Brining raw onions for pickling

Hi

I work for a vegetable processing manufacturer, at the moment we process all varieties of vegetables and fruits. We do not do any further processing to the vegetables and fruit apart from peel, cut and pack.  

We are looking into brining baby onions ready for pickling. We are not going pickle them, our customers are going to do this process. we are going to purchase the raw onions and brine them in plastic containers.

At the moment we have an established HACCP system for our current process. I am aware that I will have to make amendments if we decide to use brine.

I have never used brine before therefore my knowledge is limited. My question is are there any potential food hazards relating to brine and what control measures are needed?

Many thanks   

Hello dawnmo,

     Salt and vinegar used in brining should be food grade conforming to Codex Standard or any other local regulatory specifications

Water used should be of potable quality and the pH of the final pickled product when packed in bottles should be below 4.5 and acidity of the final pickle should be 1.2% and brine should cover the pickled onions completely i.e.onions completely submerged in brine.