The European Commission has adopted a package of measures to strengthen the enforcement of health and safety standards for the whole agri-food chain. Food safety is essential to ensure consumers’ confidence and sustainability of food production.

The package of measures provide a modernised and simplified, more risked-based approach to the protection of health and more efficient control tools to ensure the effective application of the rules guiding the operation of the food chain.

The package responds to the call for better simplification of legislation and smarter regulation thus reducing administrative burden for operators and simplifying the regulatory environment. Special consideration is given to the impact of this legislation on SMEs and micro enterprises which are exempted from the most costly and burdensome elements in the legislation.

The current body of EU legislation covering the food chain consists of almost 70 pieces of legislation. The new package of reform will cut this down to 5 pieces of legislation and will also reduce the red-tape on processes and procedures for farmers, breeders and food business operators (producers, processors and distributors) to make it easier for them to carry out their profession.

Tonio Borg, Health and Consumer Commissioner, says: “The agri-food industry is the second largest economic sector in the EU, employing over 48 million people and is worth some €750 billion a year.Europehas the highest food safety standards in the world. However, the recent horsemeat scandal has shown that there is room for improvement, even if no health risk emerged.” He adds: “In a nutshell, the package aims to provide smarter rules for safer food.”

Businesses will benefit from simpler, science and risk-based rules in terms of reduced administrative burden, more efficient processes and measures to finance and strengthen the control and eradication of animal diseases and plant pests. Consumers will benefit from safer products and a more effective and more transparent system of controls along the chain.

Official Controls

The Commission has recognised the need to strengthen the instruments available to the competent authorities in the Member States to check compliance with EU legislation on the ground (through controls, inspections and tests).

Recent food scandals have shown once more the need for more effective action on the part of enforcement authorities to protect consumers and honest operators alike from the risks (also in economic terms) which may arise from breaches of the rules along the chain.

The new rules follow a more risk based approach thus allowing competent authorities to focus their resources on the more relevant issues.

The current system of fees to finance the effective implementation of these controls within a sustainable system along the whole chain will be extended to other sectors within the chain which are currently not charged.

Microenterprises will be exempted from such fees, but not from controls, in order not to affect their competitiveness.

Member States will also be asked to fully integrate anti-fraud checks into their national control plans and to ensure that financial penalties in these cases are set at truly dissuasive amounts.

Other EU institutions, including the European Parliament and the Council will consider the Commission’s package of measures and will adopt their positions in due course. At this stage, it can be estimated that the package will enter into force in 2016.

Award-winning ice cream producer Cheshire Farm continues to invest in its modern factory with the recent installation of a metal detector and conveyor system from Lock Inspection Systems. The family-run business produces over 2,000 litres of ice cream per hour, in more than 30 different flavours and a range of tub sizes from 110 ml to 5 litres. The chosen end-of-line Lock system, which replaces an outdated metal detector, meets the challenges of this very specific manufacturing environment.

“Accurate inspection of ice cream can be difficult because the conductive signal varies according to the temperature of the product – even slight changes during production will make a difference. With temperatures of around -6˚C at inspection, any unexpected rise or fall in ambient temperature may change the temperature of the ice cream and alter the conductive signal that it generates.   Our sophisticated technology can track these fluctuations and make the necessary fine adjustments to ensure a consistently high level of contaminant sensitivity,” explains Rob Gray, UK sales at Lock Inspection Systems. 

Installed to inspect the filled tubs, the Lock metal detector and conveyor system also benefits from user-friendly data software which can store and recall over 100 product settings; allowing it to efficiently adapt to the range of different sizes.

“We needed to update our detection system and chose Lock’s bespoke system based on its reputation for outstanding performance, reliability and understanding of specific manufacturing issues. It’s now a key part of our factory,” comments Graeme Fell, production manager at Cheshire Farm.

Cheshire Farm’s Real Dairy Ice Cream is made using fresh whole milk and cream which is produced on the farm.  Established in 1986, the business was developed as a way to create added value from the milk produced in excess of the farm’s quota restriction. Its award-winning ice cream is now supplied to over 900 pubs, restaurants, hotels and retail outlets across the north-west of England. For further information visit www.lockinspection.com.

Paramount 21, a South-Devon family owned frozen food manufacturer, has installed an end of line Loma IQ3 Metal Detector to reliably inspect a challenging new seafood product.

Inspection of the new product, large 10kg boxes of frozen seafood, needed to meet all food safety standards, HACCP requirements and Paramount’s high quality expectations. A renowned name in the seafood market and respected brand in the foodservice and retail industries, quality is closely monitored at every stage ofParamount’s production process from raw materials through to dispatch. Paramount Production Engineer, Gary Dark explains: “A new Paramount customer required the highest specification from our metal detector ensuring identification of very small contaminants from a large box of seafood.”

Reliably inspecting a large box for foreign contaminants in a harsh environment where products are frozen to temperatures as low as -20°C was challenging. Frozen products are well known to cause reading abnormalities on any metal detector and have been traditionally difficult to inspect due to h igh product effect.

In response to the challenges, Loma Systems specified an IQ3 end of line metal detector system with a 450x450mm aperture tunnel to easily handle large boxes. Manufactured to IP69K, built in robust stainless steel the system ensures long, reliable performance and exceeds any harsh environment cleaning specification with enhanced protection for high or low temperature washdown.

Most importantly, the IQ3 offers leading sensitivities so that product integrity is not compromised. Its Automatic Variable Frequency feature enables operators to identify the point at which product effect is minimal but contaminant detection is at its strongest.

Gary Dark comments: “I installed the machine myself with no problems and it was quickly up and running.” The system has a frequency operation range from 40-900kHz and has the ability to select the ‘correct’ operating frequency in seconds, eliminating past restrictions caused by single frequency and ‘limited frequency’ detectors; a key benefit for manufacturers with challenging applications such as Paramount’s.

Gary Dark continues: “It is important to us that we minimise the risk of any possible contaminants getting into our products. However, with our quality inspection equipment we can have complete peace of mind that our food is safe.”

At the Devon site,Paramount uses a Loma 6000 Combination Checkweigher and Metal Detector system, which was purchased nearly seven years ago. The reliability of the equipment and Loma’s dependable maintenance service meant thatParamounthad no concerns choosing another machine from Loma. “I was impressed with Loma Systems – the IQ3 system was custom-built, and delivered before time and on budget,” concludes Gary Dark.

With its extensive portfolio of complementary weighing and inspection technologies, and its strong focus on the needs of the Food Industry, Loma is uniquely resourced to provide systems that not only meet the specific quality assurance needs of its customers today, but offer realistic potential for expansion or enhancement to meet the changing needs of tomorrow. For further information visit www.loma.com.

Produce World, one of the largest expert growers and suppliers of high quality fresh vegetables in Europe, continues to lead the industry with the installation a new carrot grading machine that will improve quality control. Working in conjunction with Newtec, the company which provided the grader, Produce World Yaxley will use the machine to replace on-the-line manual grading.

Raw material, labour, and energy costs are all rising and Produce World has invested in the new carrot grading machine to help offset these rises through process improvements.

The machine uses cameras to detect defects and takes up to 40 photos of each carrot.  The machine takes the images and flattens them out to look for the defect then decides whether the carrot is within the tolerances set.  If it is good it passes through the machine, if it is out of specification the machine rejects the carrot.  The whole process for each carrot takes around one second.

The machine grades approximately 80,000 carrots every hour, taking into account length, shape and colour, and it can detect 10 different quality defects. Jamie Tointon, Factory Manager for Produce World Yaxley, says: “We have a continuous improvement culture and have up to 20 projects on the go at any one time, all of which bring benefits to the business.  The machine installation shows our customers that we are committed to improving the business by putting processes in place that will ensure quality continues to be of the highest standard.”

The DuPont BAX System assay for detecting Salmonella  has been recognized AOAC International as an Official Method of Analysis (OMA) 2013.03.

The BAX System is a molecular-based method that uses polymerase chain reaction (PCR) technology and real-time detection to deliver quick, accurate results, according tothe manufacturer. The test is suitable for detecting Salmonella contamination in a range of food types, such as meat, seafood, poultry, eggs, dairy goods and infant formulas.

“With this latest approval, our entire portfolio of BAX System Salmonella assays is OMA-approved,” said Doris Engesser-Sudlow, global diagnostics leader for DuPont Nutrition and Health. She added that the approval of all the company’s testing products can help food processing firms ensure the security and safety of their products.

Labcell is adding the Atago Pen Pro dip-style digital refractometer to its range of instrumentation for the food and drink industries. This high-quality, fast and accurate instrument is believed to be unique in that it can be dipped into vessels without product samples having to be removed for testing. In non-homogeneous products, the mix can be stirred with the ‘pen’ refractometer until the reading stabilises on the integral display.

Very easy to use, the Pen Pro refractometer generates readings in around 2 seconds and, because readings are continuous, any inhomogeneity can be readily identified. The measurement range is 0.0 to 85.0% Brix with an accuracy of +/-0.2%. Temperature-compensated Brix measurements can be made in any liquids, sauces or pastes with temperatures of 10-100 degrees C.

