International regulation of the presence of microorganisms in food

The food industry has always been and will continue to be one of the most important market segments, as its main task is to satisfy basic needs. The main feature of this field of activity is that the products produced by it are in direct contact with the body of the end consumer. Thus, the presence of unsafe micro-organisms in foodstuffs can cause great harm to health. Of course, in drawing these conclusions, we take into account not only food for people, but also food for animals. It is worth noting that animal feed must, in the same way as food for humans, undergo research to confirm their safety for the body. It is especially worth emphasizing the importance of analyzing food products, based on the huge variety of microorganisms that, for one reason or another, can get into their composition. Each microorganism, microbiotic strain or other substance that can be found in food can pose a separate potential threat. Therefore, each type of food product must undergo its own multi-level verification. In order to unify these analyzes, as well as to ensure safety and quality, international standards are being created that are constantly updated taking into account new microbiological discoveries. The information that we have prepared for you in this article will help you increase your competitiveness in the market, as well as strengthen your position.

Animal feeding stuffs: Methods of sampling and analysis - Detection and enumeration of Saccharomyces cerevisiae used as feed additive

EN 15789:2021

Probiotics are food supplements that help to normalize the intestinal microflora of animals, as well as maintain the health of the body as a whole. Despite the beneficial properties of probiotics, their presence and content in animal feed products should be controlled and strictly dosed. It should be noted that there are a huge number of varieties of probiotic strains, one of which is Saccharomyces cerevisiae, the analysis method of which is described in the international standard, such as EN 15789:2021.

This document specifies general rules for the enumeration of Saccharomyces cerevisiae in feeding stuffs (additives, premixtures and compound feeds excluding mineral feeds) that contain Saccharomyces cerevisiae as a single microorganism component or in a mixture with other microorganisms. Applying the method to premixtures and compound feeds with critical amounts of copper demands a special procedure (see Annex A). The document is not applicable to mineral feeds, which are defined as complementary feeding stuffs composed mainly of minerals and containing at least 40 % crude ash (Regulation (EC) 767/2009) [3].


There are different categories of feed samples:


a)   Additives containing about 1010 colony forming units (CFU)/g;


b)   Premixtures containing about 1011 CFU/kg;


c)   Compound feeds, meal or pellets which contain about 109 CFU/kg.

The beneficial properties of probiotics have long been a proven truth. The presence of these nutritional elements in animal feed is the key to the health of the animal, which, in turn, is the main goal of entrepreneurs who are engaged in animal husbandry. The production of animal feed must be subject to strict regulations, so we advise you to familiarize yourself with the text of this standard if you want to be a leader in your segment.

Animal and vegetable fats and oils - Determination of fatty-acid-bound chloropropanediols (MCPDs) and glycidol by GC/MS - Part 1: Method using fast alkaline transesterification and measurement for 3-MCPD and differential measurement for glycidol

EN ISO 18363-1:2021

The presence of glycidyl ethers in food can, under certain conditions, be harmful to the human body, so this indicator must be controlled in accordance with international quality and safety standards. Given the potential hazard, products such as oils and fats must be tested so that the manufacturer can provide a guarantee of their safety. One of the research methodologies is described in an international standard such as EN ISO 18363-1:2021.

This part of ISO 18363 describes a procedure for the indirect determination of 3-MCPD esters (bound 3-MCPD) and possible free 3-MCPD after alkaline catalysed ester cleavage and derivatization with phenylboronic acid (PBA). Furthermore, this part of ISO 18363 enables the indirect determination of glycidyl esters (bound glycidol) under the assumption that no other substances are present that react at room temperature with inorganic chloride to generate 3-MCPD.
This part of ISO 18363 is applicable to solid and liquid fats and oils. Milk and milk products (or fat coming from milk and milk products) are excluded from the scope of this part of ISO 18363. We advise you to pay attention to the scope of this standard, namely, that its requirements do not apply to dairy products, so if your company is engaged in production in this industry, then you should pay attention to other documents. However, if you are engaged in the production of animal and vegetable fats and oils, then it will be useful for you to implement this information into your work.

Animal and vegetable fats and oils - Determination of fatty-acid-bound chloropropanediols (MCPDs) and glycidol by GC/MS - Part 3: Method using acid transesterification and measurement for 2-MCPD, 3-MCPD and glycidol

EN ISO 18363-3:2021

Foods that contain fatty acids may also contain substances that can harm the human body. Among such substances, we can include chloropropanediols (MCPD) and glycide. It is these substances in the composition of foods that can provoke fertility problems, so it is worth carefully monitoring their presence. An international standard has been created for this purpose such as EN ISO 18363-3:2021.

