Understanding and controlling the behaviour of aroma compounds in thermally processed foods

The challenge of designing heat-stable flavourings consists in combining high flavour retention during heating with high release during eating. These demands are conflicting and difficult to comply with because it is the same factors that control aroma retention and release. In this review, the possibilities to meet these demands will be discussed. For optimum use of these possibilities it is necessary to model the highly complex physical and chemical interactions in sufficient detail to allow prediction of flavour formation, retention and release. This allows a considerable reduction in the time needed to formulate heat-stable, high-performance flavourings with low cost-in-use.