Because the entire instrument is waterproof, it can be simply rinsed under the tap before the next reading is taken. A further useful feature is the patent-pending ELI (External Light Interference) technology that provides a simple warning if ambient light might interfere with the reading – in which case, the instrument can simply be shielded by hand.

The Atago Pen Pro digital refractometer is available for rapid delivery from Labcell, complete with a calibration certificate if requested. A data sheet can be downloaded directly from the Labcell website at www.labcell.com or contact the company with specific enquiries by telephone on +44 (0)1420 568150 or email mail@labcell.com.

The possibility of a ‘Trojan Horse Effect’ of nanomaterials (NMs) needs more research, according to a study identifying knowledge gaps in the risk assessment of the substance.

The call for research into the safety implications of aggregation and agglomeration details that nanoscale entities may be loosely attached to bigger agglomerates and therefore may not be detected by the measurement devices in the size range below 100nm.

The aggregation of nanomaterials was just one area identified in apparent knowledge gaps despite ever-growing interest from industry.

The authors highlighted that all parties involved in NMs production should re-evaluate traditional methods and metrics in relation to nanoscale entities exposure and an ongoing review of all workplace particulate protection equipment.

They also called for better characterisation of NMs at production, and approaches that integrate rather than separate exposure and toxicity for realistic modelling.

Regulatory action

Hunt et al said regulatory bodies should encourage an industrial and innovation approach feeding mid and endof-life information into start-of life (design) plans to close the life cycle of NMs.

A report identified a lack of coherent, consistent and well-founded data, the need for realistic exposure scenarios, better established dose–response relationships, improved extrapolation from in vitro to in vivo, and the identification of relevant assessment parameters, detailed the study.

Hunt et al wrote that in particular, there is a need to:

• understand the dynamics of biological-nanomaterial interfaces. This includes, in the determination of NM fate and behaviour, the role and importance of the corona of biomolecules that tends to form around NMs in contact with environmental or biological fluids;
• to embark on long-term and repeated low dose studies; and
• to gather information about NM stability and reactivity and transformation throughout the NM lifecycle

General processes and areas of possible release of nanoscale entities and NMs are: the production process; the handling, packaging, use and misuse of such materials; the ageing processes of NMs; and end-of-life activities such as recycling and disposal.

What is a nanomaterial?

For regulatory and scientific purposes, the EC definition of “nanomaterial” will hopefully be the first step, in generating harmonisation initiatives needed in nanotechnology development.

The Commission’s definition states that: “Nanomaterial means a natural, incidental or manufactured material containing particles, in an unbound state or as an aggregate or as an agglomerate and where, for 50% or more of the particles in the number size distribution, one or more external dimensions is in the size range 1 nm – 100 nm.

“In specific cases and where warranted by concerns for the environment, health, safety or competitiveness the number size distribution threshold of 50% may be replaced by a threshold between 1 and 50%.

“By derogation from the above, fullerenes, graphene flakes and single wall carbon nanotubes with one or more external dimensions below 1nm should be considered as nanomaterials.”

The paper was based on the final scientific report for the EU project NanoImpactNet which concluded last year.

The UK Food Standards Agency (FSA) has agreed to an external review in response to the adulteration of processed beef products with horse and pig meat and DNA. 

The findings of the review will be presented to the Board at its open meeting on 4 June with a formal report to be submitted to the FSA by the end of June for publication which will feed into a larger Government review.

The review will be headed by Professor Pat Troop, vice chair of Cambridge University hospitals, with a secretariat provided by the FSA.

Unrestricted access

“The reviewer will have unrestricted access to all documents, emails and other records held by the FSA relevant to the scope of the review,” said the agency.

“The reviewer will also have access to FSA Board members and officials, and the secretariat will aim to secure access to any external people or organisations with views or information relevant to the scope of the review.”

The European Commission published tests results on horse DNA and phenylbutazone (bute) this week as part of testing costing an estimated €2.5m.

Less than 5% of testing products contained horse meat and 0.5% were found to be contaminated with bute, according to the figures from 11 February to 4 April.

HACCP: Flouted or failed?

Meanwhile, a UK firm that supplies food grade oils has questioned whether the hazard control points process has failed or whether it was flouted in the scandal.

Hazard Analysis Critical Control Points (HACCP) regulations plays a role in the use of food grade heat transfer fluid (HTF), sold by Global Heat Transfer.

“HACCP is a recognised way of making sure that the food safety hazards in your business are being managed responsibly, and of showing that this is being done day-in, day-out,” said Dr Chris Wright, group head of R&D at Global Heat Transfer.

“It is a management system in which food safety is addressed through the analysis and control of biological,  chemical, and physical hazards from raw material production, procurement and handling, to manufacturing, distribution and consumption of the finished product.

“We have yet to establish whether the HACCP process was ignored or whether the process itself failed. According to European Community Food Hygiene Regulations, HACCP is a tool to assess hazards and establish control systems that focus on prevention rather than relying mainly on end-product testing.

“However, it was this very end-product testing that exposed the abuse. The question is, did HACCP itself fail or was it deliberately flouted by the food supply chain.”

The International Bottled Water Assn. (IBWA), in time for upcoming Earth Day celebrations, is promoting bottled water as an eco-friendly product.

Chris Hogan, vice president of communications for the organization, points at the strides water companies are making in reducing use of plastic in their packaging, and increased consumer recycling rates, as evidence that the industry is unfairly maligned for being environmentally harmful.

“IBWA demonstrates a ‘Face of Positive Change’ through its numerous environmental impact-reduction efforts,” Hogan said. “The bottled water industry is taking a broad-based approach to reducing its environmental
footprint.”

Sustainability evidence

A study from the National Association for PET Container Resources (NAPCOR) shows PET plastic bottled water containers are the most frequently recycled item in U.S. curbside collection programs.

Further, NAPCOR says the recycling rate for single-serve PET plastic bottled water containers stands at nearly 39 percent, more than double where it was seven years ago.

Battles over bottles

Meanwhile, municipalities are playing tug of war over bottled water, with several cities and towns mulling bans of the packages. Concord, MA passed a measure earlier this month barring the sale of personal-size water bottles
within the town’s borders. In late March, president of San Francisco’s board of supervisors David Chiu announced he intends to introduce legislation banning bottled water in that city

German consumers’ are willing to pay more for bright red coloured ground beef even when told it results from treatment with carbon monoxide in modified atmosphere packaging (CO-MAP), according to a study.

The researchers studied the consumers’ willingness to pay (WTP) based on shelf life and meat colour in Germany and the US, said Grebitus et al.

Modified atmosphere packaging (MAP) extends the shelf life of fresh meat and, with the inclusion of carbon monoxide (CO), stabilizes colour.

MAP that includes CO is allowed only in the US and the researchers speculated the results may be because German people were less aware of past issues around the use of CO in packaging so, once they understood how it worked, where more keen to adopt its use.

In Germany, compliance with EU regulation states that the use of MAP be labelled on the package but in the US only the product ‘use-by date’ is required.

Germany is considered to have the lowest consumer trust level in the EU so it was best to start there as if it was rejected it there, they probably would everywhere else, said the researchers.

Consumer preferences

Consumers in both countries have clear preferences for cherry red meat colour. However, providing information on the use of carbon monoxide in the packaging decreases US consumers’ willingness to pay and increases some German consumers’ WTP.

German consumers were willing to pay a €3.75 premium for cherry red colour in ground beef and US consumers were willing to pay €0.69.

The provision of information on MAP and  CO-MAP had different effects as it increased the WTP for shelf life for US consumers while not affecting the WTP for shelf life for German consumers.

“If it is presented and the colour is appealing, then they will buy it. If it is too hard to understand, they could take home too much information and it scares them away,” said Grebitus.

“In Germany it was the first time many had heard of it but in the US there have been debates. People have negative associations [with CO] so we need to inform them.”

More consumer studies are needed on CO and willingness to pay looking at the motives, attitudes and perceptions to provide evidence that the technology is a good one to use, she added.

Before treatment one, participants were provided with no information, verbal information was provided about meat shelf life and focusing on the role of MAP in extending product shelf life before treatment two and before the final treatment verbal information about the role of CO in stabilizing colour was provided.

CO debate

In the US, the use of CO in consumer-ready fresh meat packaging (as CO-MAP) was approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in 2002, but since then the safety has been a constant issue.

Consumer groups are concerned that the colour-preserving quality of CO leads to opportunity for fraud and COMAP might be used to conceal colour changes of spoiled meat.

The product used in the study was pre-packaged ground beef (1lb) in white plastic trays wrapped in transparent film.

Because CO-MAP is not allowed in Europe the team used pictures of the real products used in the US experiments.

It was presented to consumers in nine choice scenarios and participants selected their most preferred option or they chose none of the presented alternatives before moving onto the next choice scenario.

“This study provides evidence, at least for Germany, that some consumers would prefer to have a choice of food packaged under a modified atmosphere including carbon monoxide,” the researchers concluded.

Baker, LA-based Manda Packing Co. is recalling 468,000 lbs. of roast beef, ham, turkey breast, head cheese, and other products meats due to Listeria monocytogenes concerns.

Each package of meat, which is sold under dozens of brands (including Manda’s own label) bears “Sell by” dates ranging from May 13 to July 2 and bears the establishment number “EST. 8746A” inside the USDA mark of inspection.

