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    11 views3 pages

    fm4 - Foreign Object Hazards, 2012

    Uploaded by

    Luis Gallegos

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    © All Rights Reserved
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    By Karl Heinz Wilm Foreign Object Detection: Integration in Food Production Physical contamination hazards can cause serious food safety issues tones in lentils or beans may damage a tot. ‘Year ago, home cooks checked lentils for stones to protect their family from any harm. The num- ber of occurences of foreign materialsin food is, now becoming less frequent, and consumers are less used to checking primary foodstuffs for stones, sharp metal pieces or bones, asthe foed industry continuously improves the saféty and quality of ther producs. ‘However, this trend also decreases public acceptance for such occurrences to alevel that approaches *zer0 tolerance” Any incidence of foreign material harms the consumer, undermines confidence in the brand and generates headlines. The name of the producer and the grocery chain that sold the article are widely reported. Current Regulations around the World US. Feod and Drug Administration (FDA) Regulations on Audition Involving Had or Sharp Foreign Objeas ‘A physical hazard in food is any extraneous object or foceign matter that may cause illness or injury to the con- ‘Consumers do not expect hard or sharp components in foods where keme's are normally removed, such as cherries opted olives. Hand or sharp pit fagments are unexpected and may cause serious harm if ingested FDA considers a product adulterated if it contains a hard or shayp foreign object that measures 7 mm to 25 mm in length, and is eady-to-eat or requires only ‘minimal preparation steps that would not eliminate, in validate or neutralize the hazand prior 10 consumption.’ Foreign ebjects smaller than 7 mm rarely cause trauma or ious injury ex cept in special highisk groups, suchas infants, surgery patients and the elderly? Glass the most frequently reported foreign material in food to cause illness or injury In 1995, the U.S. Depanment of Ag ficulture Food Safety and Inspection Ser- rice concluded that bone particles less than I cm are not a safety hazard; par ticles 1-2 cm are low risk; and particles srcater than 2 em have the potential to be a safety hazard and may cause injury? Foreign material other than bone say pose a potential hazard, and each instance should be considered on a case- by-case basis, inespective of size. FDA Health Hazard Evaluation Board conchisions in exes of foreign saterials (1972-1997) found that 55 percent of objects 1-6 mm in size might pose limited acute hazard, For objects seater than 6 mm, only 2.9 percent were judged to present no hazard Section 402(2\3) ofthe Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act prohibits the distribu- tion of foods that may contain repalsive matter, considered as filth, such as in- sects, Most consumes find the presence of any visible fith contaminant, such a hair a food product, nauseating Canadian Regulations Canadian regulations support the FDA concept bused on the 7 mm to 25 sam size criterion. Thete limits are not followed by Furope in its regulations on the hygiene of foodstuis, EU Regulations on Pysiced Hezards in Foods All food products sold in the EU rust comply with regulations on the hygiene of foodstuff, which demand, above all, that these products must be safe. All potential biological, chemical Foon Sarerr MaGArine cor physical hazards must be prevented, climinated or brought down to an ac ceptable safety level. To achieve such a level of safety, food processors, packagers and distributors should use the Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP) concept, complemented with 4 quality control system, such as Good ‘Manufacturing Practices (GMP3) or ISO ‘9000. European regulations introduced the HACCP concept, which obliges food producers to install safety measures toavoid physical hazards and maintsin documentation of all events."* Hard or sharp for ign objects in foods “i may cause injury including lacerations of the mouth, throat, stomach and intestine. Safety concepts, such asHACCP, ae being introduced globally They must cover all stages ofthe produc- tion process fom primary production to real sales. Types of Physical Hazards ‘The type of foreign objects in foot affects the technology needed to detect it (Glas: Sharp glass contamination often occurs during filling processes in als containers ifa containe i acciden: tally broken. Another source, bu less frequent, is ight bulbs broken during building maintenance. ‘Maia: Sharp retal objects may in- clude screws and equipment splinter, bes, broken veterinary needles, fag ‘ments and clippings of prior processing procedures Plastics Soft and haed plastics may come from packaging material ofan in- termediary production phase. Wind: Wood splinters may have their ovigin atthe farm or may come from handling wooden pallets ‘Stones: Small zones are common in crops like peas or beans contaminated dating harves. Seley object of Tlie tas) Specific characteristics of foreign bodies asiocisted with increased hazard, such 28 size, shape, hardness, pliabilty and elasticity, must be better defined to identify