Current status of technological advancement of ultrasound processing in the food industry and its SWOT analysis

The use of conventional food processing techniques has almost vanished due to increase in demand with respect to time, thus opening new avenues for emerging technologies. Ultrasound (US) is a rapid, multifaceted, promising, and noninvasive green technology. It has attracted the attention of both industrial experts and scientists for its probable use in food processing and preservation. Using US, fully reproducible food processes can be accomplished in seconds or minutes with increased reliability, minimal processing cost, streamlined manipulation, elevated clarity to the end product, and expending only a fragment of the time and energy commonly required by conventional processes.This review emphasizes on the applications of ultrasound in different food sectors along with its certain limitations. Several operations such as microbial inactivation, enzyme inactivation, extraction, emulsification and fractionation in dairy industries, thermo-sonication in fruit juices have been discussed in detail. The US extracted dietary fiber consisted of increased amount of dietary fiber and trace elements in comparison to alkaline method. US initiate rapid creaming of milk fat, decreasing flavor loss and energy requirements thus enhancing the quality of end product. SWOT analysis has been carried out to pinpoint the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats of sonication in various food industries.