Food Safety Magazine - June/July 2013
Food Safety Magazine - June/July 2013
Food Safety Magazine - June/July 2013
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MICROBIAL TESTING<br />
By Tom Weschler<br />
Comparison of Microbiology<br />
Testing Practices<br />
<strong>Food</strong> Micro, Eighth Edition: Microbiology<br />
Testing in the Global <strong>Food</strong> Industry is<br />
drawn from primary research interviews<br />
with QA/QC managers in more than<br />
450 food plants in 19 countries, including<br />
China and India.<br />
A look at food plants in North<br />
America, Europe and Asia<br />
Microbiology testing practices at food<br />
plants around the world vary extensively.<br />
As a result, food safety officers need to<br />
understand those variations and establish<br />
expectations and practices with their suppliers<br />
to mitigate variations and ensure safe and wholesome<br />
products that meet label claims.<br />
Microbiology testing in food plants around the world<br />
varies by organism, food segment (protein, dairy, fruit/<br />
vegetable, processed food) and geographic region. This<br />
article will examine variations in global testing practices<br />
in more detail, including a review of where samples are<br />
collected and the test methods used for analysis. It will<br />
not cover variations such as where and how food samples<br />
are analyzed (i.e., type of lab, procedures and staff)<br />
and differences in testing based on plant size and ownership<br />
(i.e.,<br />
single-plant<br />
vs. part of a<br />
1,000<br />
global food<br />
800<br />
organization).<br />
138.1<br />
The data<br />
600<br />
109.8<br />
and charts in<br />
96.5<br />
58.0 83.3<br />
this article<br />
400<br />
come from<br />
418.2 461.6 517.1 600.2<br />
200<br />
the new market<br />
report<br />
365.7<br />
0<br />
from Strategic<br />
Consulting<br />
Routine Pathogen<br />
Inc. (SCI). 1<br />
Figure 1.<br />
(000,000)<br />
<strong>Food</strong> Micro Tests – Worldwide<br />
Worldwide <strong>Food</strong> Microbiology<br />
Testing<br />
In general, global test volumes are increasing<br />
and are up 128 percent over the<br />
past 15 years. Pathogen testing is growing<br />
at an even faster rate and represents<br />
an increasing percentage of total food<br />
microbiological testing. Fifteen years<br />
ago, pathogen testing represented 13.7<br />
percent of total micro tests. In <strong>2013</strong>, it<br />
represents 23.2 percent of all tests<br />
(Figure 1).<br />
The world’s food chain is increasingly<br />
complex, with food shipments<br />
across borders growing very rapidly. In<br />
the U.S., for example, imported food<br />
now represents 15–20 percent of all<br />
food consumed. According to the U.S.<br />
Department of Agriculture, total imports<br />
have increased 7 percent per year<br />
since 1999. In the past 10 years, imports<br />
of animal-based foods have increased by<br />
5 percent and plant-based foods have<br />
grown more than 8 percent.<br />
On the surface, these two trends<br />
seem to be in concert—the global food<br />
chain is becoming more important<br />
and food micro testing is increasing. A<br />
1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 <strong>2013</strong><br />
Where Pathogen Samples Are Collected<br />
12 70.0%<br />
F o o d S a f e t y M a g a z i n e<br />
60.0%<br />
58.6%<br />
47.8%<br />
47.5% 49.9%<br />
224.3<br />
742.2