This quiz will take approximately 15 minutes.
To control the microbial quality and safety of food is a growing challenge due to new societal expectations and the need to combine nutritional, chemical, organoleptic quality and environmental constraints.
This unit will teach trainees about the main regulatory requirements concerning the microbial safety of foodstuffs. Regulation (EC) No 178/2002 sets out the basic principles of food law to protect human health and consumer interests. The (EC) N0 852/2004 Regulation lays down general rules for food business operators on the hygiene of foodstuffs. Regulations (EC) N°2073/2005 lays down the food microbiological criteria for certain micro-organisms and the implementing rules to be complied with by food business operators.
The main documented references concerning the unit's topic are listed.
The microbial shelf life of a food corresponds to the period of time during which the food remains within predefined quantitative microbial limits. It begins from the time the food is produced and packed. The microbial shelf life of a food is a food safety control measure that has to be validated by studies laid down in Annex II of Regulation (EC) No 2073/2005.
The main documented references concerning the unit's topic are listed.
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The objective of the unit is to identify the physico-chemical factors that allow the classification of food products:
- not allowing the growth of the undesirable micro-organism
- allowing the growth of the undesirable micro-organism
The main documented references concerning the unit's topic are listed.
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This unit describes the evolution of microbial populations naturally present in a food. It is particularly relevant for validating the microbial shelf life of foods (and related legislation) and to identify quantifiable microorganisms as spoilage microorganisms and hygiene indicators.
The main documented references concerning the unit's topic are listed.
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Challenge tests are studies where the growth of microorganisms artificially inoculated in food is assessed. There are two types of challenge tests: challenge test for growth potential and challenge test for growth rate. These tests are included in legislation for the validation of the microbiological shelf life of ready-to-eat foodstuffs complying with the Listeria monocytogenes microbiological criterion.
The main documented references concerning the unit's topic are listed.
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Predictive microbiology is a discipline that uses mathematical models to predict the behavior of micro-organisms in foods, depending on their physicochemical characteristics and storage conditions.
There are two approaches to design predictive mathematical models: deterministic modelling and stochastic modelling. The deterministic approach considers that the factors influencing the microbial evolution in foods are fixed.
Selected case studies are developed in the unit.
The main documented references concerning the unit's topic are listed.
Predictive microbiology is a discipline that uses mathematical models to predict the behavior of micro-organisms in foods, depending on their physicochemical characteristics and storage conditions.
There are two approaches to design predictive mathematical models: deterministic modelling and stochastic modelling. The stochastic approach considers different sources of variability such as initial contamination by the microorganism, the physical characteristics of the food, and the biological variability of the microbial species under consideration.
Selected case studies are developed in the unit.
The main documented references concerning the unit's topic are listed.
This quiz will take approximately 15 minutes.