{"id":11073,"date":"2026-02-26T10:05:00","date_gmt":"2026-02-26T09:05:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.steritech.eu.com\/?p=11073"},"modified":"2026-03-03T10:18:21","modified_gmt":"2026-03-03T09:18:21","slug":"the-tin-can-an-essential-pillar-of-the-food-industry","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.steritech.eu.com\/en\/the-tin-can-an-essential-pillar-of-the-food-industry\/","title":{"rendered":"The tin can : an essential pillar of the food industry"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Tinned food has established itself as one of the safest<\/strong> and most convenient<\/strong> means of preserving<\/strong> food. Today, it remains a mainstay of the global food industry. In this article, we’ll look at why, despite the rise of deep-freezing, modified atmosphere and innovative packaging technologies, cans remain a widely-used standard<\/strong>, and how Steritech<\/strong> autoclaves<\/a> contribute to this. <\/p>\n\n

From appertizing to Industry 4.0 : the can revolution<\/h2>\n\n

The story of the invention of the tin can<\/h3>\n\n

Born of the need to preserve foodstuffs for the army over the long term<\/strong>, the tin can is the result of the work of Frenchman Nicolas Appert<\/a> and Englishman Peter Durand<\/a> in the early 19th<\/sup> century. Nicolas Appert laid the foundations of appertization<\/strong>, the precursor principle of today’s autoclave heat sterilization processes for foodstuffs. He discovered that heating <\/strong>food in a hermetically <\/strong>sealed glass container could preserve<\/strong> it. Peter Durand subsequently patented the use of tinplate cans<\/strong>, which are more resistant than glass and better suited to the constraints of maritime transport. <\/p>\n\n

In the mid-19th<\/sup> century, French scientist Louis Pasteur<\/a> proved that micro-organisms can spoil food. His research consolidated the microbiological foundations of pasteurization and sterilization. <\/p>\n\n

At the end of the 19th<\/sup> century, W.L. Underwood<\/a> (American director of a canned food company) and S.C. Prescott<\/a> (American scientist) discovered why some cans swelled and exploded despite being heat treated at 100\u00b0C. The cause of this deterioration was spore-forming, thermophilic microorganisms. For their shellfish cans, they found that applying pressurized steam at 121\u00b0C eliminated bacteria in 10 minutes. <\/p>\n\n

In the early 20th<\/sup> century, W.D. Bigelow<\/a>, an American scientist specializing in food technology, laid the scientific foundations for calculating industrial sterilization processes<\/strong>. He developed a key method for determining the times and temperatures required to prevent the proliferation of any micro-organisms in canned products. <\/p>\n\n

At the same time, industrial autoclaves were being developed, enabling precise<\/strong> temperature <\/strong>and pressure<\/strong> control<\/strong>, as well as standardization of thermal scales<\/strong> with sterilizing and pasteurizing values<\/strong>, transforming canning into a safe, reproducible<\/strong> process.<\/p>\n\n

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The evolution of materials and types of openings<\/h3>\n\n

Since its creation, the can has seen its materials evolve<\/a> towards more sustainable and healthier options<\/strong>. Originally, cans were made from tinplate with a layer of tin to prevent food oxidation. Toxic lead solder was replaced by safer alternatives such as tin soldering or crimping. <\/p>\n\n

As industrialization progressed, thinner rolled steel, still tin-plated, made it possible to manufacture lighter, less expensive<\/strong> cans.<\/p>\n\n

The 20th century saw two major developments:<\/p>\n\n