14 replies to this topic

[Dakis]

Hi there everyone.

My question is this: Must be the cool storage of fruits and vegetables a CCP, from the moment that the final product (jams) is cooked and finally pasteurised subsequently?
Thanks in advance.

Edited by Charles.C, 07 March 2023 - 05:54 PM.
title edited again

[RyH]

Does the cooling time/temp or storage conditions have an effect on the safety of the final product?

Edited by RyH, 06 March 2023 - 09:04 AM.

[Evans X.]

Hello Dakis,

 

Many storage and distribution companies are treating these products (as they come from the field) as OPrP. Especially fruits with the hard exterior (oranges, lemons etc) can often be found stored in environmental conditions.

Even in S/M you can see whole, uncut fruits and vegetables stored in ambient condtions or open refrigerators at 6-10^oC. The main point especially in vegetables is that cold slows down the enzymatic blackening, which is a quality issue and not safety (within logical time limits of course).

 

Regards!

[Madam A. D-tor]

I do not often see this as a CCP.
But ..... whether a process (including storage and distribution) is a CCP/ OPRP/ CP or general control measure, will come from your hazard analysis and risk assessment. If you are asking this question, your method of risk assessment is not logical, because you are questioning the outcome.

The question is: is there a food safety hazard in this process?

[Dakis]

Thank you all, people.

[Dakis]

I do not often see this as a CCP.
But ..... whether a process (including storage and distribution) is a CCP/ OPRP/ CP or general control measure, will come from your hazard analysis and risk assessment. If you are asking this question, your method of risk assessment is not logical, because you are questioning the outcome.

The question is: is there a food safety hazard in this process?

Exactly! So is there anything regarding fruits and vegetables that could produce an irreversible condition, e.g. a toxin or something like that, if a fridge was out of control?

[Charles.C]

Hi there everyone.

My question is this: Must be the cool storage of fruits and vegetables a CCP, from the moment that the final product (jams) is cooked and finally pasteurised subsequently?
Thanks in advance.

Hi Dakis,

 

Process is somewhat unspecified. Typical Jam ?

 

Assuming this is in an appropriate, sealed, container, Is the final product not shelf-stable at ambient temperature within its designated shelf life of, say, 12 months?

 

Compare (ex Google) -
 

 

If you're making fruit jam at home and skipping the canning process, what is often called quick jam or freezer jam, store in the fridge or freezer to preserve, and be aware that it should be consumed within 10 days if refrigerated and 3 months if frozen

[Evans X.]

Greetings Charles C.. The editing of the title may be off. I think Dakis is talking about the storage of raw materials (fruits and vegetables) that are used in the production of jam and not jam itself.

 

Due to its high sugar content the only microorganism that could be affecting the end product and can derive from the raw materials could be molds (not even yeasts). But then again cold storage will only put the mold in hibernation (spore formation mode on !!!), so still not really a CCP. And the jam is made by peeling the fruits etc so there is a really really minimal chance for the inside to have been affected by molds.

The real CCP would be the pasteurization.

My opinion is that raw materials storage is OPrP or CP. You do need some control over it to prevent molds from growing uncontrollably (lets not have a Last of Us incident! - no attempt at advertising here) or enymatic blackening (which deteriorates flavor, smell, appearance), but not so strict.

 

I do have to say that if the mentioned scenario about fridge breaking down becomes real, then you would have to test for mycotoxins if there is a visible high growth of molds. That's when they may start producing toxins, most of which by the way are destroyed in high temperatures, but do it anyway just to be safe.

By visible high growth I mean that you can actually see the hyphae.

 

As a sidenote, not home-made jam has to be shelf-stable in ambient temperature. I have never seen large scale production jam being stored in cold conditions during selling (some excemptions may apply of course).

[RyH]

Greetings Charles C.. The editing of the title may be off. I think Dakis is talking about the storage of raw materials (fruits and vegetables) that are used in the production of jam and not jam itself.

 

Due to its high sugar content the only microorganism that could be affecting the end product and can derive from the raw materials could be molds (not even yeasts). But then again cold storage will only put the mold in hibernation (spore formation mode on !!!), so still not really a CCP. And the jam is made by peeling the fruits etc so there is a really really minimal chance for the inside to have been affected by molds.

The real CCP would be the pasteurization.

My opinion is that raw materials storage is OPrP or CP. You do need some control over it to prevent molds from growing uncontrollably (lets not have a Last of Us incident! - no attempt at advertising here) or enymatic blackening (which deteriorates flavor, smell, appearance), but not so strict.

 

I do have to say that if the mentioned scenario about fridge breaking down becomes real, then you would have to test for mycotoxins if there is a visible high growth of molds. That's when they may start producing toxins, most of which by the way are destroyed in high temperatures, but do it anyway just to be safe.

By visible high growth I mean that you can actually see the hyphae.

 

As a sidenote, not home-made jam has to be shelf-stable in ambient temperature. I have never seen large scale production jam being stored in cold conditions during selling (some excemptions may apply of course).

With the limited info available I'd be inclined to agree. Pasteurisation would likely remove most risks but depends on the nuances of the material/environment.

[Charles.C]

Hi EvansX.,

 

Thks for comments.

