Guidance on vacuum packed food safety
The Agency has today published new guidance and a factsheet on the safe production of vacuum and modified atmosphere packed foods. The guidance has been developed for small businesses and environmental health officers to tackle the problem of Clostridium botulinum.
Although vacuum packing techniques increase the shelf-life of chilled foods by removing air, certain bacteria including C. botulinum are still able to grow. C. botulinum is a bacterium that can produce a very harmful toxin that can cause a fatal form of food poisoning – foodborne botulism.
It is therefore important that appropriate controls are in place to keep food safe.
This guidance sets out processes, such as heat treatment, pH and salt levels, that should be used if food businesses are setting a shelf-life of more than ten days.
The technical guidance and the factsheet are available at the link below. A copy of the factsheet is also available to order from Food Standards Agency Publications at: foodstandards@ecgroup.co.uk or tel: 0845 606 0667.
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