{"id":190880,"date":"2026-02-27T11:25:20","date_gmt":"2026-02-27T10:25:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/magic-spa.com\/?p=190880"},"modified":"2026-02-27T11:25:20","modified_gmt":"2026-02-27T10:25:20","slug":"exudate-management-food-packaging","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/magic-spa.com\/en\/exudate-management-food-packaging\/","title":{"rendered":"Preservation before refrigeration: controlling water in food"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"wpb-content-wrapper\"><p>[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text css=&#8221;&#8221;]Refrigeration made temperature the main preservation tool. Before it became widespread, food stability depended on another factor: the amount of <span style=\"color: #92b843;\"><strong>free water<\/strong><\/span> present in the tissues.<\/p>\n<p>Reducing that fraction slowed microbial activity and extended shelf life. Traditional techniques did not rely on temperature, but on <span style=\"color: #92b843;\"><strong>available moisture,<\/strong><\/span> altering the physical conditions that regulate deterioration.[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;12px&#8221;][vc_column_text css=&#8221;&#8221;]<\/p>\n<h4><span style=\"color: #92b843;\"><strong>How traditional methods controlled water<\/strong><\/span><\/h4>\n<p>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text css=&#8221;&#8221;]Traditional preservation practices all addressed the same variable. In sun drying, moisture gradually decreased as surface water evaporated. Ventilation in dry environments accelerated this exchange with the air. Salting altered the balance between water and solutes within the tissues, making microbial growth more difficult. Smoking removed moisture while depositing compounds on the surface with antimicrobial effects.<\/p>\n<p>One example is <em><span style=\"color: #92b843;\"><strong>chu\u00f1o,<\/strong><\/span><\/em> produced in the Andean regions of Peru and Bolivia through natural cycles of night-time freezing and daytime sun exposure.<\/p>\n<p>The method remains the same today: alternating crystallisation and evaporation progressively reduce the free water from the potatoes. Over time, they become a dry, compact food product that can be stored for long periods.[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;12px&#8221;][vc_column_text css=&#8221;&#8221;]<\/p>\n<h4><span style=\"color: #92b843;\"><strong>From natural preservation to modern packaging<\/strong><\/span><\/h4>\n<p>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text css=&#8221;&#8221;]With the introduction of refrigeration and packaging systems, preservation became industrial process.<\/p>\n<p>Temperature became the primary control factor, and <span style=\"color: #92b843;\"><strong>exudate<\/strong><\/span> continues to influence product stability.<\/p>\n<p>Fresh packaged foods &#8211; meat, poultry, fish and fruit &#8211; naturally release water in the form of exudate. When this moisture remains free inside the pack, more water stays in contact with the product, creating favourable conditions for microbial growth.<\/p>\n<p>The surface loses firmness, liquid collects at the bottom of the tray, and the product no longer looks fresh.[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;26px&#8221;][vc_column_text css=&#8221;&#8221;]<a href=\"https:\/\/magic-spa.com\/en\/products\/food-packaging\/\">Food absorbent pads,<\/a> integrated into the packaging process, capture the exudate and retain it within a <span style=\"color: #92b843;\"><strong>multilayer structure.<\/strong> <\/span>Depending on the application, they may incorporate one or two <span style=\"color: #92b843;\"><strong>barrier films<\/strong><\/span> positioned on the top, the bottom, or both.<br \/>\nThis confines the liquid within the absorbent layer and prevents it from returning to the food or redistributing during transport and handling.<\/p>\n<p>For centuries, food shelf life has depended on the balance of water within its tissues. Today, whether on a refrigerated shelf or during the distribution chain, it still comes down to how much water remains available in the product.[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_empty_space][\/vc_column][\/vc_row]<\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Food preservation depends on controlling free water. From traditional methods to exudate management in food packaging, product stability depends on how moisture is managed.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":191626,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[266],"tags":[910,657,1007,304,1008,624,1009],"class_list":["post-190880","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-products","tag-absorbent-pads","tag-absorbentpads","tag-exudate","tag-food-packaging-en","tag-free-water","tag-packaging-alimentare-en","tag-pad-assorbenti"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v28.1 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Exudate Management in Food Packaging | Water Control<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The management of exudate in food packaging affects product stability and appearance. From traditional preservation methods to food absorbent pads, controlling water remains a decisive variable.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/magic-spa.com\/en\/exudate-management-food-packaging\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Exudate Management in Food Packaging | Water Control\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The management of exudate in food packaging affects product stability and appearance. From traditional preservation methods to food absorbent pads, controlling water remains a decisive variable.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/magic-spa.com\/en\/exudate-management-food-packaging\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Magic Spa\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/magicsrl\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-02-27T10:25:20+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/magic-spa.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/food-absorbent-pad-multilayer-structure-magic-spa.