TBH I found the OP textually challenging. Hopefully the OP will eventually clarify.

For caution I have added a 2nd ?.

 

PS - If the query context is as per yr Post8 and the Standard is, for example, FSSC22000, the step would seem to be covered within the PRP/Warehousing of 22002-1.

[Dakis]

Greetings Charles C.. The editing of the title may be off. I think Dakis is talking about the storage of raw materials (fruits and vegetables) that are used in the production of jam and not jam itself.
 
Due to its high sugar content the only microorganism that could be affecting the end product and can derive from the raw materials could be molds (not even yeasts). But then again cold storage will only put the mold in hibernation (spore formation mode on !!!), so still not really a CCP. And the jam is made by peeling the fruits etc so there is a really really minimal chance for the inside to have been affected by molds.
The real CCP would be the pasteurization.
My opinion is that raw materials storage is OPrP or CP. You do need some control over it to prevent molds from growing uncontrollably (lets not have a Last of Us incident! - no attempt at advertising here) or enymatic blackening (which deteriorates flavor, smell, appearance), but not so strict.
 
I do have to say that if the mentioned scenario about fridge breaking down becomes real, then you would have to test for mycotoxins if there is a visible high growth of molds. That's when they may start producing toxins, most of which by the way are destroyed in high temperatures, but do it anyway just to be safe.
By visible high growth I mean that you can actually see the hyphae.
 
As a sidenote, not home-made jam has to be shelf-stable in ambient temperature. I have never seen large scale production jam being stored in cold conditions during selling (some excemptions may apply of course).

Hi Evans X. Yes, this is exactly what I meant. Cool storage of raw materials and not final products. Is there any chance of mycotoxins growth or other hazardous microorganism substances that cannot be totally eliminated afterwards? Apart from that, can you tell me: is there any fruit or vegetable that, if not storaged properly, would produce hazardous material apart from milds or yeasts.

I hope I m conprehensible

[Charles.C]

Hi Evans X. Yes, this is exactly what I meant. Cool storage of raw materials and not final products. Is there any chance of mycotoxins growth or other hazardous microorganism substances that cannot be totally eliminated afterwards? Apart from that, can you tell me: is there any fruit or vegetable that, if not storaged properly, would produce hazardous material apart from milds or yeasts.

I hope I m conprehensible

Hi Dakis,

 

Thanks your clarification.

 

Based on Post 10, the answer afaik to yr OP may be NO but possibly depending on what HACCP Standard is involved (if any).

[Evans X.]

Hi Dakis,

 

Mycotoxins may be the result of uncontrollable growth of molds (meaning the mycelium will start turning to greenish coloration which also means that it will have affected the inside of a fruit, making it softer and more juicy-like), so unless you have that, then there is no need to test for toxins. Also I guess that if this happens, then you will propably discard the affected raw materials anyway.

Leaving aside chemical hazards like pesticides, there is no other significant microbial hazards that can't be handled with pasteurization, especially if the GMP is on a good level (like peeling, cutting, pulping processes etc).

Having said that and moving on the final product you should test it from time to time according to a sampling plan for the basic hygiene indicators and pathogens (E. coli, Salmonella spp, Listeria monocytogenes and Molds-Yeasts) at the very least to verify your pasteurization is working as intended!

[SHQuality]

Hi Dakis,

 

Mycotoxins may be the result of uncontrollable growth of molds (meaning the mycelium will start turning to greenish coloration which also means that it will have affected the inside of a fruit, making it softer and more juicy-like), so unless you have that, then there is no need to test for toxins. Also I guess that if this happens, then you will propably discard the affected raw materials anyway.

 

I would expect patulin in apple products to be measured to comply with EUR-Lex - 32006R1881 - NL - EUR-Lex (europa.eu)

It is quite easy for the level of mycotoxins in a product to be too high without any obvious discoloration, on top of that, if you purchase/sell the product in bulk, you can't really guarantee the absence of mycotoxins without testing, as the toxins could have formed BEFORE the yeast/moulds were killed off in the pasteurization step.

[Evans X.]

The mycotoxins will begin forming at the end of the lag phase - beginning of log phase (exponential growth), so there will be at least some visible hyphae which will lead to further analysis.

Moreover taking into account that the spores in general (excemptions apply) need 24-48 hours to exit lag phase under optimal environmental conditions, it means that the company must have not realised the fridge is out of order for at least 2 days, because the fridges are able to keep the temperature for at least 4 hours before it starts rising and newer insulation technologies can up the time to 8 or 12 hours.

All-in-all there are quite a few telltale things that will give you signs something has gone wrong and you have quite some time before the product may become unsafe.

Point is you do have to periodically test your products according to EC2073/2005 and 1881/2006, but not every purchase. Personally I am not fond of testing bulk products when yeasts/molds/toxins are concerned cause even if you take 100 or 500 pieces from a 1 ton order, there is still a big chance you might miss it. I prefer other parameters that may point me to the problem (temp, moisture, eye inspection etc).

In the end if you do find mycotoxins it is better to resample and retest with the possible option for a third time and discard of the raw material being on the table. 

Edited by Evans X., 08 March 2023 - 11:42 AM.