A workable food safety system
Normec Foodcare was asked by the company to help build a workable food safety system from scratch. Since this is a frozen product, which is not sold to a consumer in this form but supplied to catering establishments, there was a lot of focus on validating the preparation instructions. In addition, there was a focus on the control of (safe) raw materials. This allowed the risk of Listeria monocytogenes to be made manageable.
The loss of the catering industry as a sales channel meant that things had to change quickly. Every effort was made to sell the product through retail. This would also initially be a frozen product. Since there is no control whether a consumer at home heats the product thoroughly, it had to be ensured that Listeria monocytogenes could not grow above 100kve/g. This was achieved by increasing controls and applying stricter raw material selection.
New opportunities for risk mitigation
A retailer expressed a desire to sell the product chilled rather than frozen, with a THT of 10 days after entry. This meant that the total THT should come out to about 14 days. To meet this requirement, a study was first set up to investigate whether MAP packaging could provide a solution. It soon became clear that the outgrowth of Listeria monocytogenes would be well in excess of the set limits. The possibility of using preservatives was then raised. Various combinations were tested and although it was found to be sensory similar to the original product, this method was not chosen. The use of preservatives does not match the company's own principles and requirements for its products.
A test is currently underway using other sterilization techniques to see if the product can undergo sterilization in the final packaging to eliminate the risk of Listeria monocytogenes.
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