risky foods for children up to 4 years of age. Nuts and seeds are one of the most common food items leading toinjuries in children. Control of the hhuzatd level of various foods should be improved, and warming labels on high- risk foods are suggested." Medical repors on life-threatening incidents of physcal hazardsin food are plentiful, Several medical reports underline the severity of swallowing food containing sharp objects. Although most pass harmlessy through the gastointes- tinal act and conservative management is generally rxommendel, 10 0 20 per ‘ent requite nonoperative interventions and approximately 1 percent require surgery. An estimated 1,500 deaths eccur annually from foreign object ingestion in the US." Most upper gastrointestinal foreign objects are related to food ingestion, and meat products are most often found to be the origin of such events ‘The removal of sharp foreign objects from the esophagus can be dangerous and challenging, Hyun et al describe proper apparatus and appropriate tech nnigues that should be employed to avoid life-thxeatening complications. These authors present a procedure for recover~ {ng fish bones from the esophagus. “The types of foreign-object swallow: ing incidences in children include coins (57%), button batteries (22%, sharp ‘objects (124), chicken bones (2.390) nd cher (6.70) Preventing Common Physical Hazards Care taken to protect the consumer covers bulk food production, portioned packaged foods at grocery stores and fast feod, The complete production chain snust identify small particles of metal, hiss, wood, plastic fragments, stones and other Foreign objects, such as moths and beetles, that hurt the consumer or eause a nauseating reaction. Controls should include the following: SS Octosen @ Novewsen 2012 Colgiy ein a conit=s thi Every type of food processing has its own specific and potential hazards Evaluation of the type of produc, the intended market for the product and other factors must be considered to de- termine the rsk category of a possible physical hazard, ‘The Canadian Food Inspection Ager ‘ey rates the likelihood of occurrence of physical hazards based on the level of ‘control a food processor can exercise to eliminate the tisk!" Lone risk: WF good control measures have been esablished, but ‘Medium rise Uf some control measutes were established, but inconsistencies occur. High risk Ulnele or 10 control was estab lished, major and ert cal infiactions occur. Foreign material smay occur naturally in raw materials and food ingredients, such 3 stones in lentils or ‘bones in fish or meat. Tt may be added unintentionally dur- ing processing due to poor equipment, a5 4 reslt of maintenance work or con struction in the vicinity of an operating production line. However, it may also be deliberately added tothe food during processing or at gocery retail as an act of blackmail, revenge or mental disordes, Controlling Physical Hazards Tt isnecessay to implement GMPS, 1S 9000 and ingredient specifications, such as determining that containers are ‘weld-seaed to exclude staples and plastic ‘rtwist tes, A vendor's certification for raw materials must include physical hazard controls. The use of foreign mate rial sereening equipment and employee training throughout the whole process ing chain is stongly recommended. ‘An effective physical hazard iden- tification progam requires detailed foreign ay Caus + Inspection of raw materials and ingre- dieats, looking for field contaminants + Provision of good storage facilities, usage of lamp covers to avoid bul breakage and maintenance of effective pest control Development of specifications and controls forall ingredients and components information for every step ofthe food processing line To obtain such informa- tion, the production processes must be closely observed during all phases of their operation. Procedures to control physical hazards can be determined with such observations, and a Control Point can be included in the HACCP plan, itis strongly recommenided to be ‘more stringent than the required 7 mim 10 25 mm rule of FDA. A customer will bbe outraged if he finds a 3d-mum plastic piece in ajar of pata sauce or Samm hard surch lumps in baby food. Fruit stones, flavor lumps, bone chips, metal fragments, broken injection needles, shotgun pallets pieces of packaging, stones, glas pit fragments insects or ‘other fh materials ate serious probs Jems. Such foreign materials represent badly maintained facilities and equip- ‘ment, improper production procedures and poorly conducted employee train- ing. Any and all are a potentially kthal blow to consumer tus. Points of Origin and HACCP Corrective Steps Control methods include raw material inspection and specification, vendor er tification and leters of guarantees, metal detectors, Xay technolo. efectve pest control at the fcility, preventive equip- ‘ment maintenance and proper sanitation procedures Alo important are proper shipping, receiring and storage practices as well as tamper-proof ortamperevi dent packaging. The food categories, in decreasing order of comphint frequency, are pas- ‘tis, soft drinks, vegetables, infant foods, fruits, cereals, fish, chocolate and cocoa products. OF 10,564 cases of foreign obiectiniu- siesin children included in the Susy Safe Project