PHEW Flashcards
Define a microbiological criterion
A criterion defining the acceptability of a product/batch of foodstuffs/process, based on the absence, presence or number of microorganisms, and/or the quantity of their toxins/metabolites, per unit of mass, volume, area or batch
What does ALOP stand for?
Appropriate level of protection
What does HACCP stand for?
Hazard analysis and critical control point
Why are inspections in place?
Used by food buyers to reduce the likelihood of purchasing a product that may be of unacceptable safety or quality
What do microbiological guidelines indicate?
The expected microbial content of a food when best practices are applied
What are the 2 methods for sampling meat carcasses for bacteria?
Destructive (excision with scalpel blade or borer)
Non-destructive (wet/dry swabs, contact)
Which method do you use to sample meat for salmonella?
Swabbing
Which method do you use to sample meat for TAC and enterobacteriaceae?
Swabbing or excision
When should carcasses be sampled for bacteria?
After they’ve been finally inspected and before chilling
When transporting bacteriological samples from meat carcasses, what temp should they be stored at?
4oC to avoid changes to the level of microbiota
What is the difference between a hazard and a risk?
A risk is quantifiable ie hazard x probability.
A hazard can cause harm, whereas the risk is the likelihood of it happening
What is the difference between FSO (food safety objective) and PO (performance objective)?
FSO= maximum frequency and/or concentration of a hazard in a food at the time of consumption PO= maximum frequency and/or concentration of a hazard in a food at a specified step in the food chain before the time of consumption
What is a critical control point?
A step at which a control can be applied; and is essential to prevent or eliminate a food safety hazard or “reduce it to acceptable levels”
What is the difference between food safety criteria and process hygiene criteria?
Food Safety Criteria: criterion defining the acceptability of a product or a batch of foodstuff applicable to products placed on the market
Process Hygiene Criteria: criterion indicating that the production process is functioning in an acceptable way
What are the on-site duties of the FSA team at an abattoir?
Auditing of FBO responsibilities Welfare investigations Reporting of notifiable diseases to APHA Inspection (ante and post mortem) Residue sampling
Who carries out ante mortem inspections of cattle before slaughter?
OV
When should cattle be tested for BSE at slaughter?
Over 48 months (EU countries)
Over 24 months (non EU) if sent for emergency slaughter or observed at ante mortem inspection to have serious physiological and functional problems
Over 30 months (non EU) that are healthy at slaughter
Where is BSE testing carried out?
Brainstem- ‘obex’ region
What should happen to unacceptable bits of meat on a carcass (beef)?
Should be trimmed not washed
Why should meat be stored on trays that allow blood to drip onto the floor?
Blood is an ideal medium for bacteria
Why are carcasses bled out?
Blood is a good medium for bacteria. Meat containing more blood is more perishable
Give the recommended temperatures for storing different types of meat
7oC red meat
4oC chicken
3oC offal
-20oC frozen
In which parts of the brain is scrapie testing carried out? Why?
Brainstem and cerebellum
Allows classical scrapie to be differentiated from atypical scrapie
What 3 things are included in a meat inspection stamp?
Country of origin
Individual animal number
Official controls in accordance with European regulation eg EC
When would you use a square meat inspection stamp?
Emergency slaughter outside the slaughterhouse or from low throughput slaughterhouses
What does it mean if a carcass has an oval meat inspection stamp?
It has undergone ante and post mortem inspections and is fit for human consumption
Why might you withhold a health mark at post mortem inspection?
Failure of ante or post mortem inspection
Loss of animal ID ie traceability
Presence of SRM
Contamination or gross pathology
Residues or contaminants are suspected
Water supply is found to be contaminated and there is a risk to public health
Animal has a notifiable disease
Meat declared by the OV to be unfit for human consumption
No adequate inspection facilities/ gross pathology is inconspicuous
What is the SRM in cattle?
All ages: tonsils, intestines from duodenum to rectum, mesentery
Over 12 months: skull (exc mandible but including eyes and brain), spinal cord
Over 30 months: vertebral column inc dorsal root ganglia but excluding tail vertebrae, spinous and transverse processes of the cervical, thoracic and lumbar vertebrae, median sacral crest and wings of sacrum
What is the SRM in sheep?
All ages: spleen and ileum
Over 12 months (or permanent incisors erupted): skull (inc brain and eyes), tonsils, spinal cord
What % of pigs sent for slaughter are required to have samples collected and examined for Trichinella?