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1080\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1080\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Redazione\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Editorial Staff\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":[\"Article\",\"BlogPosting\"],\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/magic-spa.com\\\/en\\\/exudate-management-food-packaging\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/magic-spa.com\\\/en\\\/exudate-management-food-packaging\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Redazione\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/magic-spa.com\\\/en\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/58f060b2d1d39dbf089a270cd9483864\"},\"headline\":\"Preservation before refrigeration: controlling water in food\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-02-27T10:25:20+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/magic-spa.com\\\/en\\\/exudate-management-food-packaging\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":445,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/magic-spa.com\\\/en\\\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/magic-spa.com\\\/en\\\/exudate-management-food-packaging\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/magic-spa.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/02\\\/food-absorbent-pad-multilayer-structure-magic-spa.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"absorbent pads\",\"absorbentpads\",\"exudate\",\"food packaging\",\"free water\",\"packaging alimentare\",\"pad assorbenti\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Products\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/magic-spa.com\\\/en\\\/exudate-management-food-packaging\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/magic-spa.com\\\/en\\\/exudate-management-food-packaging\\\/\",\"name\":\"Exudate Management in Food Packaging | Water Control\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/magic-spa.com\\\/en\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/magic-spa.com\\\/en\\\/exudate-management-food-packaging\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/magic-spa.com\\\/en\\\/exudate-management-food-packaging\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/magic-spa.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/02\\\/food-absorbent-pad-multilayer-structure-magic-spa.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-02-27T10:25:20+00:00\",\"description\":\"The management of exudate in food packaging affects product stability and appearance. From traditional preservation methods to food absorbent pads, controlling water remains a decisive variable.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/magic-spa.com\\\/en\\\/exudate-management-food-packaging\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/magic-spa.com\\\/en\\\/exudate-management-food-packaging\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/magic-spa.com\\\/en\\\/exudate-management-food-packaging\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/magic-spa.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/02\\\/food-absorbent-pad-multilayer-structure-magic-spa.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/magic-spa.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/02\\\/food-absorbent-pad-multilayer-structure-magic-spa.jpg\",\"width\":1080,\"height\":1080,\"caption\":\"Multilayer absorbent pad designed for exudate management in fresh food packaging\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/magic-spa.com\\\/en\\\/exudate-management-food-packaging\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/magic-spa.com\\\/en\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Preservation before refrigeration: controlling water in food\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/magic-spa.com\\\/en\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/magic-spa.com\\\/en\\\/\",\"name\":\"Magic Spa\",\"description\":\"Absorbent materials for food packaging, medical, hygiene and personal care industries\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/magic-spa.com\\\/en\\\/#organization\"},\"alternateName\":\"Magic Spa - Absorbing your needs\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/magic-spa.com\\\/en\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/magic-spa.com\\\/en\\\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Magic Spa\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/magic-spa.com\\\/en\\\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/magic-spa.com\\\/en\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/magic-spa.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2021\\\/06\\\/MAGIC_logo_totale_update_18-06-1-2.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/magic-spa.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2021\\\/06\\\/MAGIC_logo_totale_update_18-06-1-2.png\",\"width\":1170,\"height\":650,\"caption\":\"Magic Spa\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/magic-spa.com\\\/en\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.facebook.com\\\/magicsrl\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.instagram.com\\\/magic_srl\\\/\"]},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/magic-spa.com\\\/en\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/58f060b2d1d39dbf089a270cd9483864\",\"name\":\"Redazione\",\"description\":\"Condividiamo con voi notizie sulla nostra azienda\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Exudate Management in Food Packaging | Water Control","description":"The management of exudate in food packaging affects product stability and appearance. From traditional preservation methods to food absorbent pads, controlling water remains a decisive variable.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/magic-spa.com\/en\/exudate-management-food-packaging\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Exudate Management in Food Packaging | Water Control","og_description":"The management of exudate in food packaging affects product stability and appearance. From traditional preservation methods to food absorbent pads, controlling water remains a decisive variable.","og_url":"https:\/\/magic-spa.com\/en\/exudate-management-food-packaging\/","og_site_name":"Magic Spa","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/magicsrl","article_published_time":"2026-02-27T10:25:20+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1080,"height":1080,"url":"https:\/\/magic-spa.