Registry, 26 percent were due 10 food item, result in complications and prolonged hospitalizaion, Bones re the most commonly retrieved food foreign object, while nuts were most fre- quently associated with complications. The critical group ranging from 2to 3 Years of age requires special food surveil lance.” Fooo SAFETY MACAZINE Effective detection and elimination systems for physical hazards, such as metal detectors or magnets to remove meul partides; use of X-ray and low- ower microwave systems to detect nonmetallic materials Periodic training of employees en- aged with chipping, receiving, stor (continued on page 81) What to Do With the Guidelines saunjapl soueyduie>, VWIMALStT Now That You Have Cook-in-Pack® easing pty feet open le eguaion and ony serrate che Take a closer look at Cook-In-Pack: Exempt os rom tia giles 707216 Ale compe etre 208, inte suse profocton re ape nt pects oy nc tt en pn pac i Won ht ers AND conver tae VUE ere lea (continued from page 12) ing, handling end equipment main tenance that encompasses the entire food production chain, including: Axgiesitural Produston ‘These include grains, vegetables, big farms and small organic businesses. ‘Meu detectays: Metal detectors find splinters from machinery, fractions of broken euters and blades, needles, screws or fragments of clips. X-ray detectors: These respond to metal, stone, bone, hard plastics and Teflon. Both systems can screen the product afer the iilling procedure. Xray Meat Production Care should be taken at Farms, abat- toirs and retail; knives, mincers, meat slicers, vacuum bowl cutters and broken injection needles must be scanned. Transportaion Special care is needed for bull trans portation; recovery after road accidents should be observed. Food Processing Faaory The dally maintenance of transport belts must be assured (Figure 1). Well detectors may find glass pieces that result . ig Figure 1: Transport Bes sanitized machines that look very good may bear many hazards of foreign bod- iesin foo, lile broken parts of defective systems. Audits should concentrate on these problems and daily inspections of peeling machines and vegetable slicers Groery Chains Personnel should he tnined to be at tentive to prevent packaging adulteration or criminal atempts of extortion Hespiality Resaurants, hotels and fastfood chains should consider introducing GMPeand HACCP, not Technology for Ds Foreign Particles when ajar or bottle is crushed during ‘malfunction of the packaging line. ‘Near fi radar respons: Forcign bod: Jesare detected in embedding material by transmitting low-power microwaves through the material, as explained by the Swedish Institute for Food and Bio- technology and the Food Radar System. (ERS). The system wies a microwave Every product presents special tedh- ISIARERHOWLEDGEANDNEN Wonk wm | “6>.2» MARCH 2013 nological challenges. Translucent and OVE Bt OODSACTYexPcxTS | HoTELREY JUAN CARLOS ‘opaque liquid filled in botles, colored FROMOVER GOICOUNTRIES®| BARCELONA, SPAN ‘opaque paste packages, sin cans or milk catons respond differently to avilable detection systems (Figure 2) Octoser @ Novewser 2012 sensor designed for emulsions and pumpable preducts, Ir measures the didlectric propertis of the food flow of processing equipment. Foreign materials produce adeviation ftom the norm, ac- tivating a pneamatic rejection unit. The system not only detects denser foreign objects but alo is particularly suited to forcign objects such as wood, plastic, Food Safety Regulation Compliance Resources [METTLER TOLEDO has fong been the produc inspection dusty leader in food sally adueotian with out Safeline malal detection ond x-ray inspeclon brand, |Wo hove launched a yeor-1ng itive fo provide you wth he ight raining. ‘educational mater and product solutions tha wl enable you to navigate the food safely regulatory environment wth confidence Visit www.mt.com/PINA-FoodSafotyResourcos ‘to learn morel Contact us for mora information at 800-221-2624 ‘or visit www.mt.com/pi TOLEDO METTLER bone, extraneous vegetable matter, on- taminants such as fruit stones and nut kemels and process faults such as flavor and starch lurnpe in baby foods. FRS mast be installed within the pipe system, before packaging, Any deviation atthe filling sation is not covered, Conclusions Ample technology exists for detection of foreign material in foodstuffs. To en- sure food safety, this technology should be complemented by quality contro! practices such as HACCP and GMPs, and by ongoing taining of personnel. With proper implementation in the pro: duction Tine, illness or injury to consum: erscan be aveided . ‘Rat et i's coches. te Urersiy ‘eli do Per, et. Ne has 32 year qualy man apemen experience inthe German fod instr References |. aweuda govICEC/ComplznceMansay ComplancePoigrGuddanceManua/vcn73554, hin, 5 wows sda ovjOPPDE/dadFRPA (02.0330/ThePhysicaHazardsfforeignMaterials, pe 4 damuncbi nti gow/pubmed 1029271, 5 wugovmb ca/asticuburefondsafv/ pracessorics02355 him, g-8584o=1098typ-mid document. 7. ur-leveuropaey/lexuiSeryLeiunservdomur #011:20041599001,0038:EN PDE 8 suclexetropa eu) eriSen/Lel Serv do -ti-DU1-2004226 0065-0127: 9, eurlexeurope, rinD/1 20061320206 0520 EN. POF, 10. awe-los justice. g-ca/eng/egulations) CAC,

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