Evaluating bacterial lethality of containerized food production

摘要

Procedures and means for evaluating effectiveness of bacterial-lethality, following batch-processed containerized food production operations and aseptic-flow food-production operations as containerized in aseptic-containers, in preparing for non-refrigerated marketing are described. The evaluations significantly expedite determining whether thermally-processed containerized food-production is safe for non-refrigerated marketing. The presence or absence of live spore-forming bacteria is determined chemically free of extended storage requirements relying on a mechanical-failure indication of food-spoilage. Also, a biological-indication verification of microbial-biocidal status of the packaged food is made available. The invention determines whether rigid-sheet metal containers, and/or whether any of the new, and newly developing, non-refrigerated food packages, which largely utilize polymeric materials, for convenient microwave-oven heating of opened-packs, and soft polymeric pouch products, are safe for non-refrigerated marketing; and, such determinations are made substantially more concurrently with production-operations, than previously available.