It was around three decades ago that affordable vacuum food sealers for the home began to appear on TV ads. Since that time, the technology has only advanced greatly, as it has also become more affordable. This in turn, has led to more and more people using them in their homes. Is the technology contained in a vacuum food sealer only a catchy gimmick, or is there any actual benefit that it brings to the sealing process?

Vacuum Food Sealers Suck

Of course there is the obvious benefit of a more attractive compact package, but is there something more that the actual vacuum environment has to offer? The fact is, that there is a little bit of science involved in the vacuum food sealer and what it does. It all has to do with the air that is sucked out of the package and what is contained in the package.

Basic Science

The air that surrounds you is actually a combination of a handful of gases, including oxygen, carbon dioxide and nitrogen. All of these gases have the capacity to effect their own chemical change on the various substances that they come into contact with. For instance, when steel rusts, it is because the oxygen in the atmosphere is reacting with the iron in the steel to form "iron oxide" or rust.

Basic Chemistry

These multitudes of chemical reactions are precisely the reason for discoloration and odd tastes in foods that come into contact with the air. Just leave a slice of apple, or avocado out in the open air for an hour or so and you see the results for yourself. Of course bacteria and mold can and will have effects on exposed foods but they require water.

Suck it !

By removing all the air from a package with a vacuum food sealer, all of the gases and their capacity for chemical reactions are removed. This is precisely the reason that now when you purchase food items at your local grocery store, if they are packaged, it more often then not that the item was packed using a vacuum food sealer.

This Article Is Written By:Timothy Bardoah