petfood pro 4/2022

INGREDIENTS
Pet Food Safety and Freshness
Concerns: Origins and
Consequences
by Cristina Murcia García, Ph.D., Elena Fraccaroli, DVM, Bartosz Lebida Msc Eng
Photos: sarahb-fotos.de
1. Pet food industry quality
expectations and risks in
matter of safety
Today, pet owners have at their disposal
a wide range of high-quality pet food
products to provide their pets with
nutrient-rich foods appropriate to
their lifestyle, pet's activity, and their
purchasing preferences. ⅰ Increasingly
advanced knowledge of pet nutrition and
pet food technology means that more and
more ingredients are being incorporated
into pet food formulations, and therefore
increasingly pet food ingredients ⅱ are
being protected at each stage of the
production process. Food safety in the
pet food industry refers to ensuring that,
the feed does not cause harm to the
pets and possibly to the consumer, such
as kids being able to grab it in the bowls
when prepared and/or consumed as
intended. Food safety is a multi-faceted
and multi-stage activity, starting with the
origin of the animal by-products at the
slaughtering and rendering processes,
through the transport of ingredients
used in petfood production, including
the production process itself including
product formulation, and ending with the
delivery of the product to the customer
and post-delivery activities. Actions are
needed to protect against the risks of
contamination and fraud at every stage
of the food production process, as each
of these elements may have an impact on
food safety.
The mission and responsibility of pet
food companies and their owners is to
provide safe and balanced food. This
mission, along with their vision, are often
included in the company's strategy and
marketing activities to convince the Client
that, the safety of their family members is
a priority in their operation. Food safety
in the pet food industry is now a shared
responsibility of all actors involved in the
production of the product, including the
pet owner.
Existing legislation on animal byproducts,
ⅲ additives authorized in animal
feed, presence of undesirable substances
in feed, labelling rules combined with
appropriate preventive actions consisting
in the application of good hygiene and
production practices (GHP, GMP), risk
analysis of critical control points (HACCP)
and other standards contribute to the
achievement of safe food standards. Such
a broad perspective allows for proper
management and monitoring of the entire
production process, as well as continuous
control of the ingredients used in the
feed recipe, including essential nutrients,
such as minerals, vitamins, flavors, and
stabilizers. Each of the ingredients has a
strictly defined specification, not only in
terms of nutritional value, but also for the
parameters responsible for freshness and
organoleptic characteristics.
When analyzing what pet food safety is
and how to achieve it, the primary focus
should be on the slaughterhouse raw
material (RM) as one of the primary food
ingredients. It is the quality of the RM that
further translates into the properties of
the food in terms of safety, palatability,
nutritional value, and shelf life. Proper
handling of a given type of RM in the
initial phase at the slaughterhouse or
processing plant stage, translates further
into processes related to oxidation
(formation of toxic compounds),
freshness (the level of free fatty acids),
appearance of meat structure (biogenic
amines, odor of toxic gases), microbiology
(formation of bacteria, moulds, yeasts),
and aspects related to oxidation because
of further RM processing. It is precisely the
determination of the place of formation of
factors that determine a given RM activity,
such as enzymatic reactions (temperature,
pH, time, presence of metal ions, water
activity, light), as well as the method of
their monitoring and prevention, that
determines an effective approach in
the field of food safety. Bacteria growth
generates more enzymatic activity and
increases the amount of free fatty acids
and the initiates formation of biogenic
amines.
The safety of pet food, irrespective of
the production technology used (dry,
wet, or fresh products) ⅳ , is a priority
that must be observed in relation to the
regulations in force in this area. Today, the
available portfolio of antioxidants and
preservatives, such as anti-bacterial, antisalmonella,
anti-moulding agents, allows
the use of high-quality, safe solutions
which are appropriate to the product
(dry, wet, fresh food ingredients) and the
customer's preferences.
In most countries pet food is regulated
at every stage, from the ingredients
used, through the production process, to
marketing and sales. However, pet food
safety presents significant challenges
compared to traditional food safety
issues, as hazards have the potential
to directly affect the pet and indirectly
affect the humans around it. Pet food can
serve as a carrier for infectious disease
agents, as well as naturally occurring
and inadvertently added undesirable
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Technology & Marketing