Reference · 36 terms
Freeze-Dried Fruit Glossary
Plain-language definitions of the technical, commercial, and packaging terms that come up across the freeze-dried fruit category — from water activity and sublimation to landed cost and barrier films. Each term has its own page with the full definition, related terms, and articles that use it.
Process & science
- Water activity (aw)
- A measure of how available the water in a food is, reported on a 0–1 scale. Read full definition
- Moisture content
- The percentage of a product's weight that is water. Read full definition
- Sublimation
- The phase transition from solid directly to vapor without passing through liquid. Read full definition
- Lyophilization
- The technical name for freeze-drying. Read full definition
- Primary drying
- The first and longest phase of a freeze-drying cycle. Read full definition
- Secondary drying
- The final phase of a freeze-drying cycle. Read full definition
- Eutectic point
- The temperature below which a solution is fully solid. Read full definition
- Cycle endpoint
- The point at which secondary drying is complete and the product has reached its target moisture and water activity. Read full definition
Raw material & format
- IQF (Individually Quick-Frozen)
- Fruit frozen piece by piece at low temperature before processing. Read full definition
- Pre-treatment
- Any step applied to fruit between intake and freezing — washing, cutting, dipping, blanching, or acidifying. Read full definition
- Brix
- A measurement of dissolved solids — mostly sugars — in fruit juice, expressed in degrees. Read full definition
- Whole piece
- Freeze-dried fruit sold as intact pieces — whole strawberries, whole blueberries, whole mango chunks. Read full definition
- Crumble / fines
- Small fragments and powder produced when freeze-dried fruit breaks during processing, screening, or transport. Read full definition
- Powder
- Freeze-dried fruit milled into a fine powder. Read full definition
Quality & defects
- Enzymatic browning
- Surface darkening caused by enzymes reacting with oxygen after fruit is cut. Read full definition
- Pigment fade
- Loss of color saturation in pigment-rich fruits — strawberry, raspberry, blueberry, cherry, dragon fruit. Read full definition
- Breakage
- The proportion of freeze-dried fruit that has broken from its intended piece size into fragments or powder. Read full definition
- Rehydration
- Unwanted moisture pickup after the product leaves the freeze dryer. Read full definition
Packaging
- Barrier film
- The multilayer plastic structure used to make freeze-dried fruit pouches. Read full definition
- WVTR (Water Vapor Transmission Rate)
- The rate at which water vapor passes through a barrier film under defined conditions, typically reported in g/m²/day. Read full definition
- OTR (Oxygen Transmission Rate)
- The rate at which oxygen passes through a barrier film, typically reported in cc/m²/day. Read full definition
- Metallized film
- A flexible film with a thin vapor-deposited aluminum layer. Read full definition
- Foil laminate
- A flexible packaging structure built around an aluminum foil layer. Read full definition
- Desiccant
- A small packet — usually silica gel or molecular sieve — that absorbs moisture inside a sealed pouch. Read full definition
- Oxygen absorber
- A packet that chemically removes residual oxygen from a sealed pouch. Read full definition
- Headspace
- The empty volume inside a sealed pouch above the product. Read full definition
- Heat seal
- The thermally bonded edge of a flexible pouch. Read full definition
Commercial
- MOQ (Minimum Order Quantity)
- The smallest quantity a supplier will accept on a single order, expressed in kilograms, cases, or units. Read full definition
- Landed cost
- The total cost of freeze-dried fruit delivered to the buyer's warehouse, including raw material, processing, packaging, freight, duties, brokerage, and handling. Read full definition
- Dry yield
- The amount of finished freeze-dried fruit produced from a unit of fresh or frozen input fruit. Read full definition
- Usable yield
- The portion of dry yield that meets the buying spec for a given application. Read full definition
- Private label
- An arrangement where a supplier produces freeze-dried fruit packaged under the buyer's brand, rather than the supplier's own. Read full definition
Certifications
- SQF (Safe Quality Food)
- A GFSI-recognized food safety certification scheme used across freeze-dried fruit processing. Read full definition
- BRCGS
- Brand Reputation Compliance Global Standards — a GFSI-recognized food safety certification widely used by European retailers and global ingredient buyers. Read full definition
- FSSC 22000
- A GFSI-recognized food safety management standard built on ISO 22000. Read full definition
- USDA Organic
- A US Department of Agriculture certification for fruit grown and processed under defined organic standards. Read full definition