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/food-absorbent-pad-multilayer-structure-magic-spa.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Redazione","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Editorial Staff","Est. reading time":"2 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":["Article","BlogPosting"],"@id":"https:\/\/magic-spa.com\/en\/exudate-management-food-packaging\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/magic-spa.com\/en\/exudate-management-food-packaging\/"},"author":{"name":"Redazione","@id":"https:\/\/magic-spa.com\/en\/#\/schema\/person\/58f060b2d1d39dbf089a270cd9483864"},"headline":"Preservation before refrigeration: controlling water in food","datePublished":"2026-02-27T10:25:20+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/magic-spa.com\/en\/exudate-management-food-packaging\/"},"wordCount":445,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/magic-spa.com\/en\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/magic-spa.com\/en\/exudate-management-food-packaging\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/magic-spa.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/food-absorbent-pad-multilayer-structure-magic-spa.jpg","keywords":["absorbent pads","absorbentpads","exudate","food packaging","free water","packaging alimentare","pad assorbenti"],"articleSection":["Products"],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/magic-spa.com\/en\/exudate-management-food-packaging\/","url":"https:\/\/magic-spa.com\/en\/exudate-management-food-packaging\/","name":"Exudate Management in Food Packaging | Water Control","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/magic-spa.com\/en\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/magic-spa.com\/en\/exudate-management-food-packaging\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/magic-spa.com\/en\/exudate-management-food-packaging\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/magic-spa.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/food-absorbent-pad-multilayer-structure-magic-spa.jpg","datePublished":"2026-02-27T10:25:20+00:00","description":"The management of exudate in food packaging affects product stability and appearance. From traditional preservation methods to food absorbent pads, controlling water remains a decisive variable.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/magic-spa.com\/en\/exudate-management-food-packaging\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/magic-spa.com\/en\/exudate-management-food-packaging\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/magic-spa.com\/en\/exudate-management-food-packaging\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/magic-spa.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/food-absorbent-pad-multilayer-structure-magic-spa.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/magic-spa.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/food-absorbent-pad-multilayer-structure-magic-spa.jpg","width":1080,"height":1080,"caption":"Multilayer absorbent pad designed for exudate management in fresh food packaging"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/magic-spa.com\/en\/exudate-management-food-packaging\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/magic-spa.com\/en\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Preservation before refrigeration: controlling water in food"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/magic-spa.com\/en\/#website","url":"https:\/\/magic-spa.com\/en\/","name":"Magic Spa","description":"Absorbent materials for food packaging, medical, hygiene and personal care industries","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/magic-spa.com\/en\/#organization"},"alternateName":"Magic Spa - Absorbing your needs","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/magic-spa.com\/en\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/magic-spa.com\/en\/#organization","name":"Magic Spa","url":"https:\/\/magic-spa.com\/en\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/magic-spa.com\/en\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/magic-spa.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/MAGIC_logo_totale_update_18-06-1-2.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/magic-spa.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/MAGIC_logo_totale_update_18-06-1-2.png","width":1170,"height":650,"caption":"Magic Spa"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/magic-spa.com\/en\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/magicsrl","https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/magic_srl\/"]},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/magic-spa.com\/en\/#\/schema\/person\/58f060b2d1d39dbf089a270cd9483864","name":"Redazione","description":"Condividiamo con voi notizie sulla nostra azienda"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/magic-spa.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/190880","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/magic-spa.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/magic-spa.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/magic-spa.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/magic-spa.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=190880"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/magic-spa.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/190880\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":190891,"href":"https:\/\/magic-spa.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/190880\/revisions\/190891"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/magic-spa.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/191626"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/magic-spa.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=190880"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/magic-spa.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=190880"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/magic-spa.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=190880"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}