Does MAP gas need to be a gas mixture
Just curious if MAP on Deli Meat would be acceptable to only use Nitrogen instead of a Nitrogen CO2 mixture. I cannot find any regulatory guidance on this, and I am unable to find a COA for the mixture that is Food Grade, but I can get them both individually with a COA. The gas company suggested only to use the Nitrogen, but I am not sure if the food safety or quality may be compromised if i made the swap.
Thank you in advance for any information or documentation as it relates to this question.
I think I would stick with the recommendation of the gas company.
Considering that the CO2 version is primarily intended for beverages.
One is highly water soluble and the other is low.
It depends on the item being packaged.
I have worked in the cheese packing business and we used a mixture of Nitrogen and CO2 on some lines and the cheese absorbed the CO2 and so the pack snug/shrunk down over a few days to give a neater pack, but on grated it was 100% nitrogen as it wasn't absorbed and so the pack kept is shape and didn't squash the grated cheese.
For the mixture we had separate supplies of nitrogen and CO2 and used dansensor mixer units to adjust the ratio into the pack
In my opinion, both Nitrogen and CO2 would be food safe as they are both classes as inert in terms of effect on food.
Just curious if MAP on Deli Meat would be acceptable to only use Nitrogen instead of a Nitrogen CO2 mixture. I cannot find any regulatory guidance on this, and I am unable to find a COA for the mixture that is Food Grade, but I can get them both individually with a COA. The gas company suggested only to use the Nitrogen, but I am not sure if the food safety or quality may be compromised if i made the swap.
Thank you in advance for any information or documentation as it relates to this question.
Hi dsarapin,
I suggest you study the functions of N2 and CO2 in the usual mixture. There is a lot of science involved regarding their respective presences/ product interactions..
You will have to buy the gases separately and mix them. Make sure you get a good gas meter to check the mix. Make sure the gas meter checks for CO levels as well. CO is regulated by the USDA and has a maximum allowable amount in the MAP packaging. In the southeast U S, Nitrogen can at times be in short supply and expensive.
As one reply stated, it depends on the product and what you are trying to achieve. Example, CO2 helps meat retain color, besides helping with shelf life.