Microbial risk assessment (MRA) 
Our programmes in MRA will make a significant contribution to the advancement of food safety. MRA is one technique for objectively assessing microbiological hazards and risks in food products and processes. CCFRA´s Guidelines on MRA (Guideline No. 28) are valued for their practical approach and, as part of a Member subscription project, they have been put into practice by three Member companies for assessment of specific microbiological risks in particular operations. One looked at the relative risk of Salmonella in lactose powder produced as a ‘high-care’ or a ‘low-care’ product; another compared yeast and Listeria counts in chilled salads and coleslaw to determine if yeast counts could be used as an indicator for Listeria in these products; and the third investigated the effect of changing processing and storage parameters on the risk posed by Clostridium botulinum in modified atmosphere packaged, sliced chicken. We are also doing research for the Food Standards Agency on MRA of Listeria monocytogenes in cooked meat and poultry from a UK perspective. Using paté, cooked chicken, ham and ready-to-eat sausage as representative foods, flow diagrams of the key steps in the production of these foods have been constructed. CCFRA is working with the Health Protection Agency, the Veterinary Laboratories Agency and Unilever Research on this project. Contact: Phil Voysey Identification of insect foreign bodies 
‘What is it, where has it come from and how did it get into my product?’ - the most frequently asked questions of the CCFRA foreign body identification team. Fast diagnostics, knowledge and wide experience combine to provide industry with the information they need to identify the source of contamination, answer consumer complaints, and put procedures into place to prevent recurrence. Insects can often prove the most challenging foreign bodies to identify. Whether or not they have been cooked, identification to species level can often help in determining when and where they gained access to the food. Once identified, other information such as geographical range, preferred habitat and food source can be used in the quest to determine the point of entry into the food chain. "Fresh mixed salads often have ingredients that originate from several different countries and by pinpointing the likely country of origin we can also identify which ingredient was the most likely source of contamination" says Lee Miles, who specialises in insect identification. "Some insects are serious pests of stored products, and the success of many of these is due to their non-specialised food requirements. Insects such as the biscuit beetle can survive on a great variety of materials including spices, nuts, seeds - and even drugs. Identification alone is not enough. An important part of the service is helping people to understand more about the way particular problem insects might behave - it is not always obvious." Contact: Lee Miles Recognition for customer service CCFRA was a finalist in the Customer Focus Award of the Regional (Midlands and East of England) National Business Awards announced in July, reinforcing our recognition as a client-driven business. We were praised for our ‘commitment, hard work and passion’ that led to selection as a finalist. The judges for this sector were looking for organisations that put the customer at the heart of its business, and deployed and managed resources most effectively to meet the needs of its customer base. The active involvement of our Members in making CCFRA a dynamic centre responsive to the challenging requirements of the agri-food chain is appreciated as a significant factor contributing to our recognition in this prestigious Business Award. Reducing trans-fatty acids and/or salt? Product re-formulation to reduce salt and/or trans fatty acids in products is not always as straightforward as it seems. For advice and for development trials contact our product development specialists. Product reformulation and processing trials - Martin George +44(0)1386 842037 e-mail: m.george@campden.co.uk Bakery and cereal products - Paul Catterall +44(0)1386 842152 e-mail: p.catterall@campden.co.uk Sensory testing and consumer trials - David Lyon +44(0)1386 842099 e-mail: d.lyon@campden.co.uk Compositional analysis - Paul Drake +44(0)1386 842197 e-mail: p.drake@campden.co.uk Labelling - Food Law Advisors +44 (0)1386 842210 e-mail: legislation@campden.co.uk
Typical trans fatty acid values of standard foods are included in McCance and Widdowson’s The Composition of Foods published by the Royal Society of Chemistry and the Food Standards Agency. It can be purchased direct from CCFRA, price £45.00 plus post and packing.