10% from holdings that are officially recognised as applying controlled housing conditions
All carcasses from holdings that are not
All pigs, horses and wild boar that are being exported to the EU (except frozen pork)
What temperature should pork be cooked at to prevent trichinellosis?
71oC internal temp
What is ALOP?
Appropriate Level Of Protection
-Level of protection a country deems appropriate to protect health/life
What is FSO?
Food Safety Objective
-Max frequency/conc of a hazard that you can have in a food at the time of consumption
What are OiE and CODEX?
- Frameworks for risk analysis
- OiE= general risks
- CODEX= food safety risks
How may HACCP principles are there?
7
What is MAP?
Modified Atmosphere Packaging
What MAP (Modified Atmosphere Packaging) is required for red meat, and poultry/cured meat?
- Red meat= O2 and CO2
- Poultry and cured meat= O2 and N2
What is PO?
Performance objective (the max amount of something at a certain step in production)
What is PC?
Performance criteria (what a control measure’s effect must be on the conc of a hazard in a food)
What is PrC?
Process criteria (the process of the control measure eg time and temp needed to properly pasterise milk)
What is MC?
Microbiological criteria
What are the 2 types of microbiological criteria?
- Food safety criteria (the criteria for the acceptability of a product/batch)
- Process hygiene criteria (criteria that indicate that the process is functioning acceptably; tells you the max limit of something before you have to change/correct the process)
What do n, m and c stand for in a sampling plan?
What about M?
n= no of samples being tested m= max. acceptable no of relevant bacteria/gra, c= max. no of units that can exceed m M= max. limit for what you can get away with (although m is the ideal max limit)
Give some example of how you can take samples of meat for testing
- Carcass excision
- Wet/dry swabbing (carcass and equipment)
- Whole carcass rinse for poultry
- Meat samples (10g or 25g)
- Batch samples (25g or 25ml-food product or raw material)
In-house labs are used for testing which meat?
Poultry
Which sites are sampled on a pig carcass?
- Jowl
- Ham (hindquarters)
- Belly
- Back
Which sites are sampled on a cow carcass?
- Rump
- Neck
- Brisket
- Flank
Which sites are sampled on a sheep carcass?
- Flank
- Breast
- Brisket
- Lateral thorax
Give some examples of micro-organisms that cause food spoilage
- Pseudomnas
- Clostridia
- Bacilla
- Aspergillus
Give some examples of micro-organisms that cause food poisoning
- E.coli
- Salmonella
- Campylobacter
- Listeria
Which pH range do the following prefer:
- Bacteria
- Yeasts
- Filamentous fungi
- Bacteria: 6-8
- Yeasts: 4.5-6
- Filamentous fungi: 3.5-4
Most bacteria can’t survive if the water activity (Aw) is below what?
<0.90 Aw
What is the best way to prevent microbial growth in food?
Low pH plus low water activity
What causes the following abnormalities on food:
- White spots on surface
- Black spots on surface
- Green/blue mould
- White spots on surface: Sporotrichium carnis
- Black spots on surface: Cladosporium herbarum
- Green/blue mould: Penecillium
Why is it best to package meat with CO2 and N2?
Makes carbonic acid so lowers pH (prevents bacterial growth by affecting enzymes and nutrient transport)
Why is it best to freeze meat very quickly?
Crystallizes and bursts microbial cells
Freezing to which temperature is best?
-12oC (some fungi can survive at -10oC)
When salting meat, what should the salt % be?
2-6% salt with <200mg/kg nitrile
Give the temperature ranges for cold, warm and hot smoking
Cold= 30oC Warm= 40-60oC Hot= 70-80oC
What is fermentation?
Intensive phase of growth of lactic acid bacteria, with a rapid pH fall
Drying removes what % of water from meat?
90%
How can you class products based on their water content?
- High-moisture products: Aw 0.9-1.0 eg cooked ham
- Intermediate-moisture products: Aw 0.6-0.9 eh dried ham
- Low-moisture products: Aw <0.6
Pasteurisation heats food to what temperature?
Where should they be stored?
<100oC
Fridge
Boiling heats food to what temperature?
Where should they be stored?
- Heats water at 100oC (product centre reaches 80-90oC)
- Fridge
Commercial sterilisation heats food to what temperature?
Where should they be stored?
- > 100oC
- Can be stored for years without refrigeration
How should vacuum-packed meat be stored?
What pH should it be?
<2oC
<5.8 to avoid green sulphonomyoglobin
What are the 3 classes of eggs?
