Shelf Life Extension
Dear All,
I am working in a frozen food industry. We are manufacturing breakfast items & snack. We have a stock of porotta (Flat bread - South Indian Dish) with us. Which is about pass the use by date. We have conducted sensory analysis of the product ( after thawing & re-heating) & found to be satisfactory. It matches to bench mark sample. We have planned to send the sample for micro analysis of the said batch.
My question is if the test results are ok, is it safe to use the product & how much date further we can give to the product.
NB: The end use will be with some curry after proper re-heating. The photo of the product attached for reference. The product ingredients are the following
ingredients: Refined wheat flour, Egg, water, refined vegetable oil, vegetable ghee, salt, sugar
how was the current use by date set? Based on sensory and micro or just sensory
since this is a frozen product, I'm assuming your main concern is quality degradation not safety
How much further is subjective-----you'd have to run an in house series of sampling and testing in order to determine that
not all oils react the same under long term freezer storage
how was the current use by date set? Based on sensory and micro or just sensory
since this is a frozen product, I'm assuming your main concern is quality degradation not safety
How much further is subjective-----you'd have to run an in house series of sampling and testing in order to determine that
not all oils react the same under long term freezer storage
Thanks for the reply.
current use by date is 2 years. We have concerns for both ( quality & safety). We don't want our customer feels bad after buying our product. It came to QA suggestion, since there is some quantity, and if the company can save it, It will be some amount. So they asked QA suggestion, whether to use or not.
when your micro comes back, and if it's satisfactory-----i would offer this product (at a reduced price) while being upfront with customers as to the dating issue
if they won't buy it, at least you've done the right thing
to just ship it to regular customers charging regular price isn't ethical
Dear All,
I am working in a frozen food industry. We are manufacturing breakfast items & snack. We have a stock of porotta (Flat bread - South Indian Dish) with us. Which is about pass the use by date. We have conducted sensory analysis of the product ( after thawing & re-heating) & found to be satisfactory. It matches to bench mark sample. We have planned to send the sample for micro analysis of the said batch.
My question is if the test results are ok, is it safe to use the product & how much date further we can give to the product.
NB: The end use will be with some curry after proper re-heating. The photo of the product attached for reference. The product ingredients are the following
ingredients: Refined wheat flour, Egg, water, refined vegetable oil, vegetable ghee, salt, sugar
Not in India but sounds potentially illegal. Especially if already packed/labelled.
You might consider export since I believe some Countries specifically permit certain products to be sold after expiration of Use By date.
I know companies in Europe who do something similar sometimes with non-perishables, frozen foods and wheels of cheese.
There are also stores were you can but discounted out-of-date products.
As long as you are not selling it as something better than it should be (be up front about it, don't put a new use-by label over the old one), it is sensory ok, safety is ok. Than it is an option you could go for if your countries law also allows it.
Do document all your testing.
And keep in mind since you are extending it's shelf life, you are also responsible for the safety/properties of the entire product.
You cannot fall back on the producer if any fault comes to the product.
I know companies in Europe who do something similar sometimes with non-perishables, frozen foods and wheels of cheese.
There are also stores were you can but discounted out-of-date products.
As long as you are not selling it as something better than it should be (be up front about it, don't put a new use-by label over the old one), it is sensory ok, safety is ok. Than it is an option you could go for if your countries law also allows it.
Do document all your testing.
And keep in mind since you are extending it's shelf life, you are also responsible for the safety/properties of the entire product.
You cannot fall back on the producer if any fault comes to the product.
Hi Marloes,
I accept that different locations may have different viewpoints on food "safety" (and acceptable quality ?) plus there is an undeniable problem concerning large volumes of "good' food being wasted due to being solely out-of-date but it is perhaps equally important to question the validation of the initial, designated, shelf life and any proposed extension. (I am curious as to the specific quality/safety criteria proposed to justify the extension of "Y" months additional to "X" ?. Do Regulatory issues exist ? [Sawad?]).
IMEX the ^^^(red) activity would simply be an illegal act regardless of any Quality/Safety issues. Container loads have been detained for "disposal" in the EU due such "adjustments".
If the product meets the specification and passes sensory and micro evaluations, there is no reason you cannot use it. Document your findings and extend the shelf life for a short period of time. Re-evaluate at a defined frequency of say 1-3 months.