Acceptable spec. for aerobic plate count for environmental swabs?

hey guys,

Just curious...what is an acceptable spec for aerobic plate count for environmental swabs?

for both food contact and noncontact sites?

thanks

Hi, whats the nature of your facility? 

it is a cheese facility.

It is dry cleaned every day but wet cleaned once a week.

The answer is...it depends.  Each facility, product, and equipment are different. You have to conduct swabbing on a regular basis and trend the results over time.  Correlate the results with any product micro counts.

A good starting point would be the aerobic count limits in your product spec, especially on FCS.

What you want out of your environmental monitoring program is for it to identify any hot spots, or trouble areas you have.  But, you don't want it to have you spinning your tail with a number of samples over your determined limit.

I think until you get a number established thorough visual inspection is key.  A surface is clean or not clean, easy to distinguish and tell.

thanks ryan

hey guys,

 

Just curious...what is an acceptable spec for aerobic plate count for environmental swabs?

for both food contact and noncontact sites?

 

 

thanks

http://www.ifsqn.com...ces/#entry60958

thank you charles

I would recommend a focus on a stronger indicator species, such as Enterobacteriaceae. A focus on APC in a cheese making facility could be troublesome considering starter cultures.

I would recommend a focus on a stronger indicator species, such as Enterobacteriaceae. A focus on APC in a cheese making facility could be troublesome considering starter cultures.

Hopefully an appropriate cleaning/sanitizing program should cope ?

I would recommend a focus on a stronger indicator species, such as Enterobacteriaceae. A focus on APC in a cheese making facility could be troublesome considering starter cultures.

I was about to say the same.  Also while I have seen factories swab for Enteros or even TVC on non food contact surfaces like floors, I seriously question the value add of that activity.

Hopefully an appropriate cleaning/sanitizing program should cope ?

Unlikely.  Also you have to remember in cheese making there is a certain art as well as science (depending on the type of cheese).  If you went for a completely microbiologically sterile environment for some cheeses you would completely destroy their character.  It's a balance.  Also in many high care and high risk facilities you are not handling ingredients day in day out with the vast counts of starter bacteria that you have within cheese. 

Enteros give a better idea of whether there is a problem.  Having worked in cheese on and off for many years, I'd still go for enteros.  Occasionally we used TVC to validate our cleaning methods (as you knew it would be there in spades in the "pre" swabs then get a good idea of what the log reduction was) but to expect a sanitation programme to always deliver the kind of reductions you would need to never have counts?  It's going to lead to a lot of chasing your tail.

Thank you GMO

Unlikely.  Also you have to remember in cheese making there is a certain art as well as science (depending on the type of cheese).  If you went for a completely microbiologically sterile environment for some cheeses you would completely destroy their character.  It's a balance.  Also in many high care and high risk facilities you are not handling ingredients day in day out with the vast counts of starter bacteria that you have within cheese. 

 

Enteros give a better idea of whether there is a problem.  Having worked in cheese on and off for many years, I'd still go for enteros.  Occasionally we used TVC to validate our cleaning methods (as you knew it would be there in spades in the "pre" swabs then get a good idea of what the log reduction was) but to expect a sanitation programme to always deliver the kind of reductions you would need to never have counts?  It's going to lead to a lot of chasing your tail.

Hi GMO,

I don't think sterility was being envisaged. I was referring to (surface) expectations such as in Post 6. But yr comment may still be correct (see 2nd attachment).

For comparitive purposes, I attach 2 detailed publications containing (a) a development of a basic methodology of hygiene assessment of food contact surfaces as in a meat process, (b) an implementation of (a)'s methodology for a number of producers of pasteurized milk, yoghurt, ice-cream and cheese.

microbial assessment scheme for FSMS.pdf   952.28KB   110 downloads

microbial performance dairy processing plants.pdf   773.29KB   60 downloads

There may be some European preference for Enterobacteriaceae although, even there, APC still seems to be "in play", inter alia.

Hygiene_indicators_Food_Microbiology_2014.pdf   220.89KB   108 downloads

Nestle microbiological-specifications.pdf   911.91KB   118 downloads