This paper presents an evaluation of the effect of storage time and consolidation on the flowability of the following food powders: flour, tea and whey permeate. Instantaneous and temporal flow functions of the powders were measured to quantify the combined effects of compression stress and time. The how functions were measured using a Jenike shear cell and a consolidating bench. A number of powder physical properties, including moisture content, bulk density and particle size were measured. These properties are used in interpreting and comparing the flowability measurements for each powder. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.