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Listen to this siteWednesday 25 June 2003
This research project aims to develop a user friendly software tool to describe the behaviour of C. perfringens during heating/cooling of meats.
Study Duration : September 2002 to May 2004
Contractor : Institute of Food Research
C. perfringens is frequently associated with gastroenteritis in humans and between 1992 and 1999, 13% of foodborne outbreaks in England and Wales were attributed to this organism, although this is known to be an underestimate of the true burden of illness. The organism is commonly found in low numbers in many foods, especially in meat and poultry. It is known to be associated with foods prepared in bulk where there are inadequate cooling facilities for cooked foods. Slow cooling may allow germination of spores that have survived cooking and rapid multiplication of the organism to an infectious dose. The Agency commissioned this research to further our understanding of the physiology and behaviour of C. perfringens .
This project will aim to provide information on the physiology of C. perfringens by developing a dynamic model for the thermal death and growth of C. perfringens , validating the predictive models under fluctuating temperatures and delivering a user friendly software tool to describe the kinetic behaviour of C. perfringens during heating/cooling of bulked meats.
A dynamic model has been developed to predict the growth of C. perfringens during the cooling of meats. The model relates cooling temperature to growth and predicts growth within a range of 15°C to 52°C . The model takes account of the delay to growth resulting from sub-lethal damage received during the heating process (typically 75°C to 95°C for 1.5 to 6 hours).
It has been demonstrated that the dynamic growth model provides a good prediction of the growth of C. perfringens during the heating/cooling of meat. This has been shown with the new data generated in this project and data collected from the scientific literature. The model has been validated for ten heating/cooling regimes representative of those of interest to the food industry for use with bulked meats, three initial concentrations of C. perfringens and two meats (beef and turkey). Experimental reproducibility was also demonstrated. The observed increase in viable count from 13 cooling profiles described in the scientific literature also closely agrees with the prediction from the dynamic model for the appropriate cooling curve. This confirms that the dynamic growth model provides a valid prediction of the growth of C. perfringens during the heating/cooling of meats.
A user-friendly computer software tool (called Perfringens Predictor) has been produced that predicts the growth of C. perfringens during the heating/cooling of meat together with an easy to use manual that explains how to use the computer software tool. The Perfringens Predictor software and user manual has been made freely available to all interested parties via the internet ( (External) www.ifr.ac.uk/safety/growthpredictor/ ). The Perfringens Predictor enables the user to input temperature profiles into an Excel spreadsheet and then provides a prediction of the growth of C. perfringens under the specified dynamic cooling conditions. It also provides the user with interpretation advice about the safety of the specified cooling profile.
The Perfringens Predictor software tool together with a model developed at the University of Reading (Food Standards Agency project B14008) will enable food processors, Environmental Health Officers and other users to assess the safety of cooling profiles used with meats (e.g. bulked meats) with respect to C. perfringens . Adoption of the Perfringens Predictor tool should reduce the number of cases of food poisoning associated with C. perfringens and contribute to the Food Standards Agency's aim to reduce the number of cases of foodborne illness by 20% over a five year period.
The final report is available from the FSA Library and Information centre.
To obtain a copy, please contact the Enquiry Desk, Dr Elsie Widdowson Library and Information Services, Food Standards Agency ( tel: 020 7276 8181/8182 or email: infocentre@foodstandards.gsi.gov.uk ).
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Email
: science@foodstandards.gsi.gov.uk
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