A Challenging Question: the use of raw unpasteurized shell eggs

A colleague of mine recently ask me if I knew of if there where any regulations or requirements for the use of raw unpasteurized shell eggs in a food processing facilities from regulators or in the BRC Standards (in the province of Ontario CANADA). I am almost positive I have seen that it is not permitted through the myriad of regulations that I have reviewed before but cannot seem to find anything on the subject except for some very general legislative regulations and nothing in the BRC Standards that are only open to individual interpretation.

Would appreciate any comments.

Thanks! SVO

It depends to your process. If you use heat treatment after breaking shells, and you work in a hygienic conditions , specially hygienic personal conditions , then it sounds you dosnt need to care about shells. only care about transfering of Salmonela in your final product and be carefull about contacting between raw material and final product.

Hi Brigita,

 

Welcome to the IFSQN forums.

 

I understand your comment regarding the egg being protected by the shell, but there is still a possibility for contamination (albeit a reduced one) and the product is not fully enclosed within packaging or equipment, so I would say shell egg packing would fall into an open product area - low risk category as per the descriptions from BRCGS below.

 

Open product areas

Wherever ingredients, intermediates or finished products are not protected from the factory environment, there is a potential risk of product contamination by foreign bodies, allergenic material or micro-organisms in the environment.

 

Low risk

The significance to human health of microbiological contamination in low-risk areas is reduced because the products either:

• do not support the growth of pathogens (either intrinsically or by design of the product) or the survival of pathogens, which could subsequently grow during the normal storage or use of the product

• are designed to undergo a later kill step that will ensure the product is safe to eat.

 

Enclosed product areas

An enclosed product area is defined as an area of the factory where all of the products are fully enclosed and therefore not vulnerable to environmental contamination (e.g. foreign bodies or micro-organisms). This includes areas where:

• the product is fully enclosed within packaging (e.g. raw material and finished product storage and dispatch areas)

• the product is fully enclosed within equipment

 

Kind regards,

 

Tony

 

Also in shell eggs in Canada

 

Can you clarify exactly what you're asking to do?

I suppose the person is asking if there are any regulations for "shelled" eggs - raw, broken eggs (inside yolk, white). Nothing related to the shells themselves.

But this is just my assumption.