Copies available from: Methanol in vodka Our analysts have been looking at the authenticity of alcoholic drinks such as vodka as part of our work for HM Customs and Excise. Methanol is a key compound we look for in this type of investigation. It is highly toxic at elevated concentrations and an upper limit of 500ppm has been set for methanol in absolute alcohol. Recent findings by the Food Standards Agency have suggested that adulterated vodka has been on sale in the UK. Companies wishing to use our analytical expertise in this area should Contact: Jeremy Padfield GM labelling Our legislation and analytical services are providing valuable support to industry as it gets to grips with two recently adopted EU laws on genetically modified organisms (GMOs). These establish a clear EU system to trace and label GMOs and to regulate the placing on the market and labelling of food and feed products derived from GMOs. This will demand full traceability from farm to table and also require the provision of comprehensive information to consumers through additional labelling. In addition to an alerting and advisory service on legislation we also offer practical advice and assessment on whether a food contains GMOs through the use of audit trails for identity-preserved systems to product analysis using DNA based techniques. Contacts: Minimising risk pays off ‘A downturn in insurance costs is due primarily to the increased attention given by companies within the food industry to minimising risk. In addition to this, by working in partnership with insurers and brokers, the individual risks associated with each business are better understood, thus enabling more tailored underwriting.’ This is one of the conclusions reached by AON Insurance Brokers in a benchmarking study of 100 food industry clients (see www.aon.co.uk/food ), and presented at their recent seminar held at CCFRA on the latest insurance market and risk management best practices. Other topics included product contamination and product recall, supply chain risk management and property loss control. Contacts: www.campden.co.uk - recent additions for members only Factsheet - Salt analysis; Pesticide withdrawals and MRLs; Tin in canned food. www.campden.co.uk/research/factsheets.htm Scientific & Technical Strategy for the agri-food chain, developed by CCFRA Members. www.campden.co.uk/membersonly/members/strategy.htm Summary sheets of each research project undertaken in 2002. www.campden.co.uk/research/sumweb2002.htm Minutes of the twelve Technical Panel meetings held in May/June . www.campden.co.uk/research/panels/panels.htm Campden Day June 2003 - list of the 77 technical and information posters presented on the day, plus contacts. www.campden.co.uk/members/cday.htm Campden Lecture 2003 - Globalisation - Opportunity or Threat? by Sir Donald Curry. www.campden.co.uk/members/lecture.htm These can be accessed from the Member log-in link on the Home Page. Contact: webmaster@campden.co.uk New members Campden & Chorleywood is delighted to welcome the following new members who joined in July 2003:
Contact: Bertrand Emond or Sally Easton Please notify the Membership Department of any name or address changes with respect to our mailing list. Publications - order on-line at www.campden.co.uk Food packaging: an introduction A book explaining the basics of food packaging and its role as an integral part of the food product has been published by CCFRA. After describing the main packaging materials - metal, glass, paper and board, and plastics - and the benefits and limitations of each, it looks at the main functions of packaging, covering its roles in food safety, physical protection, marketing and conveying information. This leads into an example-based discussion of the importance of compatibility between the food, the process and the package, and how this has culminated in developments such as MAP and active and intelligent packaging. The growing role of environmental issues in shaping decisions on packaging is also considered. This, the latest in the Key Topics in Food Science and Technology series, is priced at £25 per copy for CCFRA members and £30 per copy for non-members. Technical contact: Tim Hutton, CCFRA, Tel +44(0)1386 842047 e-mail t.hutton@campden.co.uk Publications sales: Carol Newman CCFRA Tel. +44(0)1386 842048 Fax +44(0)1386 842100 Microbiological safety articles CCFRA´s safefood Library contains over 1,000 hyper-linked articles on various aspects of food safety, with the emphasis on food microbiology. Provided on a CD-ROM, it works like a large website with a front screen that provides access to articles by theme (e.g. microbiological food poisoning) or via an extensive index of key words. A demonstration version, containing the full list of indexed terms, can be found at http://www.campden.co.uk/publ/pubfiles/safefood/topics.htm. Originally part of the safefood Process Design System, the safefood Library has been made available as a stand alone product following feedback from those users who wished to use the articles but did not need the full power of the whole software tool. A single user licence is £50 plus VAT.
Contact: Mrs. Carol Newman, Publications Officer, CCFRA, |