Contamination test

The U.S. Dept. of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) first heard of the contamination risk after a field test.

“FSIS was alerted to the problem by the Tennessee Department of Agriculture, who took an intact sample of cooked roast beef at a retail establishment on April 5, 2013, which later confirmed positive for Listeria monocytogenes,” reported Lilia McFarland, a representative from the FSIS’s Office of Public Affairs and Consumer Education.

McFarland stated that the recall is now being expanded because of an additional sample from another production date tested positive for Listeria monocytogenes. She added that this recall is the first contamination incident on record for Manda Packing.

No illness to date

To date, neither FSIS nor Manda Packing Co. has received word of illnesses associated with these contaminated meats.

While representatives from Packing Co. could not be reached for comment, CEO Bobby Yarborough has responded with a letter on the company’s home page expressing concern about the situation.

“We are conducting a thorough investigation of this event and implementing corrective steps to make sure we never experience this again,” he wrote. “We will do the right thing.”

The Synus® from Sartorius combines flexibility and precision to offer the perfect checkweighing solution for areas where space is at a premium.

The Sine wave or Sinusoid is a smooth, repetitive, oscillating curve. Well known in mathematics, a Sine curve is most often seen in ocean waves, sound waves, light waves and now one additional area – checkweighing. The Synus® from Sartorius gets its name from the famous mathematical graph because of the unique wave structure of the stainless steel housing. This new design allows the conveyor to offer flexible, friction locked connections to adjacent systems, letting the Synus® effortlessly integrate alongside any pre-existing infrastructure.

Sartorius products are renowned for their longevity, and the Synus® is no different. The flexibility of the conveyor system allows users to rest assured that the system will be able to evolve to suit any changes in their production procedures. The cantilevered weighing and transport system makes it incredibly easy to replace both belts and weighing tables.

Modular Solution

The speed with which operators can alter the system mechanics is thanks to the “Quick-release” mechanism of the transport belt. This modular solution is available with three different electronic systems and 18 weighing systems (1, 2, 5, 7 kg) allowing the Synus® to support all customer requirements, regardless of how unique their process is. On top of this, the checkweigher is equipped with Sartorius’ Electromagnetic Force Compensation (EMC) weigh cells. These cells have been specifically designed for use in dynamic checkweighers and offer perfect stability, exceptional precision, stabilisation times and rugged industrial grade construction (IP54/IP65)

As the perfect partner to the food and pharmaceutical industries, the Synus® offers a system designed and optimized for the easy maintenance of strict hygiene levels. The primary function of the Synus® however is the accurate management of product classification, completeness checks, over/under checkweighing and average weight control. Most importantly, the Synus® can perform these tasks at incredible speeds and on a variety of products, such as beverage cans, cardboard boxes, sealed bags, plastic bottles, tetra packs and a whole lot more.

To fully facilitate its optimal integration into any process the Synus® can be upgraded with numerous special features, these can included items such as a polycarbonate touch guards. These guards protect the weigh cells from accidental contact or from drafts. The inclusion of these is highly recommended for verifiable applications that demand high levels of accuracy. Either pushers or air blast nozzles can be installed which allow the automatic removal of products that fail to fall within predetermined parameters. Additionally, the control lines for the operation of customer specific sorting lines can be integrated.

The CoSynus® – Combining Checkweighing and Metal Detection

For compact operating environments space is often highly restricted. To solve this, the Synus® can be easily transformed into a dual checkweigher and metal detector. Known as the CoSynus, this combination system offers all the benefits of a regular Synus® in addition to a whole lot more. From a single control interface, both machines can be configured and controlled allowing the CoSynus® to offer speed and effort advantages over more traditional two machine installations.  For customers who already own a Synus® the move to upgrade to a CoSynus® is easy and economical whilst also being achieved with minimal downtime.

To ensure compliance with regulations such as IFS and BRC both the Synus® and CoSynus® can be connected to process control software such as Sartorius ProControl@Enterprise (SPC@Enterprise). This software is the very latest in cutting edge statistical process control software that allows you to secure Product Quality, Consumer Safety and Equipment Effectiveness from one easy to use system. For more information: www.sartorius.com.

Queen’s University has launched its new Institute for Global Food Security (IGFS) which will improve global food safety through the establishment of an international ‘food-fortress’ in Belfast. An investment of over £33 million from Queen’s will see the Institute play a key role in national and global efforts to provide the world’s growing population with a sustainable, safe and secure supply of high quality food.

Staff in the new Institute will work alongside the food sector locally, and worldwide, to improve the integrity of the food chain and deliver best value and quality to the consumer. The opening of the IGFS will also enable Queen’s to enhance the role it already plays in ensuring the local agri-food industry continues to be competitive in a growing global market.

The IGFS incorporates a new £2.5 million laboratory. Housing state-of-the-art equipment provided by Waters Corporation, the multinational technology company, it is capable of undertaking unique forms of testing in order to provide early warning of food contamination and adulteration. With part finance from the European Regional Development Fund, Invest NI is supporting the laboratory instrumentation and some of the research activities within it. Indeed, the new Institute is one of only five worldwide to be granted the status of a ‘Waters Centre of Innovation’.

The IGFS was officially launched by Tesco chief executive, Philip Clarke. Tesco is the largest customer for food producers on the island of Ireland buying £1 billion of foodstuffs each year. 

Professor Chris Elliott, Director of the new Institute, comments: “We want to build a ‘food-fortress’, ensuring everything we import is of the highest quality and that what we sell locally and internationally is also 100 per cent safe, nutritious and authentic. This new Institute will ensure that we can continue to recruit the best students into our food programmes, creating the food-leaders of the future who have been trained in one of the world’s best equipped research laboratories.”

The Institute is a cornerstone of Queen’s ambitious new Beyond fundraising campaign to raise £140 million over the next five years to support transformational projects. The Institute hopes to engage the support of leading local and international food producers.

Currently the production and processing of food plays a critical role in the Northern Ireland economy, with the sector providing 85,000 jobs and generating sales of £5.2 billion each year.

The European Commission has extended its review period for the combination of Ahlstrom’s Label and Processing business and Munksjö.

Ahlstrom and Munksjö submitted a proposal last week to the commission related to the proposed combination of the Label and Processing business and Munksjö with respect to abrasive backings and pre-impregnated décor paper businesses.

The EU Commission has extended the review period of the remedy proposal until 7 June.

Ahlstrom proposed that the abrasive backings and pre-impregnated décor paper businesses, including two production lines in Osnabrück, Germany, will be divested to a third party in order to resolve the competition issues.

The commission opened an investigation into the combination in December 2012 citing competition concerns in the markets of pre-impregnated paper (PRIP) and abrasive paper backings, where the merged firm would have high market shares in the European Economic Area (EEA) and worldwide.

A group of small-to-medium-sized enterprises along with multinationals Nestlé and Valor have embarked on a project to improve chocolate tempering using ultrasound.

The Ultrachoc project, funded by the EU under the Seventh Framework Programme, aims to give chocolate manufacturers more consistent quality in products by controlling and monitoring cocoa butter crystallization with ultrasound.

Tempering is a process in chocolate manufacturing that involves mixing and cooling liquid chocolate under controlled conditions to ensure cocoa butter crystallizes in Form V, the most desirable of six possible crystal types. Incorrect tempering results in chocolate with a soft texture that is dull in color and difficult to de-mold.

Real-time crystallization monitoring

Ultrachoc hopes to use ultrasound to manage the crystallization process and incorporate real-time analysis.

Adriana Delgado, project manager of Ultrachoc who works in novel technologies for IRIS, told ConfectioneryNews.com: “The idea is to control the tempering process online”.

She said that under current technology chocolate makers analyzed crystallization offline by regularly taking chocolate samples to labs to determine the level of solid fat content (SFC) in the tempering machine at the temperature where mostly type V crystals can survive. IRIS said that traditional methods of SFC determination were slow, irreproducible and required additional chemicals.

Delgado said that with ultrasound, manufacturers could avoid these delays using real-time monitoring of the tempering process that would allow companies to adapt the process to obtain the correct tempering. “You are always getting what you want,”  she said.

How it works

Ultrachoc will use an ultrasound Doppler-based velocity profile and pressure drop technique (UVPPD) to incorporate an online temper meter.

Lab trials will experiment with ultrasound UVPPD and ultrasound attenuation (USA) techniques, UVPPD+USA, to define parameters needed for an industrial system for chocolate manufacturers.

Ultrasound at high frequencies can be used for analysis, while low frequencies can be used to modify food products. The project will explore using low frequencies to control crystal sizes in chocolate and high frequencies to develop an online sensor.

The project aims to achieve 1-2% solid fat content in the tempering machine at a temperature where mostly Form V crystals can survive.

Confectionery packaging speeds are nearing their peak with better in-feed and downstream equipment, combined with advances in printing technology, according to the chairman of the NCA’s Supplier Advisory Committee.

Lee Hartman, marketing & technology manager at Printpack and chairman of the National Confectioners Association (NCA) Supplier Advisory Committee, said: “We’re pushing the limits in terms of speed.”

Cold seal helped optimize speed

He said that in the last decade packaging speed has “increased considerably.” “The primary reason is the cold seal technology,”  he said.

