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Nestle France Saves Time, Improves Quality with 3MTM PetrifilmTM Plates

inspections and develop thenecessary HACCP techniques. Thisapproach is particularly time-consuming since it means actingline by line, product by product.Petrifilm plates have enabled Nestleto focus on quality assurance, byeliminating the time spent onlaborious tasks such as preparingand handling culture media. Moretime can now be devoted tosampling and training.

Microbiological tests tend to behighly variable, since they involveanalyses of living organisms. Forthis reason, confidence in thequality of culture media and mediapreparation is important. Petrifilmplates offered a standard medium,and solved the preparation andmanagement problems for NestleFrance. This contributed to thequality of their analyses, and hasenabled them to standardize anessential stage of their analyses.

For the Nestle group as a whole,this is of fundamental importance,since it considerably simplifies thedifficulties liable to be encountered

3M™ Petrifilm™ Plates haveenabled Nestle France to not onlyimprove the consistency of culturemedia but also to free time forincreasing the number of hygieneinspections, intensify sampling,develop HACCP techniques andmake improvements in its qualityassurance process.

The ready-to-use bacteriologicaltest increases lab performance byfreeing it from the necessities ofmedia preparation. Petrifilm platesare used for routine analyses of alltheir product lines: fresh dairy,dehydrated products, chocolateproducts, and deep frozen products.

As a result of its efforts to improvequality, Nestle has developed anambitious, high-performancesystem: NQS (Nestle QualitySystem). The priority objectives areto improve quality assurance anddevelop HACCP (Hazard AnalysisCritical Control Point) techniques.

Acting at this level of qualityassurance demands time to increasethe frequency of hygiene

in developing countries. Thechoice of Petrifilm plates is amatter of deliberate policy at thegroup level: the laboratories applythe internal methods developed bythe Research Centre, which nowincorporate Petrifilm plates. It is,therefore, a clear measure affectingthe whole group.

Excerpt from The European Food &Drink Review – Autumn 1996.

New Lot Code FormatRecently we made a lot codeformat change on the followingPetrifilm products:

■ Aerobic Count

■ Rapid Coliform Count

■ E. coli/Coliform Count

■ High-Sensitivity Coliform Count

News From Around The World

The new lot code format doubles as the expiration date and uses bothnumbers and letters. Below is anexample of the new format:

1998-12PA1998-12 states that this product will expire in the 12th month(December) of 1998.

This format change does not affectthe Petrifilm product shelf life.

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By:Frank Busta, Ph.D.

Department of FoodScience andNutritionUniversity of MN —St. Paul

Microbiological testing to assesspotentially hazardous, questionableor poor quality foods has been usedfor a relatively short time in history.Although microbiological criteriaare applied to a number of foodproducts, it is difficult to “test in”quality with end-product testing.Some of the limitations of end-product testing include the problemof sampling and examiningsufficient numbers of units to makea meaningful response; defining abatch or lot; time and expense forthe test; and reliability andcomparability of laboratory results.Due to the pressures of perishablefood, cost of inventory and otherlimitations, end-product testingmany times has not been acomplete and useful method ofassuring quality.

This is not a new concept: In 1970,Sir Graham Wilson, the formerDirector of the Public HealthLaboratory Service in the UK,wrote: “Bacteriologists are betteremployed in devising means to preventor overcome contamination than inexamining more and more samples …Control of processing is of greaterimportance than examination of thefinished article … Processing concernsthe whole volume of food, samplingonly a minute fraction of it … Finally, Iput in a plea that all standards shouldbe of an advisory, not of a statutorynature” (Wilson, 1970).

HACCP and accompanying qualityprograms have been designed toconstantly monitor key aspects ofprocesses to immediately detect anyparameter that may have variedenough to indicate the possibility ofa problem from loss of control. In a

perfect world that would indicate aminimal amount of end-producttesting to verify the successfulimplementation of HACCPqualified food systems.

But this is not a perfect world. Andsimple microscopic entities that canmultiply to extraordinarily largenumbers continue to be a challenge.To detect, study and control thesemicroorganisms, one mustdetermine the type and relativenumbers present to drawappropriate and useful conclusions.One must be able to qualitativelyand quantitatively assess thesituations that indicate potentialproblems.

Many food situations continue todemand accurate and timelymicrobiological analysis. Much ofthe food in international commercecomes from countries that do nothave food protection agenciesequivalent to FDA, USDA, etc.Consequently adequatemicrobiological testing measuresbased on well-designed samplingprograms are needed to assure foodquality. The decision to test foodfor a microbiological criteria havebeen established and can be basedon the following:

• History of compliance to programssuch as GMP, HACCP, TQM

• New information that the commodityin question was linked with aproblem

• Previous experience linking the food,ingredient or sensitive groups tospecific problems

• Control through governmentagencies in the country of origin

• Practical considerations of cost/benefit and statistical significance

Whenever a supplier changes anyparameter of production or a new“untested” supplier is brought online, a full assessment of themicrobiological quality of thematerial must be conducted. After

comprehensive testing andconfirmation of the supplier’s riskassessment, microbiological criteriacan be established. These criteria arebased on the evidence of 1) actual orpotential hazards to health or qualityproblems; 2) the initial microbialstatus of the raw material; 3) theinfluence of processing, handling,storage, distribution and use on thecontamination, survival, and growthof the microbial populations; 4) thehealth and capabilities of ultimateconsumers; and 5) the cost/benefit ofthe application of the criteria. Thesecriteria must make maximal use ofinformation based on currentmeasurements of microbialchallenges.

