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Fundamental Food Microbiology, Third Edition - Fuad Fathir

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72 FUNDAMENTAL FOOD MICROBIOLOGY<br />

C. Water Activity and Growth<br />

1. Principle<br />

Water activity (A w) is a measure of the availability of water for biological functions<br />

and relates to water present in a food in free form. In a food system, total water or<br />

moisture is present in free and bound forms. Bound water is the fraction used to<br />

hydrate hydrophilic molecules and to dissolve solutes, and is not available for<br />

biological functions; thus, it does not contribute to A w. The A w of a food can be<br />

expressed by the ratio of water vapor pressure of the food (P, which is 0 to

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