Cold seal was introduced in the early Seventies and is now commonly used on flow wrap packaging, one of the most conventional pack styles for chocolate bars.

The method uses pressure rather than heat to seal wrappers, which saves energy and can produce 400-600 packs a minute compared to 200-300 for heat seal. Fun size and minis can reach over 1,000 packs a minute.

Hartman said that cold seal was particularly advantageous in chocolate packaging because it uses no heat that could potentially melt the product.

The technology continues to be optimized by equipment manufacturers, but Hartman said it was “probably at its peak.”

Extended Gamut Printing

Asked what the future holds for packaging speed and flexibility, he said: “There’s definitely been an increased awareness of extended gamut printing such as Printpack Colorpack.”

Extended gamut printing uses a pallet of colors capable of printing and matching most designs. It has been around for a few years, but confectioners are starting to take note and are seeing the benefits.

Hartman said that a make-ready press can take several hours, but with the extended gamut printing there is no need to change inks, only plates and overall set up and changeover costs are reduced.

Asked if certain graphics took longer to produce for sophisticated designs on confectionery packaging, he said that press, plate and ink technologies had already made it possible to achieve difficult artwork with product illustration.

Matte films and stand up pouches

Hartman added that matte-finish and stand up pouch packs were two emerging pack styles for confectionery.

“Matte-Finish is very common in sweet and salted snacks packaging. The appearance can be achieved with the use of a matte film such as a matte oriented polypropylene film or a matte coating.”

“The advantage of a matte coating is that it can be applied as a registered pattern to create a matte/glossy contrast or a matte/clear window option so that the consumer can see the product,”  he said.

According to Hartman, stand up pouch are also gaining acceptance in the marketplace, and are proving effective in boosting shelf-appeal in stores.

Kraft Foods (now Mondelez) has filed a patent for a chewing gum manufacturing process that can form the gum mass while cooling or heating at the same time.

“Typically, the process of making and packaging gum products is time-consuming and involves a significant amount of machinery,”  said Kraft in its patent application.

Equipment is normally needed for mixing, heating, extruding, forming, rolling, cutting and packaging. Kraft says its invention eliminates the need for a sizing-type extruder and can form and temperature manage the gum mass all at the rolling stage.

Conventional gum processing

In conventional gum processing equipment a sizing extruder is often used to force chewing gum through a small rectangular orifice. The product exiting the extruder is usually too thick and a series of sizing rollers are normally used to reduce the thickness to desired 2-6mm levels.

The rollers are typically cleaned by dusting with a powder agent which prevents gum sticking to the rollers. Conventional lines also need to cool the product to enable it to be packaged.

Kraft’s invention

Kraft’s invention uses a pair of rollers to size a gum mass, after the forming stage, into a continuously flat sheet with a uniform thickness 0.3 mm to 10 mm and a width of not less than 50 cm, through a gap between the rollers.

At the same time, the rollers can be heated or chilled to control heat transfer to the gum to give the appropriate width and thickness.

This process eliminates the need for powder dusting material used to clean the machine, which can reduce production downtime.

“As such, the clean up time for a change over, which was hours, 10 hours in some conventional rolling and scoring gum lines, can be reduced to minutes according to some embodiments of the present invention,”  said Kraft in its application.

 

Forty kilograms of horse meat labelled as diced beef has been sold in Preston and Liverpool, according to the UK Food Standards Agency (FSA).

The agency said it was told by Lancashire County Council that it has identified 100kg of horse meat imported from Hungary labelled as beef.

Meat was imported by Hungarian Food in Preston and investigations showed that 40kg was sold through Hungarian Food’s own market stall in Preston, and through a shop in Liverpool called Taste of Hungary.

The remaining meat, which was sold in 1kg bags, has been withdrawn from sale, said the FSA.

FSA said it notified the European Commission and the Hungarian authorities and the meat is now being tested for the veterinary drug bute.

Conditional approval

The agency also said last week that it had granted conditional approval to the Aberystwyth meat plant that had its approval suspended during the horse meat investigations.

Farmbox Meats Llandre, had its licence suspension in February as part of the investigation into the mislabelling of meat products.

The conditional approval expires on 5 April and a decision will be taken as to whether the plant should be granted full approval to operate, said the FSA.

Second set of FSAI results

The Food Safety Authority of Ireland (FSAI) published the second set of results of industry tests for the presence of horse meat today (Monday) relating to the period 2-25 March.

Only three samples, representing two products, out of 1,228 tests carried out by industry, were found to be positive for the presence of horse meat.

The testing was carried out on beef meat ingredients and final beef products which were taken from suppliers, caterers, processors, manufacturers and retailers, said the FSAI.

The total number of positives which returned a presence of horse meat greater than 1% were in Tesco Simple Roast Meatloaf (between 3.1% and 5.2%) and Oak Farm Cottage Pie (350g) (between 1-5%).

The polymerase chain reaction (PCR) method was used to test 45% of the samples and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) for 55%.

Greece involvement

The Hellenic Food Authority (EFET) reported products such as chicken nuggets and schnitzel were found to contain horse meat at levels varying from less than 1% to more than 50%.

The products were produced by the T&T Foods company for the Choutos Catering firm and also from IFANTIS and P. G. NIKAS AVEE, said the authority.

EFET said it had requested the immediate recall/withdrawal of the products from the internal market.

Further testing has revealed eight results issued by the General Chemical State Laboratory have tested negative for phenlybutazone (bute).

Europe-wide issue

The EU’s RASFF portal reports that chilled ravioli stuffed with meat was withdrawn from the market in Italy and Switzerland as it contained >1 horse DNA.

Frozen beef was detained from Poland destined for the Netherlands as it returned results of between 10-60% horse DNA.

Meanwhile, Axfood has been cleared to donate around five tons of its stuffed lasagna found to contain horse meat to a local church.

The Swedish National Food Administration (NFA) said the products could be given to the church provided they are removed from the packaging and the correct list of ingredients are available where the products are distributed.

The current horsemeat scandal could have been avoided if a system developed by the University of Wolverhampton to trace food was in use, according to experts.

The University, alongside eight partners across Europe, have recently completed the Farm to Fork research project.

This was a pilot €3.6million project which developed and utilised a range of technologies, including Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) to identify and trace food information across Europe from producer to consumer.

The system works by identifying individual items of food and tracking precisely what happens to them during the production process.

RFID and other technologies (such as bar codes) identify the item and allow its location and the process it is undertaken to be determined.

Sensor networks allow environmental factors such as temperature and humidity to be tracked. The records are stored in a secure database from which the history of individual items can be generated. They are packaged and labelled with a QR or other code which identifies the individual item.

When the product reaches shops, consumers can scan the code with a smartphone, tablet or in-store scanner and the system generates a web page in real time, which gives detailed information such as where it originated from, where it was processed, packed and stored, how it was transported and at what temperature and how many miles it’s travelled.

During the two-and-a-half-year project the system was successfully tested with a range of producers of meat, dairy, fish and wine products in countries including the UK, Spain, Italy and Slovenia.

Professor Bob Newman, a computer scientist from the University’s School of Technology, led the research team in the project.

He explained: “The food industry is not currently working in a joined up way – there are plenty of processes and procedures but no coherent system. The Farm to Fork project bridges the gap between the supplier and retailers and the consumer.

“It ensures proof of origin, as the system captures a record of the production history, which can be used if product tracing is ever required. There are advantages for the food and drink sector as it provides a more efficient tracking model, for example by providing authentication of the origin of food.

“We firmly believe this can drive the next revolution in food – it can change consumer habits and change the food industry.

“We also believe it provides a solution to the current problem identified by the horsemeat scandal but it depends on suppliers and retailers getting on board. We are working to get this to be a standardised approach for suppliers as it has magnificent potential.

“There is a hunger from consumers for this sort of information on what they buy. In the UK we have become somewhat alienated from our food and settled for an industrialised culture of food production. More and more people want to know where their food comes from and what processes it has been through.

“Most quality producers want to be able to tell consumers the story of where their food came from as it builds trust and confidence.”

The researchers worked with meat and cheese suppliers in UK, fish suppliers in Spain and Slovenia, and cheese and wine suppliers in Italy and Spain.

The Farm to Fork project has now come to a successful conclusion and is ready for commercialisation. Currently the project team are working with international standards organisations to ensure that it can cover foods, wherever their point of origin.

The project was funded by the European Commission’s Competitiveness and Innovation Framework Programme (CIP).

The FSA (Food Standards Agency) in the UK has received the second set of test results from the food industry, which has been checking for the presence of horse DNA in products that are labelled as beef. The overwhelming majority, 3,599 (over 99%), of tests contained no horse DNA at or above the level of 1%.

35 results, representing 13 products, contained horse DNA at or above the 1% threshold. These products have already been named and withdrawn from sale..

Overall, there have been 3,634 results received from a range of manufacturers, retailers, caterers and wholesalers throughout the UK. This includes the 1,133 new results that show six further products containing horse DNA, since the first set of industry results was announced.

No tests to date on samples containing horse DNA have found the veterinary medicine phenylbutazone (bute).

There have been and continue to be instances where food businesses have withdrawn products due to trace contamination levels, or on a precautionary basis; for example, where they have been produced by manufacturers that have supplied other products found to be contaminated with horse DNA.