- Class A: clean, undamaged, air space <6mm
- Class B: dirty, air space <9mm
- Class C: dirty, misshapen, cracked, air space >9mm
Briefly describe egg production in the hen
- Yolk and 1 vitelline membrane leave the left ovary
- Get covered in albumin (egg white) in the magnum
- Shell gland of uterus: membranes, shell, cuticle
- 25 hours in chicken
What is the egg cuticle made of?
Glycoprotein
What is the target % for Salmonella in eggs?
2%
What does the Lion Mark on eggs represent?
Salmonella vaccinated
How do you test for Salmonella in broilers?
Must sample 2 boot swabs per flock, within 3 weeks before slaughter
How do you test for Salmonella in layers?
- Sample any dead chick and chick boxes
- Sample 2 boot swabs 2 weeks before placement
- Sample 2 boot swabs/faeces at 22-26 wks old for pulets, then every 15 weeks
What happens if layers test positive for Salmonella?
Eggs can’t be classed as Class A
How is blood affected by Anthrax on a PM?
Clots poorly
Which cows must undergo BSE testing at slaughter?
- All healthy cows over 48 months
- All cows over 24 months which have been subject to emergency slaughter/found at ante-mortem inspection to have observations concerning accidents.serious physiological and functional problems
Which pigs must undergo trichinella testing at slaughter?
- All carcasses of breeding sows and boars
- 10% of carcasses sent for slaughter per year from holdings classed as having ‘controlled housing conditions’
- All carcasses from holdings not recognised as applying controlled housing conditions
What must you do if an animal on farm cannot be transported to the abattoir as doing so would cause additional suffering?
- Kill humanely ASAP
- Inform FBO
- Report to APHA/Trading Standards
When is an ante-mortem inspection carried out and by who?
- Within 24 hours of animal’s arrival at slaughterhouse and less than 24 hours prior to slaughter
- By OV
How long can red meat animals be housed in the lairage for?
No more than 48 hours
What % of birds must be inspected before slaughter?
20%
Give an exception to OV ante-mortem inspection
An OV or approved veterinarian (AV) has carried out an ante-mortem inspection at the farm. Animal must come with a health certificate
Give examples of animals which are not fit for transport to the abattoir
- Unable to move independently without pain or to walk unassisted
- Severe open wound or prolapse
- Pregnant females for which 90% of the gestation period has passed/females who have given birth the previous week
- They are newborn and the navel has not completely healed
- Calves <10 days old
Sick or injured animals may only be considered fit for transport under which conditions?
- Transport would not cause additional suffering
- If the illness/injury is part of a research programme
- Transported under veterinary supervision for or following treatment/diagnosis
- Have been subjected to veterinary procedures in relation to farming practices eg de-horning, provided that wounds have completely healed
How many ear tags must cattle have?
2
What means of traceability must pigs have?
Slap-marks (tattoos)/eartags and movement licences
Who must be informed if an animal does not have any means of traceability?
Local authority/Trading Standards
What is included in the FCI (food chain information)?
- Disease status
- Knowledge of residues
- Movement restrictions of the holding area (eg TB)
- More extensive in chickens
What is contained in Section IX part IIa of a horse passport?
Owner declaration to stop horse entering the food chain (allows for a broader range of medication to be used)
What should happen in the abattoir if a positive result for Salmonella is indicated on the FCI?
- Retain the affected batch and slaughter at the end of the production day, then do a full clean of the equipment
- If a positive batch has been processed, stop as soon as they’ve been processed and do a full clean down
What defence mechanisms does an egg have?
- Cuticle made of glycoprotein covers the shells pores
- Shell composed mainly of calcium carbonate
- Inner and outer membrane: thin layers of protein fibres
- Albumen: viscosity impedes movement of microbes, and has a pH of 9.2, also has antimicrobial activity
Give some examples of conditions that would render all parts of an animal unfit for human consumption
Septicaemia Pyaemia Jaundice Emaciation Toxaemia (some exceptions) Viraemia Anaemia Uraemia
Which methods of traceability must cattle have before being slaughtered?
Passport 2 eartags (primary= large yellow plastic, secondary= small yellow plastic, or steel tag)
Which methods of traceability must pigs have before being slaughtered?
Slap-marks/tattoos or eartags
Which methods of traceability must sheep have before being slaughtered?
Electronic identification (eartags)
Which methods of traceability must horses have before being slaughtered?
Passport, microchip
