Identification and prevention of hazards associated
with slow cooling of hams and other large
cooked meats and meat products

Identify and prevent hazards associated with slow cooling of large cooked meats and meat products.

Meat and meat products which are large are inherently slow to cool, and slow cooling can, under some circumstances, present a food safety hazard. This review draws together a wealth of information from work aimed at determining safe cooling of large meat products.

The opening sections outline specific recommendations for safe cooling of meats based on information available and place the hazard of slow cooling in perspective. The rest of the review is in two major parts. Part One reviews relevant microbiological hazards, industry practices and UK legislation, guidelines, and codes of practice. It provides a useful overview of the technologies available for rapid cooling. Part Two describes experimental assessments of bacterial growth during meat cooling, including recent Department of Health funded research. There are extensive references to further information on safe cooling of cooked meats.

Softcover - 133 pages