The FSA’s main focus at this point is on gross contamination of beef products with the substitution of horse meat, where there is more than 1% horse DNA detected in a product. The Agency believes that such levels of horse DNA indicate either gross negligence or deliberate substitution of one meat for another.

The major trade organisations, representing the businesses carrying out the testing, have provided estimates of the percentage of tests completed to date. Retailers have informed the FSA that they have completed approximately 90% of tests; manufacturers, caterers and wholesalers indicate they have completed around 80% of their tests. This includes all the major suppliers to schools, hospitals and other public institutions. A further update of industry testing results will be published on Friday, March 1st.

The new TASKI Pur-Eco range from Sealed Air’s Diversey business is a complete set of advanced building care cleaning products with the latest EU Ecolabel certification for businesses that want to adopt and demonstrate the highest sustainability standards. The four new and updated products in the range have innovative non-classified formulations to cover all routine and daily cleaning tasks. Each is available in super concentrate format for use with the Diversey SmartDose and QuattroSelect platforms to further promote sustainability with reduced packaging, CO2 emissions, water consumption and product wastage.

The internationally-recognised EU Ecolabel provides assurance that a product has passed rigorous independent testing and meets strict sustainability and safety criteria. Diversey used its experience and understanding of the market to develop reformulated products to comply with the very latest EU Ecolabel requirements while offering the same superior performance, ease of use and safe operation as its other ranges.

TASKI Pur-Eco fulfils increasing demand from in-house cleaning teams, building service contractors and facilities management providers for demonstrably sustainable cleaning operations to support their own and customers’ policies. Three TASKI Pur-Eco products – TASKI Sani Cid Pur-Eco acidic washroom, TASKI Sprint 200 Pur-Eco multipurpose/multi-surface, and TASKI Jontec 300 Pur-Eco floor – have been reformulated and re-certified to ensure continued compliance while the TASKI Sani 100 Pur-Eco neutral washroom cleaner has been introduced to ensure the range covers all routine and daily cleaning tasks.

Each product is available as a super concentrate in the Diversey SmartDose or QuattroSelect platforms to prepare accurate and consistent solutions for spray bottles, buckets and floor cleaning machines. SmartDose is a unique portable system that requires no connection to a local water supply. QuattroSelect is ideal for centralised and intensive operations where it can prepare up to four cleaning solutions at different dilution rates.

Like all Diversey products, the TASKI Pur-Eco range is supplied in industry-standard colour-coded packaging which matches tools and equipment to support simpler training and ease of use. The SmartDose and QuattroSelect super concentrate platforms promote sustainability by ensuring accurate preparation of cleaning solutions with no wastage for optimum performance and consistency. Water is only added at the point of use to minimise chemical miles. Compact packaging and use of recyclable materials means waste management costs are minimised.

Further information in the UK on 0800 525525 or www.diversey.com

Further information in Ireland on 00353 1 8081808 or www.diversey.com

As Lock Inspection Systems’ recent installation at Bacheldre Mill illustrates, artisanal producers as well as large industrial food manufacturers stand to benefit from advanced in-line quality control. Bacheldre Mill in Mid Wales dates back to 1575 and was taken over by former Royal Mail workers Matt and Anne Scott in 2002. Initially planning to operate the site for camping, they were inspired by the idea of preserving and building on the mill’s heritage. They turned the water mill from a working museum, grinding a tonne of grain a month, into a thriving cottage industry, producing premium stone-ground bread, home baking and speciality flours including spelt, rye, wholemeal and oak smoked varieties. Demand means that the stones are now turned by motor as opposed to water, but aside from this, the production methods are very much in keeping with tradition.

Bacheldre Mill counts Waitrose, delicatessens, independent food halls and Michelin star restaurants among its customers. All of these high-end establishments expect the very highest quality standards from their suppliers.

To ensure they do not default on their commitment to supply unadulterated, stone-ground flour, the Scotts have implemented a three-tier quality control system which utilises magnets, receivers and automated metal detection equipment from Lock Inspection Systems.

“We might operate from a centuries-old mill but we have adopted the latest food production standards including a full HACCP system,” says Matt Scott. “We’ve never had any issues with metallic contamination, but with the quality of our product of paramount importance, we cannot afford to be complacent. As in any food production environment there is always a chance that a problem within the upstream manufacturing process, for example, a bolt coming off an auger, could result in metal entering the product flow. Deploying metal detection gives us the reassurance that even if this does happen, each bag of flour that leaves the mill will still be contaminant-free.”

And the Scotts’ trust in Lock’s metal detection units has not been misplaced. “Lock’s systems are performing exactly as we hoped they would. They are proving reliable, giving us complete peace of mind,” adds Matt Scott.

Bacheldre Mill has two Lock units in operation. One, a compact throat metal detector which inspects flour as it flows into bulk 16 and 25kg bags, is located within the mill itself. The other conveyorised system is located in the packing hall, where it performs a final check on 500g, 1kg and 1.5kg retail bags of flour before they are packed into transit cases. Approximately 4000 retail bags of flour pass through the inspection unit each day.

The metallised labels on the retail packs could potentially cause problems for some metal detectors, but as Rob Gray, from Lock Inspection Systems, explains, Lock’s multi-frequency units are engineered to find metal within metallised packaging without the risk of false rejects.

“Our multi-frequency systems work within a range of three crystal tuned frequencies and will automatically select the optimum frequency according to product characteristics. So when the unit is confronted with metallised packaging, it will operate at a frequency which can ignore this but which still delivers excellent detection results.”

Bacheldre Mill also uses Lock’s proprietary DDS software to assist with detector set up. “By optimising the product settings and detector parameters, this software ensures the highest sensitivity levels are achieved when inspecting metallised packs,” adds Rob Gray.

CAPTION: 

Lock Inspection’s range of metal detectors identify reject and provide real time product and batch data to ensure full traceability.

Neogen Europe Ltd. uniquely offers easy and accurate meat speciation testing options that can be performed on-site, or by testing experts at the company’s UKAS accredited laboratories in Scotland. Its established ranges of meat speciation testing options are used by numerous food industry laboratories and government food control agencies around the world.

“Our on-site meat speciation testing options were first established over a decade ago and, uniquely, they can be performed with unparalleled ease and speed,” said Neogen Europe’s Sales and Marketing Director Steve Chambers. “However, we understand that not all companies in the food industry that need to have their meat products tested for species composition are capable of performing the tests on-site. To those companies, we offer our accredited contract laboratory services.”

Neogen’s on-site speciation products have become the preferred choice by enforcement, industry and private laboratories, where reliable results are essential. Its on-site products include: F.A.S.T. Species Identification Kits, which are simple yet robust qualitative tests designed to allow the detection of species content in uncooked meats and meat products with a limit of detection of 1%. Kits are available for the detection of horse, cow, pig, poultry and sheep; BioKits for Species Identification, which are widely recognised and provide sensitive, specific qualitative detection for a range of raw and cooked animal species; and DNA Bases Species Identification tests, which use a proprietary magnetic bead technology that provides significant advantages over other methods of DNA extraction.

To complement and support our on-site testing solutions, Neogen offers expert, reliable UKAS-accredited DNA based contract laboratory services for meat speciation that are carried out by highly trained scientific analysts using state-of-the-art equipment. Qualitative UKAS-accredited testing is available for up to eight species, including pig and horse. In addition, quantitative DNA testing is available for horse, chicken and pig.

In addition Neogen offers a Phenylbutazone “Bute” ELISA testing platform to detect Phenylbutazone in whole blood, plasma and urine. Given the link between “Bute” and human blood disorders, the authorities have ordered some suppliers to carry out tests. Neogen anticipates that demand for this type of testing to increase over the coming weeks.

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Preventing the adulteration of feed and food products with non-desirable or low-quality animal products is important for economic, regulatory, health and ethnic reasons. The identification of species is performed to assure consumers that the products they purchase are safe, wholesome and properly labelled to prevent the substitution of meat with unsuitable or inferior species, or in religious communities where a particular species is prohibited.

Neogen Europe Ltd., the European subsidiary of Neogen Corporation (NASDAQ: NEOG), is a high technology business dedicated to the development and marketing of novel diagnostic kits. These kits focus on topical concerns about the quality and safety of food and agricultural products, from the quality of seed that goes into the ground, right through the chain to the safety of fully processed food products. Neogen Europe was awarded the Queens Award for Enterprise for international trade and development, one of the highest awards bestowed on a UK company.

The latest version of  the Accellos warehouse management system (WMS) from BalloonOne simplifies  traceability for food processors and distributors. The system provides full  visibility of raw material coming into the food warehouse, monitors the movement  of finished goods, and tracks products going through the production and  packaging area.

This removes the difficulty and cost of managing time consuming  paper documentation.

The automatic identification of barcodes on  raw materials and finished products ensures a complete electronic trail that can  be interrogated instantly whenever required. Saving both time and money through  efficiency improvements, the WMS interfaces easily with existing enterprise  resource planning (ERP) systems and order management systems – such as SAP  Business One, sharing the same database and eliminating the need for data  duplication.

Accellos provides comprehensive traceability for food  companies using UK sourced raw material and for business that import food stuffs  from overseas.

