Water-soluble polymers or hydrocolloids are widely used in many fields, including food, agriculture, ceramics, paper and ink technology, explosives and the textile industry. This important new book provides a comprehensive overview of novel aspects of their use in food products. Interest in the science and technology of water-soluble polymers is rapidly increasing and this book provides a much-needed and up-to-date overview.

Chapters review important new food applications, giving short historical overviews, the latest information on uses and possible future applications. Topics covered include the use of hydrocolloids for texturization, as adhesives within food products, as coatings in products such as fruit, vegetables, cheese, meat and dried foods, and for flavour encapsulation.

Professor Amos Nussinovitch was born in Kibbutz Megiddo, Israel. He studied chemistry at the University of Tel Aviv, and food engineering and biotechnology at the Technion – Israel Institute of Technology. He has worked as a food engineer at several companies and has been involved in a number of R&D projects in both the United States and Israel, focusing on the mechanical properties of liquids, semisolids, solids, and powders.

He is currently in the Biochemistry and Food Science Department of the Robert H. Smith Faculty of Agriculture, Food and Environment of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Israel, where he leads a large group of researchers working on theoretical and practical aspects of hydrocolloids. Prof. Nussinovitch is the sole author of five books, the author or coauthor of numerous papers on hydrocolloids and on the physical properties of foods, and an inventor on many related patent applications.