stepping out of Water in Food to learn about water in pharmaceuticals and nutraceuticals and how moisture sorption isotherms are applied to these industries. Let's hear what Fabienne has to say on Water In Food ...

Today I’m joined by Brynn Foster, founder of Voyaging Foods based in Hawaii. Brynn founded her gluten-free, artisan milling company in 2005 and does it all...from farming to distribution, to studying and applying food science principles like water activity. Let’s learn about Brynn’s company and her desire to make indigenous plant products more accessible on Water in Food.

Today’s episode is sure to tickle your sweet tooth as we’re joined by Rachel McKinley. She is a master chocolatier at Purdys Chocolatier based in British Columbia. As Canada’s number one, independently owned chocolatier, Rachel is in charge of creating delicious new products for the company. She says that water and chocolate aren’t very good friends, but where water really matters most is in the centers of chocolate confections.

Today I’m joined by Michael Pan in Portland, Oregon. He is the creator of Pan’s Mushroom Jerky, a plant-based alternative snack to traditional meat jerkies. From taking a very novel approach for product development, to cultivating desired tastes and textures, Michael has been able to scale his production and improve his process measurements in a fascinating way. Let’s hear what he has to say on Water In Food

We’re joined by my colleague John Russell, one of our best water application specialists at METER Group. More than most, John fully understands the often tangled relationship between food manufacturers and water. For the past 14 years, he has been answering questions like….”How can I confidently measure moisture?”... or…”how is water activity the foundation for product safety, quality and profit?” Through customer visits, support, and offering innovative solutions, John thinks the key for food manufacturers is finding the balance between stability and continuous improvement.

Today, I’m joined by Rick Stoller of Simmons Food, one of North America’s largest producers of poultry, pet, and animal nutrition products. Family-owned since 1949 and based in Arkansas, Simmons employs over 7,000 team members. Rick’s primary focus is process improvement in dry end treats. Let’s listen to his thoughts on Water In Food.

Sunrise Fresh is a family-owned farm in California, growing and selling the number one dried fruit on Amazon. Jake and Case Samuel, CEO and VP of Sales, join Zachary Cartwright for a discussion on how this overachieving dried fruit farm leverages the power of water activity in annual production and product development.

Dr. Zachary Cartwright is joined by METER CEO Scott Campbell. When it comes to using moisture balances, the food industry is mired in what Paul Graham coined as Schlep Blindness (tedious and unpleasant tasks). What if science and technology could speed up moisture content readings while, at the same time, optimize workflows in food production? Listen to find out more!