Using the system to zone the warehouse allows companies to see  exactly what is happening in each area of the building, eliminating information  black holes.

Although UK Food Standard Agency rules govern all food  companies, no two food warehouses are alike. The WMS has been developed for  maximum flexibility to meet these different, individual requirements and is,  therefore, very flexible and scaleable. It provides batch and serial number  traceability, so that any and all items can be identified quickly back to their  source without the need to search through paper records. This makes it a good  fit for SME businesses in the food industry; 68 per cent of the Food and Drink Federation membership are such companies.

With more than 1000  configuration switches, the WMS can provide a wealth of functionality without  modifying the software. It uses an XML interface to communicate real-time  information from the warehouse to the back office system. Features include  multi-bin, advanced allocation and barcode auto ID using wireless scanners for  accuracy, speed and no unnecessary paperwork.

DNA testing on meat products will be introduced in tbe wake of recent cases of horsemeat contamination in British meat.

The decision was made following a meeting between the Food Standards Agency (FSA) and industry officials, with an assurance that all results would be made available to consumers.

The announcement follows the publication of an FSA report that found meat at a factory in Northern Ireland was 80% horsemeat. Meat tested at Freeza Meats in Newry was potentially linked to the Silvercrest factory in Ireland, which has been at the centre of the horsemeat burgers scandal. According to the FSA, an investigation into the traceability of raw materials and their source is underway, however the body added that the meat had not yet entered the food chain.

Further concerns about the traceability of food deepened at the weekend when halal food supplied to prisons by a Northern Irish-based company was found to contain traces of pork DNA.

The new testing programme will commence once standardised testing methods and DNA levels have been agreed.

www.food.gov.uk

As part of its ongoing investigation into mislabelled meat in the UK, the FSA has tested a quantity of frozen meat currently detained in a cold store on the premises of a company called Freeza Meats in Northern Ireland, which is potentially linked to the Silvercrest factory in the Republic of Ireland.

Silvercrest was the supplier of beef burgers that contained horse DNA, identified in a survey carried out by the Food Safety Authority of Ireland.

Of the 12 samples from the suspect consignment that have been tested, two of the samples came back positive for horse meat, at around 80%. The investigation into the traceability of these raw materials and their source is under way. As this meat was detained, it has not entered the food chain.

Food technical manager Richard Wigley has gained a Registered Scientist Award (RSci) from the Institute of Food Science & Technology (IFST).

Richard heads up the technical team at The Food and Drink Forum, which provides business support services to food and drink firms across the East Midlands and beyond.

The RSci is a new award based on a combination of knowledge, competence and a commitment to high standards of professionalism. It provides recognition of the important roles that scientists play within all aspects of the food sector, in areas such as new product development, food safety, food analysis, product quality and food production.

The RSci will allow Richard to access scientific and technical food information provided by IFST to pass onto Food and Drink Forum members, and to continue providing high quality technical support to food and drink businesses in the region.

”We would like to congratulate Richard on gaining a Registered Scientist Award, which recognises the standards to which he works and the knowledge and expertise that he has in this field,” said Fiona Anderson, managing director of the Food and Drink Forum, which is based at Southglade Food Park, Gala Way, Nottingham.

The Forum’s technical team, made up of Richard Wigley and Kasia Chapman, provides a range of business support services, including formulation, shelf life improvement, packaging advice, technical advice and services, labelling and nutritional advice, auditing, accreditation and certification, new product development support and training.

The Forum, which was established in 1998 as a not-for-profit, membership-led organisation to stimulate and support the sustainable growth and development of the food and drink industry in the East Midlands, operates across Nottinghamshire, Derbyshire, Lincolnshire, Leicestershire, Northamptonshire and Rutland, as well as further afield.

It has members across the region, including manufacturers, food service operators, consultants and businesses providing services to the food and drink sector.

Its aims include championing the food and drink sector in the East Midlands, developing strategic influencing partnerships within and outside the East Midlands, and acting as a centre for information and knowledge on all subjects relating to the food and drink sector in the region

To contact the Forum technical team email enquiries@foodanddrinkforum.co.uk or telephone 0115 9758810.

A high frequency metal detector from Lock Inspection Systems has successfully assisted one of the UK’s leading raw ingredients suppliers in meeting stringent BRC standards, inspecting over 100 tonnes of ingredients since its installation.

Stockport-based EHL Ingredients is an importer, blender and packer of ingredients from around the world, including China, Turkey, Sri Lanka and Mexico. From herbs and spices, to beans and pulses and dried fruit, the company supplies over 300 food ingredients to all areas of the food industry in the UK and Ireland and boasts a 200-strong organic range as well as over 50 custom blends.

“Along with UK stock we import vast quantities of ingredients and anything that we pack and blend ourselves goes through a metal detector to adhere with BRC standards and satisfy our own quality control criteria,” explains Mike Perrin, Technical Manager at EHL Ingredients.

To meet specific customer requirements, the ingredients are packed into bags from 1 kilo through to 25 kilos in weight – all of which are checked by the end of line metal detector. Rob Gray, of Lock Inspection Systems, comments: “The metal detector installed at EHL’s Stockport site is Lock’s MET30+ Universal detector which has been designed to accommodate a wide range of pack sizes and has a one touch product recall for each recipe set-up to assist production staff with quick changeovers.”

The MET30+ Universal metal detector is capable of detecting ferrous and non-ferrous metals as well as high grade stainless steel contaminates. “Metal detection is an integral part of our quality assurance process. The Lock detector has high frequency tuning, which means that the line automatically stops when an article has been detected enabling us to quickly investigate the incident and particle helping to preserve product integrity and give us ultimate product confidence,” adds Mike Perrin.

For further information visit www.lockinspection.com.

The Irish Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine Simon Coveney TD has announced a major breakthrough in the joint investigation by his Department and the Food Safety Authority of Ireland into the source of equine DNA in beef burgers. The results were positive for equine DNA in meat imported from Poland as raw material for the production of burgers at Silvercrest, part of ABP Food Group.

While earlier results had shown trace levels of equine DNA in imported raw materials, the latest results showed significant levels of equine DNA, (4.1%) in raw material which was used in the manufacture of burgers which the Department has found to contain significant amounts of Equine DNA. The investigation has therefore established a direct correlation between burgers in which a high level of equine DNA was detected and this raw material product. The Minister is confident that this finding leads to a firm conclusion that the raw material in question was the source of equine DNA introduced into burgers manufactured at Silvercrest.

The Minister also reaffirms that tests on samples taken from Irish food ingredients were negative and he is pleased that the integrity of Irish food production was maintained.

The objective of the intensive investigation carried out by the Department and the FSAI was to identify the source of the equine DNA and to find the cause of the problem. Over 140 samples of primary products and ingredients have been tested for equine DNA. Three burgers and one imported ingredient tested positive for significant levels of equine DNA.

The current findings of the official investigation do not show any evidence that Silvercrest deliberately used horsemeat in the production process. The authorities in Poland have been informed of the findings of the investigation.

Dirt, dust and moisture can lead to both danger and expense when it is introduced to warehouse and production areas. For example, forklift and warehouse pallet trucks can lose grip, go into a slide and become uncontrollable, putting lives and equipment at risk. Dirt can also lead to contamination of products and their packaging being stored in the warehouse.

To avoid this situation, CleanTrax has been developed and is available in the UK from Unisan.

The new CleanTrax system is a new and very innovative, effective brush system for cleaning and reducing moisture on wheels and feet within entrances to factories, warehouses and production areas.

CleanTrax helps to contain dirt and dust at the entrance and stop it from spreading throughout the plant; helping to keep the floors clean & hygienic. The CleanTrax cleaning grates have been proven to capture up to 90% of the dirt directly at entrance areas or heavily used traffic lanes within the factory.

The angles at which the brushes are positioned within the grate automatically clean the tyres and soles while crossing the grates. The removal of dirt from this system is extremely easy and all dirt is fully contained within the grate. Vehicles and people can pass over this device without any loss of time

The clever design of the system means that no power supply or electric motors are required to make this work, as it is totally mechanically operated. This means that the system is very durable and reliable and there are no electrical parts motors to wear or break down.

Summing up, using CleanTrax you can

- drastically reduce your cleaning costs

- minimise the transportation of all kinds of dirt

- enhance your product quality

- make your production area safer

- prevent the floor coverings from being scratched and worn off

- fulfill compliance requirements

- impress customers and authorities by your innovative action

Unisan says this is the first product of its kind which is so simple and efficient, and that its acceptance by the market has been “really tremendous”.

Many renowned and market-leading manufacturing companies have had their problems solved and their requirements fully satisfied by installing the CleanTrax system. These customers include blue chip companies such as Coca-Cola, BMW UK, Toyota UK, DS Smith Packaging, Pfizer, Proctor & Gamble, Unilever, VW, Audi, Porsche, Honda, Bosch, Opel Vauxhall, Unilever, Miele, Ineos, John Deere, Siemens and many more.