This document specifies a procedure for the simultaneous determination of 2-MCPD esters (bound 2-MCPD), 3‐MCPD esters (bound 3‐MCPD) and glycidyl esters (bound glycidol) in a single assay, based on acid catalysed ester cleavage and derivatization of cleaved (free) analytes with phenylboronic acid (PBA) prior to GC/MS analysis.


This document is applicable to solid and liquid fats and oils. For all three analytes the limit of quantification (LOQ) is 0,1 mg/kg and the limit of detection (LOD) is 0,03 mg/kg. A feature of the international standard that we discussed above is that the information in it can be applied to solid and liquid fats and oils, which in turn makes it very useful for companies that manufacture these products. You can read the full text of the standard on our website.

Microbiology of the food chain - Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) for the detection of microorganisms - Thermal performance testing of thermal cyclers

EN ISO 20836:2021

Before being on the counter, and later on the consumer's table, food products must go through a multi-level verification process in order to exclude the presence of unsafe microorganisms for the human body. Given the high importance of this analysis, it becomes obvious how important it is to have the right equipment for these purposes. One of the necessary equipment are thermal cyclers, which in turn have a number of important characteristics. All requirements for the use of thermal cyclers are described in the international standard EN ISO 20836:2021.

This document specifies requirements for the installation, maintenance, temperature calibration and temperature performance testing of standard thermal cyclers and real-time thermal cyclers. It is applicable to the detection of microorganisms as well as any other applications in the food chain using polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-based methods.
This document has been established for food testing, but is also applicable to other domains using thermal cyclers (e.g. environmental, human health, animal health, forensic testing).

Thermal cyclers are widely used in industry to test food products for the presence of microorganisms. However, it is also worth noting that this equipment can be used in other industries such as healthcare and environmental protection. Particularly noteworthy is the fact that this International Standard can be used for these areas too. Given the wide range of uses for this document, we encourage you to read it in its entirety on our website.

Animal feeding stuffs: Methods of sampling and analysis - Detection and enumeration of Enterococcus (E. faecium) spp. used as feed additive

EN 15788:2021

Lactic acid bacteria of the genus Enterococcus (E. faecium) are an important component of the healthy intestinal microflora of mammals. Based on this, their presence in animal feed becomes a condition for the proper functioning of the intestinal tract of animals. However, like other probiotics, they can only provide benefits to the body if they are in sufficient, controlled amounts. In order to control the number of these microorganisms in animal feed, an international standard has been created EN 15788:2021.

This document specifies general rules for the enumeration of enterococci (E. faecium) in feeding stuffs (additives, premixtures and compound feeds excluding mineral feeds) that contain enterococci as a single microorganism component or in a mixture with other microorganisms. Applying the method to premixtures and compound feeds with critical amounts of copper demands a special procedure (see A.2). The document is not applicable to mineral feeds which are defined as complementary feeding stuffs composed mainly of minerals and containing at least 40 % crude ash (Regulation (EC) 767/2009) [4].


There are different categories of feed samples: 
a)   Additives containing about 1010 colony forming units (CFU)/g;


b)   Premixtures containing 1011 CFU/kg;


c)   Compound feeds, meal or pellets which contain about 109 CFU/kg.

There are different types of animal feed, and based on this classification, each of them has its own allowable content of lactic acid bacteria of the genus Enterococcus (E. faecium). In turn, these regulations force manufacturers of this product to carefully control the production process. If your company is interested in producing a quality product in accordance with international standards, you should pay attention to this international standard.

The need to analyze food products for the presence of hazardous constituents

Food production is invariably associated with the risk of contamination with microorganisms that can be dangerous to the human body, or animals in the case of animal feed. Therefore, the challenge for manufacturing companies is to ensure the safety of their products. To achieve this confidence, it is necessary to carry out multi-level testing of food products before they reach the final consumer. The main difficulty lies in the fact that there are so many microorganisms, and therefore each individual species must be tested separately using the appropriate analysis technology. Given the fact that food testing may require several different methods, we anticipate that you may need advice in selecting the appropriate International Standards for your company. Therefore, if your company is interested in increasing profits and increasing its competitive position in the market, then you can seek advice from our specialists.

References:

https://standards.iteh.ai/catalog/standards/sist/2aa3adaa-e2fe-40bb-9d4c-01730eea024e/sist-en-15789-2022 https://standards.iteh.ai/catalog/standards/sist/91990733-a7a6-414d-bce8-27aa4c75a2dd/sist-en-iso-18363-1-2022 https://standards.iteh.ai/catalog/standards/sist/756ad273-ceec-4700-900f-34c29cb95655/sist-en-iso-18363-3-2022 https://standards.iteh.ai/catalog/standards/sist/23ac4c73-47bc-4939-8cd9-51d36cdb79e7/sist-en-iso-20836-2022 https://standards.iteh.ai/catalog/standards/sist/5cbdd233-d59b-45b1-9e9a-74c93d478e0c/sist-en-15788-2022