Sous vide - under vaccum meals

hi everyone!
i´m searching information about safety of sous vide products (meaning cooked "ready to eat" meals), what i found up to now doesn´t make me happy at all, high risk of Cl. botulinum and L. monocytogenes... is there anybody with experience in this technology?
thanks!

I thought sous vide meant that products were fully cooked and vacuum sealed in a pouch? If so - this method reduces the chances of Listeria since after the cooking occurs there is no chance of environmental contamination and re-heating can also be done in the pouch. Clostridia species could be a concern if improper cooling occcurs. A good HACCP Plan should take care of this. All methods of food preparation have their own hazards - this is why HACCP is so helpful!

Not my area but as per Cathy's comment, i extracted this fron an older publication (2000) -

The term “sous vide” means “under vacuum” and describes a processing technique whereby freshly prepared foods are vacuum sealed in individual packages and then pasteurized at time-temperature combinations sufficient to destroy vegetative pathogens but mild enough to maximize the sensory characteristics of the product (39, 40). After cooking, the products are chilled, stored refrigerated, and reheated before consumption. Sous vide foods are mainly used in mass catering and restaurants (30). Compared with traditional cooking methods, sous vide has many advantages (40, 42). Economic benefits include better use of labor and equipment through centralized production and extended shelf life due to vacuum packaging, which by excluding oxygen inhibits oxidative processes and growth of spoilage organisms. The shelf life of a sous vide product can be as long as 42 days (42). In addition, the reduced need for preservatives and flavor enhancers, better preservation of vitamins, and retention of most of the original food juices all contribute to higher quality of sous vide foods over conventional meals.

Concerns associated with sous vide processing involve the microbiological safety of the products (40). The psychrotrophic food-borne pathogens and particularly nonproteolytic group II Clostridium botulinum bacteria are of concern due to the methods of preparing, distributing, and storing these products. Mild heat treatments in combination with vacuum packaging may actually select for C. botulinum and increase the potential for botulism. Sous vide products are generally formulated with little or no preservatives and frequently do not possess any intrinsic inhibitory barriers (pH, aw, or NaCl) that either alone or in combination would inhibit growth. Therefore, strict adherence to refrigerated storage below 3.3°C must be maintained to ensure the safety of sous vide products with respect to nonproteolytic C. botulinum (1). However, the temperature control in chill chains is often inadequate, and temperature abuse is common throughout distribution and retail markets and by consumers (8, 16, 27).

The fuller article is here -
http://www.pubmedcen...cgi?artid=91810

maybe things have changed in last 8 years

added - only a brief mention of L.mono in above ref. maybe they considered the selection of C.bot. was a tougher option than L.mono. regarding heating requirements. can't remember which way round it goes (will depend on matrix also), prob. C.bot. is more difficult ? HACCP planners for sous-vide products should know.

Rgds / Charles.C

Some information on sous-vide (as one kind of cook-chill production method) and associated risks can be found in these two publications by the Food Safety Authority of Ireland:

http://www.fsai.ie/p..._notes/gn15.pdf
and
http://www.fsai.ie/p..._notes/gn20.pdf

Unfortunately, I don't have any practical experience myself. Hope these documents help.

Matt