Ms. Seda Tekin from BSH (Bosch And Siemens Home Appliances Group), endorsed the CleanTrax system: “We have very good feedback. 10 kg of dirt has been accumulated in the trays. Besides on rainy days, the wheels of the forklifts are dried by the brushes and don’t ruin the indoor floor. Thank you…!“

Mr. Raats from Bavaria brewery added: “We are very happy with the cleaning grates…  Thanks to CleanTrax, we have been able to  significantly reduce the amount of dust and dirt. I can recommend this system to every company where too much dirt and dust is an issue“.

For more information contact Unisan on 0845 0700 624 or visit our website and watch a video of CleanTrax in action… www.unisanuk.com

AutoCoding Systems and Dairy Crest, Davidstow are no strangers when it comes to developing applications to meet specific requirements.  They have recently worked together to design a vision system which analyses and identifies vacuum failures on sealed packs of 20kg blocks of cheese.

 

Dairy Crest, Davidstow produces over 48,000 tonnes of cheddar cheese per year in 20kg blocks, 80% of this being the well-known Cathedral City brand.  The 20kg blocks are vacuum sealed to prevent air leaking into the cheese prior to the 12-18 month maturation cycle.

 

The AutoCoding vision system identifies vacuum failures on the sealed 20kg blocks.  The system comprises a camera driven software application that analyses the reflected light from the surface of the vacuum sealed cheese block and rejects the block if it doesn’t meet the defined criteria.  Reports are generated which give the total number of blocks through the system, the number of seal failures and an analysis of the efficiency of the sealing process.  This enables Dairy Crest to monitor and identify potential problems with the sealing and packing process.

The AutoCoding vision system replaced the original “in house” system that had been running in the factory for almost 10 years.  With over 120 tonnes of cheese going along the line each day, the system had to be efficient because even a small percentage of cheese blocks with broken seals would result in mould growth during the maturation period.  The resulting cost of recovering any contaminated cheese would be quite significant.

Based on previous successful projects with AutoCoding Systems, Dairy Crest approached them again to help develop a system based on the obsolete method.

Initially, AutoCoding faced challenges such as variations in size, colour and surface texture of the cheese blocks making it difficult to adjust the camera and image processing to capture all defects, whilst not resulting in a false alarm for good seals.  Achieving the correct balance between success and failure was critical.

Neil Flood, Automation Engineer at Dairy Crest said, “We are already reaping the benefits of the system in terms of cost savings.  Any blocks of cheese with faulty seals that slipped through our old system and were stored for maturation would result in us having to downgrade contaminated product.  We now have an efficient and reliable system which gives us meaningful and useful data which allows us to continually improve our sealing and packing process.  In addition, we have been able to refocus one of our Production Line Operators on other tasks rather than checking for failed seals.”

He concluded, “Having worked on previous successful projects with AutoCoding Systems, we have built up a strong business relationship and we were, therefore, confident that they could deliver the quality and reliability we required with this new system.”

For further information, please contact:

Janet Harrison – AutoCoding Systems Ltd

Email : janetharrison@autocodingsystems.com

Tel : 01928 790444

ExxonMobil Lubricants & Petroleum Specialties Company, a division of Exxon Mobil Corporation, is the first lubricant provider to garner ISO 22000:2005 certification for facilities that manufacture NSF H1-registered lubricants. This accreditation is for facilities that produce ExxonMobil’s popular Mobil SHC™ Cibus Series of high-performance NSF H1 registered food machinery lubricants.

The ISO 22000 certification is one of the most stringent and comprehensive food and beverage safety standards. Established by the International Organization of Standardization, ISO 22000 is a food safety management system with a set of specified requirements that ensure a company’s ability to control food safety at every step of the manufacturing process.

“ExxonMobil is committed to the highest standards of manufacturing hygiene and safety, and we are proud to again lead our peers in the lubricant industry by becoming the first company to produce in facilities which have achieved ISO 22000 certification,” says Yan Côté, global business development advisor, ExxonMobil Lubricants & Petroleum Specialties Company. “In addition to protecting product integrity during manufacturing, Mobil SHC Cibus lubricants can help companies improve the energy efficiency and productivity of their operations.”

Ideal for a wide range of applications, such as food, beverage and pharmaceutical processing, and animal feed manufacturing, Mobil SHC Cibus lubricants are suitable under Halal and Kosher dietary law and are designed to be gluten-, nut- and wheat-free.

They are formulated to deliver excellent wear and rust protection, long-term oxidation stability and can help food and beverage processors realize valuable sustainability-related benefits.

For instance, in extensive laboratory and field testing, Mobil SHC Cibus demonstrated the ability to deliver energy efficiency savings of up to 3 percent in gear oil applications when compared to conventional, mineral-based oils.

In proprietary rig testing, Mobil SHC Cibus Series synthetic lubricants also demonstrated their ability to last up to two times longer than comparable mineral oils, allowing for extended drain intervals, depending on the severity of the application.

For more information about ExxonMobil’s suite of H1-approved lubricants, Mobil SHC branded synthetic lubricants, or any other Mobil-branded products and services, visit www.mobilindustrial.com.

Less need for sample gas, measurement of the gas pressure in the packaging and a brighter and more brilliant display: Witt-Gasetechnik has improved its mobile gas analyser even more with the new version of the “Oxybaby”. This aims to further enhance the precision and reliability along with the application range of quality testing for protective gas packaging.

The handheld unit developed for mobile sample analysis requires only a small amount of sample gas in the series standard entering production: Depending on the application, around 2 ml are now adequate for determining the oxygen or carbon dioxide content. That corresponds to about half the already very low gas levels required by previous versions of this widespread measuring instrument. Even the smallest packaging can therefore be monitored with a high degree of accuracy. This has been made possible thanks to an optimized design and hose system as well as an improved interaction of the individual components. According to the manufacturer, the modified structure will also increase reliability against failure and minimize service requirements.

The dual pressure sensors now installed provide an even more accurate flow rate control and indicate the gas pressure in the packaging – a completely new feature that may prove to be interesting for many users. The new, modern LED display has a white illuminated background making it easier for the user to read off the measuring results, even at low ambient lighting. There are three versions of “Oxybaby” with different equipment for use primarily in the food and pharmaceutical industry. The sensor needle (protected when not used) is pushed into the packaging via a small sealing plate for the measurement. The evaluation is output automatically in just a few seconds. The measuring range extends from 0-100 per cent with a display accuracy of 0.1 per cent. The measured values are saved.

The unit weighing around 600 grams is supplied in a protective case including batteries, spare parts, consumable material and accessories. It comes with major additional options, for example a barcode reader, Bluetooth capabilities or can-piercer for testing bottles and cans. Complete digital documentation and analysis of the measured results is also possible via optional software. For further information visit www.wittgas.com.

By Neil Giles, Marketing and Communications Manager, Mettler-Toledo Product Inspection Division

The use of innovative product inspection systems, such as metal detectors, x-ray inspection systems and checkweighers by food and beverage manufacturers have grown significantly in recent years. To safeguard consumers from foreign body contamination in food and beverages, many European retailers now stipulate that their suppliers, locally and globally, comply with industry food safety guidelines, particularly those with the approval of the Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI). This is a global undertaking to harmonise quality standards worldwide and examples of approved guidelines include the British Retail Consortium (BRC) Global Standards in force mainly in the UK and Scandinavia and the International Featured Standards (IFS) in France, Germany and other European countries. These standards now require that product inspection systems, such as metal detection and x-ray technology, be installed on food and beverage lines to detect and remove foreign bodies, such as metal, glass, stone and bone. Compliance with these initiatives is important to safeguard the wellbeing of consumers, to ensure manufacturers retain access to lucrative markets in Europe and elsewhere, and protect their brand from damaging product recalls.

In addition to ensuring food safety, food and beverage manufacturers desire ways to boost manufacturing efficiency and reduce waste. Precision checkweighing technology can help achieve this by weighing products as they pass along the conveyor to identify product under- or overfill. This also enables manufacturers to comply with metrology legislation such as the European Measuring Instruments Directive (MID), an EU regulation developed to harmonise measuring equipment across the region.

Recent Product Inspection Innovations

Mettler-Toledo Product Inspection has recently developed a number of innovative solutions to help food and beverage manufacturers meet food safety demands and enhance production line efficiency. For example, the Profile Select, engineered by Mettler-Toledo Safeline Metal Detection, is an advanced metal detection system that features Variable Frequency Technology. This enables the metal detector to overcome the electrical signal induced in conductive foods, known as “product effect”, which can mask signals from contaminants within the product. The technology automatically selects the optimum frequency for the product being inspected, facilitating easy changeovers and enhancing flexibility for manufacturers.

Mettler-Toledo Safeline X-ray has designed the revolutionary X3310 x-ray system, which offers the same high level of foreign body detection sensitivity as traditional technology using just a fifth of the power. Developed as a result of collaboration with customers, the X3310 inspects food and beverage products for foreign body contamination as well as performing gross mass measurement for calculated portion control to minimise costly product giveaway through overfilled packs. The reduced power consumption of the x-ray generator lowers energy use by manufacturers, cutting operating costs and protecting profits.

Mettler-Toledo Garvens’s most recent innovation is the XE100 CC Compact, the first combination product inspection system that fully integrates checkweighing and metal detection technologies using a single short conveyor. Developed for large packaged products and bulk items, the system can inspect up to 80 products per minute and is ideal for food manufacturers with limited factory floor space. The XE100 CC Compact enables manufacturers to comply with weights and measures legislation, enhance efficiency by reducing wasteful product giveaway and at the same time protect brand reputation by ensuring that products are free from contamination by metal fragments.