If a problem of microbiologicalquality arises, it would be rare that asolution would not include testing.Whether it be a food-borne illnessoutbreak, an unanticipated rapidspoilage situation, or some othermicrobially based problem,sampling and testing of multiplesites and times are frequently neededto find a solution. In troubleshooting, one must determine theproblem agent (frequency andconcentration) and then seek out thesource of the problem in order torecommend changes to alleviate thedefect.

So to test or not to test? Do not testfor no good reason. Do test withspecific sampling plans and withappropriate accuracy and precisionwhenever the microbiologicaldemand indicates testing, along withan appropriate action plan. Duediligence on assessing adequacy ofquality programs should be linked toverification of plan consistency.International trade withmicrobiological criteria will demandappropriate sampling and testing.And the right samples and tests willspeed-up much problem solving.

A prediction — as we achieve betterpreventative programs in foodquality, we will test more to verifyand confirm the good job we aredoing.

TO TEST OR NOT TO TEST

3Microbiology Products

3M Center,Building 275-5W-05St. Paul, MN 55144-1000USA1-800-228-3957microbiology@mmm.com

3M Canada, Inc.

Post Office Box 5757London, Ontario N6A4T1Canada1-800-364-3577

3M Europe

Laboratoires 3M SantéBoulevard de l'OiseF-95029 Cergy-Pontoise CedexFrance33-1-30-31-85-71

Recycled Paper40% pre-consumer10% post-consumer

Petrifilm is a trademark of 3M.

Printed in U.S.A.

© 3M 1998 70-2009-0896-3 (481)DPI

To order Petrifilm products in the U.S., call 1-800-328-1671.For Latin American/Africa region, call 612-733-4758.For Asia Pacific region, call 612-736-1888.

EVENT DATE LOCATION COUNTRYInt’l Poultry Expo Jan. 21-24 Atlanta USA

Seoul Int’l Meat/Dairy Processing Packaging Fair Feb. 4-7 Seoul South KoreaUnited Fresh Fruit and Vegetables Show Feb. 21-23 Dallas USA

National Dairy Council Mar Ottawa CanadaInt’l Food Processing & Distribution Exhibition Mar 10-13 JapanInt’l Fresh Cut Produce Assoc. Mar 19-21 Nashville USA

Seoul Int’l Food Technology & Processing Fair April Seoul South Korea

Philippine Society of Microbiology May 7-8 PhilippinesATAM – Expotecno Alimentaria May 11-15 Mexico City MexicoInt’l Food Ingredients & Additives Exhibition and Conference May 20-22 JapanDisneyFest May 26 Taipei TaiwanInt’l Poultry Expo May 27-29 Buenos Aires ArgentinaPusan Int’l Food Industry Exhibition May 28 Pusan South KoreaThe World Food Sanitation 21st Century May 28-30 Japan

Poultry Products Industry Exhibition June 4-7 JapanExpo Lacteos June 10-12 Mexico City MexicoInternational Agriculture and Food Technology Show June 11-14 Taipei TaiwanInstitute of Food Technologists June 20-24 Atlanta USA

American Assoc. of Meat Processors July 9-12 Minneapolis USAEpamig July 20-24 Juiz de Fora Brasil

Tecnolat ’98 Aug 11-13 Sao Paulo BrasilIAMFES Annual Meeting Aug 16-19 Nashville USA

Food Design Show Sept JapanAOAC International Meeting Sept 13-17 Montreal CanadaTecnofidta Sept 15-19 Buenos Aires ArgentinaAMI Convention Sept 17-19 Philadelphia USA

Food Tech Exhibition & Seminars Oct UKInternational Food Fair ’98 Oct 7-11 Kitakyusyu JapanMercoagro ’98 Oct 14-17 Chapeco BrasilFood Tech ’98 Oct 15-18 JapanFood Microbe Meeting Oct 17-18 JapanFood Quality ‘98 Oct 26-28 Chicago USA

Philippine Association of Food Technologists Nov PhilippinesInt’l Exposition for Food Processors/PMMI Nov 8-12 Chicago USAV-Latin American Congress of Foods Microbiology and Hygien Nov 22-26 Aguas de Lindoia BrasilZurich Cheese Expo Nov 26-29 Switzerland

Finnish Chemical Congress Dec FinlandChinese Inst. of Food Science and Technology Show Dec Taipei Taiwan

1998 Trade Show CalendarVisit 3M Microbiology at the following trade shows and conventions: