Vinegar Addition as a CCP?
Hi all,
New to this site but quite pleased I have stumbled across it as I'm hoping someone can help with a bit of clarity. I am currently revising a HACCP study for a bakery that was found wanting in a recent BRC audit. A number of errors have been corrected but I am now having a daily argument with our Central Technical department in terms of allocation of CCP's.
We produce various baked products but all of similar characteristics covering bread (300g, 400g, 750g, 800g), rolls, muffins and teacakes. Currently our CCP's sit at sieving of raw ingredients and metal detection. I am being "advised" that I should be setting vinegar addition as a CCP as well due to its preservative properties. I am arguing that vinegar addition is more a measure of preventing food spoilage as opposed to posing any health risk or potential pathogen growth to unsafe levels (if at all). With bread still being classed as a low risk food product, it would indicate the risk to be minimal with or without vinegar or other preservatives.
I need to put a strong case together as to why I do not think it is a CCP and provide some sort of relevant justification/validation to back up my reasoning. I have struggled to find anything online in the way of formal papers or studies although I have found a number of websites stating the risk is minimal.
Can anyone give a nudge in the right direction? I would be interested to hear your thoughts on vinegar addition as a CCP.
Any help appreciated
Thanks
Unless the HACCP Plan calls out addition of each raw material to make your dough, I don't see how it can be a process step that could be considered a CCP.
Mold inhibitors, especially in bakery products are used to improve the quality (or perceived quality) of a product, not to eliminate or reduce a food safety hazard.
I think you will have a rather hard time finding any scientific evidence that will point to addition of vinegar (and of course what type of vinegar and what percentage using bakers math) that will speak to reducing or eliminating a "food safety" hazard.
I suppose you could argue that no matter how much vinegar you add, bread, by it's very nature is going to mold. Not so sure I would want to eat any bread that had enough vinegar in it to actually taste in the final product.
Bread products always have "use by" or "best by" dates precisely because at ambient storage temperatures they will mold or stale.
Marshall
Unless the HACCP Plan calls out addition of each raw material to make your dough, I don't see how it can be a process step that could be considered a CCP.
Mold inhibitors, especially in bakery products are used to improve the quality (or perceived quality) of a product, not to eliminate or reduce a food safety hazard.
I think you will have a rather hard time finding any scientific evidence that will point to addition of vinegar (and of course what type of vinegar and what percentage using bakers math) that will speak to reducing or eliminating a "food safety" hazard.
I suppose you could argue that no matter how much vinegar you add, bread, by it's very nature is going to mold. Not so sure I would want to eat any bread that had enough vinegar in it to actually taste in the final product.
Bread products always have "use by" or "best by" dates precisely because at ambient storage temperatures they will mold or stale.
Marshall
Thanks Marshall, thats exactly the points i've been making but they are panicking about what an auditor might say. People are unlikely to eat moldy bread and even if they did it would be unlikely to cause any serious or mildy serious harm.
Hi deviltoe,
I can see some logic to both sides to the argument.
The Federation of Bakers:
Preservatives
Preservatives are used to prevent the growth of micro-organisms that would make food unwholesome to eat.
Vinegar and naturally fermented wheat flour can both function as preservatives.
There must be some risk from toxin production but I'm not sure how you would demonstrate a critical limit for vinegar level and would lean to thinking that it is something that needs to be controlled but not a CCP.
Have you any data & micro results to demonstrate that there is not much difference between a recipe with/without vinegar?
Regards,
Tony