About Mettler-Toledo Product Inspection

Mettler-Toledo is a global company with headquarters inSwitzerland, employing 12,000 people across five divisions in Europe, North America and Asia. The Product Inspection Division is a leading supplier of innovative metal detection, checkweighing, x-ray and vision inspection, technology as well as data monitoring, connectivity software and technical support services to the food and beverage industries worldwide. Its metal detection equipment can identify ferrous and non-ferrous metals, including stainless steel as well as irregularly-shaped fragments. The technology is capable of detecting metal contamination in traditionally challenging products, such as foods with high moisture content. This ensures optimum detection sensitivity for manufacturers and enhances flexibility by enabling the production of a variety of products on the same line. The Division’s x-ray inspection systems can detect foreign bodies, such as glass, stone, bone and high-density rubber and plastic as well as inspect for other quality defects, such as fill-level and missing or broken components. Its checkweighers are capable of precision inspection of product weight and fill-level at high throughput speeds to reduce product giveaway and waste. The Division has also developed vision inspection systems to ensure traceability of food products throughout the manufacturing line and to inspect product labelling for correct weight and ingredient information, placement and legibility.

Committed to Research and Development

A commitment to continuous research and development (R&D) by product inspection technology suppliers is vital to protect consumers and safeguard reputation for manufacturers by enabling them to comply with increasingly rigorous food safety legislation. For example, Mettler-Toledo is developing new x-ray technology to optimise detection of glass contamination in jars and bottles, a traditional challenge due to the fact that the packaging and the contamination is of the same density. Innovation is key to the creation of technology that meets manufacturers’ efficiency and flexibility needs by permitting a greater range of products to be manufactured on the same line, reducing changeover downtime and minimising energy consumption to lower operating costs. Developing product inspection solutions to enhance quality inspection capabilities while boosting efficiency will ensure brands retain access to lucrative Western and emerging Asian markets.

For more information: http://uk.mt.com/gb/en/home/products/Product-Inspection_1.html.

RSSL has been named as Company of the Year with more than 100 employees by the Society of Food Hygiene & Technology (SOFHT). The award was announced on November 22nd at a gala luncheon in London, hosted by SOFHT.
RSSL is a specialist scientific consultancy offering analysis, research, new product development and training to the global food and drink industry.  Much of RSSL’s work is focused on helping food manufacturers deliver safe, high quality products.

RSSL received the award for sharing its expertise with the food industry via regular, free to attend roadshows on food safety topics. RSSL’s ‘Allergens in a Nutshell’ and ‘Combating Contamination’ roadshows are run at venues throughout the UK, and are open to anyone working in the food industry. Both roadshows are highly interactive and provide invaluable best practice advice on dealing with specific food safety risks.
Commenting on the receipt of the SOFHT award, RSSL’s managing director, Alan Gundle notes, “This award is something that everyone working at RSSL can be proud of. The roadshows draw on the experience and expertise gained within RSSL from more than 25 years of providing analytical services to the food and drink industry. We have built our reputation on the quality of our science and the support and advice we give to customers, interpreting the results of our analysis rather than just providing data. This has helped us to become an important partner to a wide range of food and drink manufacturers, and a trusted voice within the industry. We thank the many people – those who are customers and those who are not – who have attended the roadshows during 2012, and who supported our nomination.”

When you need to repair or replace your floor in the main production area it would be sensible to contact a company that can provide you with everything from laying the slab to providing the finished floor including advice on which floor to lay, stainless steel drains and kerbs as well as wall and ceiling solutions.

One company that has all these qualifications is Kemtile Ltd, a multi-disciplined company that has been laying and repairing floors in food and beverage environments for  over 30 years. A spokesman for the company commented “we understand and respect the food industry, it’s constraints and specific needs, in fact we have worked for almost every major food and drinks brand on either new build or refurbishment projects as well as many small specialist producers”

This understanding is engrained in the company’s philosophy in how it delivers the end result. There are many instances where the company has been asked to work around the product line so that manufacturing is not impeded, or has been asked to carry out the work during shut down periods.

Hygienic floors can be either seamless, where a resin based concrete screed is laid to specific falls for drainage. The system produces floors that are flat, seamless and have a long design life and have exceptional resistance to aggressive chemiacls heavy impact and thermal shock. An anti static version is available where powder mixing or chemicals are stored.

Floors can also be tiled and the company recommends the Kagetec vibration method of installation. Here the tile are encassed in an epoxy slurry and vibrated into position to form a flat, hygienic floor for the food, beverage  or pharmaceutical industries. There are 5 systems in the range each has its own unique features that make it suitable for a particular installation.

Wrights Pies of Crewe are in the process of a £4million expansion program which has just seen the completion of the refurbishment of the Ready Meals production area, part of the £20million Crewe complex that produces 5million savoury products every month.

The company has been baking pies, savoury products, quality ready meals for the South Cheshire and Potteries communities for nearly 90 years and distributes these products through 17 local shops with exports to 26 countries.

Whenever a floor needs upgrading or repairing Kemtile have been Wrights first choice of principal contractor, having worked for the company for a number of years on several projects.

Peter Wright Managing Director of Wrights Pies commented “Kemtile have become our preferred installation partner for composite tile flooring throughout our business expansion program over the years. They have demonstrated a more than professional approach to the installation, giving us the best value for money and service whilst providing attention to detail and more importantly achieving a personal level of 100% customer satisfaction in our case.”

The project included two areas, a first floor, where a reinforcing membrane was installed to seal the floor and a ground floor area. Argelith hexagonal tiles were chosen for their high impact and slip resistance. The tiles are easy to steam clean,  resistant to chemicals and have an extremely low water absorption of  less than 0.05%. The neutral colour gives the factory a light and clean appearance.

The tiles were installed using the Kagetec BS sonic vibration system which embeds the tiles in a bonding layer. This system ensures each tile is securely laid to create an hygienic floor that’s easy to clean and eliminates bacterial growth. An epoxy grout was used in the 2mm joints. On the ground floor reinforced expansion joints were installed in heavy traffic areas to eliminate cracking.

Kemtile are the UK’s leading hygienic floor installation company for the food, pharmaceutical, beverage and drinks industry, laying both resin concrete and tiled floors. For more information visit their web site www.kemtile.co.uk

By Stephen Jacobs, Global Product Manager, Fruit and Vegetables, Bühler.

 

As consumers and retailers continue to demand uniformity in food products and health and safety regulations become increasingly stringent, fruit and vegetable processors in particular are facing increasing pressure to guarantee product integrity.

Food safety standards pose a significant challenge to processors and a less than stringent approach to the issue can have disastrous consequences, not just for the processor, but across the entire supply chain financially, legally and in terms of reputation.

Gaps in control measures can compromise the safety and cleanliness of the end product, which can ultimately pose a health and safety risk to the consumer. Furthermore, even a single instance of poor food safety management can have huge financial impact on the brand, retailer and processor, through product recalls, wastage, reputation damage and, in the most serious of cases, significant legal costs and fines. This means that there is a significant reputational and financial incentive to invest in effective inspection systems to ensure the best quality and safe end product.

Sorting the Good From the Bad

The sorting process is a vital part of any production line’s integrity measures, particularly for fruit and vegetable producers, where there can be a greater risk of foreign material (FM) or extraneous vegetable matter (EVM) contamination. These can come in the form of bugs, cigarette ends, vermin and animal droppings and other materials, including seeds, stalks, twigs, stones, wood, plastic and metals, all of which can find its way into the crop at harvest or during later stages of processing.

There is a clear cost benefit to high quality sorting equipment, in safeguarding the processor against product contamination risks and ensuring the best quality product at the end of the line. This is where Bühler’s optical sorting solutions can be the most appropriate choice for processors.

Why SORTEX?

Bühler’s optical sorting technology provides processors with an efficient and effective guarantee of safety and quality in the end product. The SORTEX E1D, E1A and K provide leading edge technology, offering processors a flexible solution at any point in the processing line. Whether implemented before or after blanching, after freezing or in the packing line, SORTEX technology can be placed to suit the specific processor’s needs.

Bühler’s SORTEX equipment combines Enhanced InGaAs technology cameras, high resolution bichromatic cameras and PROfile (shape) technology to provide the most effective performance. PROfile (shape) technology offers the most efficient and flexible shape recognition system available, to detect foreign material by both size and shape.

SORTEX high-definition, colour bichromatic cameras are custom-designed and built in-house. They allow the product to be viewed from one or two sides, improving detection for a high quality sort. In addition, Bühler’s InGaAs technology allows producers to identify a wider range of contaminants than previously possible, particularly for packaging fragments. Finally, Bühler’s PROfile (shape) technology intelligently detects and digitally separates touching objects, allowing for better shape detection.

Bühler’s SORTEX optical sorters offer the added benefit of a low cost of ownership. SORTEX sorters do not have expensive components that require frequent replacement – a significant contribution to on-going expenditure. Similarly, Bühler’s sorting technology is hard-wearing, with very few moving parts, resulting in lower maintenance costs, enabling the processor to reduce their manufacturing costs.