Which date do you need? Use by or best before?

Flour recall spreads to crackers, pies and graham crumbs

None of the companies say they have been contacted about illnesses or adverse reactions

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Ishida launches three X-ray inspection systems

Ishida Europe has launched a range of X-ray inspection systems to help manufacturers and processors meet the demands of retailers.

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Foss expands options for meat inspection

Foss has launched a compact version of a system to make X-ray fat analysis and foreign object detection available to a broader group of meat producers.

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New ISO standard validates microorganism testing methods

Meat, fish, dairy products, eggs and shellfish contain significant microbial flora which can affect human health. It is important to identify the microorganisms to maintain food safety, but the microbial flora can also affect the quality of food and its shelf life. 

The revision of ISO 16140:2003 for the validation of alternative (proprietary) microbiological methods has created a multipart standard providing a specific protocol and guidelines for the validation of methods both proprietary (commercial) or not.

ISO 16140-1:2016, ‘Microbiology of the food chain — Method validation — Part 1: Vocabulary’, describes the terminology used in microbial testing, while ISO 16140-2:2016, ‘Microbiology of the food chain — Method validation — Part 2: Protocol for the validation of alternative (proprietary) methods against a reference method’, is dedicated to the validation of proprietary microbiological methods. They are designed to help food and feed testing laboratories, test kit manufacturers, competent authorities and food and feed business operators to implement microbiological methods. ISO 16140-2 includes two phases, the method comparison study and the interlaboratory study, with separate protocols for the validation of qualitative and quantitative microbiological methods.

Over a hundred alternative methods have been validated based on the previous version of ISO 16140, and the standard was updated to provide new insights on the validation of microbiological methods and experience gained from conducting validation studies across the world. Today, developers, end users and authorities need a reliable common protocol for the validation of the many alternative methods used to assess the microbiological quality of raw materials and finished food products and monitor the microbiological status of manufacturing processes. Data generated with the new protocol will also provide potential end users with performance data for a given method, thus enabling them to make an informed choice on the adoption of a particular method. This data can also serve as a basis for the certification of a method by an independent organisation.

The other four new parts of ISO 16140 are still under development with the following topics:

• Protocol for the verification of reference and validated alternative methods implemented in a single laboratory (Part 3 of ISO 16140)
• Protocol for single-laboratory (in-house) method validation (Part 4 of ISO 16140)
• Protocol for factorial interlaboratory validation for non-proprietary methods (Part 5 of ISO 16140)
• Protocol for the validation of alternative (proprietary) methods for microbiological confirmation and typing (Part 6 of ISO 16140)

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Euro Pumps invites customer input into R&D plans

Euro Pumps is undertaking a major redesign of the high-temperature, high-pressure swivels which are a key component of its CIP systems, and is inviting user input.

The focus of the redesign is to increase the life of the units to accommodate changing customer requirements. Due to increasing fat in products, many Euro Pumps customers are now running systems at 75–80°C, >100 bar and 10–20 h/day, five days a week, using continually high water temperatures in hot harsh environments.

Experiment 1

Euro Pumps commenced the research by conducting a series of bearing experiments, soaking the supplied outer bearing and a range of replacement bearings sourced from other suppliers in water to see which bearing lasted the longest. Eliminating rust was a critical factor, as it is rust within the swivel that is the main cause of bearing failure, unreliability and seizing causing cleaning defects.

Experiment 2

Secondary trials were conducted into the type of grease used. This R&D has taken over one-and-a-half years, as it takes a complete service cycle to trial different materials and observe the outcome, benefits and disadvantages of each grease trialled. A high-quality marine grease was selected due to its resistance to water.

Experiment 3

The DYC swivel kit sourced from Europe is further upgraded with Euro Pumps O-rings, which are mostly a Viton material that lives longer in hot conditions. Two more Viton O-rings are being upgraded following client input.

The company is now moving to the final step of machining the whole body in Australia, with plans to upgrade the top thread to 1/2″ as opposed to 3/8″ for extra strength and to incorporate a grease nipple to penetrate the bearing area, with ongoing research into improving the chemical resistance. User input is welcomed.

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KION Group acquires Dematic

Forklift truck and warehouse equipment supplier the KION Group has announced it will acquire automation and supply chain optimisation supplier Dematic for approximately US$2.1 billion. The acquisition will create an entity with close to 30,000 employees and revenue of €6.7 billion for the calendar year 2015.

Dematic is a supplier of integrated automation technology, software and services, including automated guided vehicles (AGVs), palletisers, automated storage and retrieval systems, sorters and conveyors, and automation technologies. The company is present in 100 locations across 22 countries.

The purchase of Dematic will enable the KION Group to provide the full material handling product and service offering to customers of all sizes in a broad range of industries across the world — from manually operated industrial trucks to complete, fully automated warehouses.

After closing of the transaction, Dematic will be integrated into the KION Group to form a fifth operating unit, which will also comprise the recently acquired businesses of Egemin Automation and Retrotech. The future KION Group operating unit will be headed by Ulf Henriksson as its president.

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