The BLac HP Project in which Hiperbaric participates as HPP technology provider and industrial consultant, has been successfully completed. Next November 20th, Hiperbaric will be in the beautiful city of Paris attending to a broadcast of interesting results in food industry: “The validation of the combined use of lactic bacteria and high pressure processing in refrigerated meat products keeping their organoleptic and nutritional properties”. Continue reading
Established in 1983 by Moira & Dean Russell. This family owned business continues Dean’s passion for delivering great tasting food that goes back to his father, a very successful butcher with shops in Tasmania and Melbourne. Continue reading
Despite the increase of vegetarian and vegan behaviours amongst western consumers and scaremongering news about meat consumption and cancer prevalence in the last years, meat processing still represents one of the most important sectors on the global food market. This is not an exception on the High Pressure Processing (HPP) sector, as meat products-dedicated machines represent 21% of HPP machines installed around the world (Hiperbaric 2017). Continue reading
Salmonella is a recurrent bacterium in tabloids. Its repeated occurrence made us less sensitive to this outbreaks despite they reveal a level of hygienic practices improper of the modern food industry. Fortunately, High Hydrostatic Pressure (HPP) allows to control possible contaminations of this unpleasant microorganism to guarantee that, even in the event that all measures fail, the consumer will consume safe products. Continue reading
Earlier this month, Listeria fear prompted the recall of 372,000 Pounds of chicken and pork Hot Dogs from Bar-S Foods. Listeria recalls in meat industry, especially in hot dogs are a recurring problem that can be controlled by implanting High Pressure Processing (HPP) as a post-lethality step in the HACCP plan.
Following close of its last edition, Messe Frankfurt, published the results of the IFFA, the biggest show for Meat Industry which takes place each 3 years. Over 63.000 visitor from 143 different countries, which means Continue reading
2015 has been an intense year for food industry and its actors and, If there was a Food Oscar ceremony, Salmonella would have won the most recurring pathogenic bacteria of the year category. With more than 75 FDA recalls in 2015 and 19 recalls at this stage in 2016, Salmonella is becoming a recurring problem alongside Listeria (at a lesser extent) with the increase of fresh/minimally processed & additive-free products. But, isn´t there any solution to conciliate food safety and quality with customer´s demands?
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Foster Farms is a meat company specialized in a variety of chicken and turkey products. It has been privately owned and operated by the Foster family since 1939.
The company is publicly known for its commitment with its values which include animal welfare, social responsability, its environmental and antibiotic stewardship and locally raised.
Plus the company as been awarded for Continue reading
Hiperbaric has joined (as unfunded partner) the french project BLAC HP – Bactéries lactiques combinées avec hautes pressions pour un procédé durable de stabilisation des produits carnés réfrigérés (LACtic Bacteria combined with High Pressure for a sustainable stabilization process of refrigerated meat products): http://www.blac-hp.fr/.
The aim of the project is developing a new strategy for stabilization of refrigerated processed meat products by combining high pressure (HPP) and biopreservation using lactic acid bacteria. It is a project of high scientific content, but clearly focused on solving one of the problems that the meat industry faces every day: trying to reduce or eliminate the use of preservatives. The case study that will apply is the removal of nitrites in cooked ham to increase safety and shelf-life of the product.
The project was approved within the call Appel Générique Programme 2014 Défi Sécurité Alimentaire launched by the French Agence Nationale de la Recherche (ANR). It will last for 48 months (January 2015 – December 2018) and will have a budget of 0,8 M €. The Université de Bourgogne (PAM Laboratory, procédés alimentaires et microbiologiques) coordinates the project. The consortium counts with 10 members, six research institutes and 4 companies: CTCPA, ONIRIS (GEPEA & SECALIM), INRA (Micalis) AgroSupDijon, IFIP -Institut du porc; SBV (porc biologique); CHR Hansen; Cinq Degrés Ouest and Hiperbaric.
The role played by Hiperbaric is to offer advice and give access to HPP equipment for processing product testing.
One of the questions most commly asked by fresh protein processors, whether it’s meat or fish, is: “can we high pressure process fresh, raw product, in order to extend the shelf life and guarantee the absence of pathogens?”
Well, the answer is YES, you could, BUT… pay attention, because HPP changes completely the color and the texture of the meat. The fresh meat or fish turns much paler, whiter, with a more texturised, gelified apperance. Almost like it had been slightly cooked! Though no thermal treatment has been applied whatsoever.
The reason is that high isostatic pressure, in the same way that inactivates the microorganisms by changing the proteins in their membrames and citoplasm, also causes changes in the raw protein. HPP does not break the primary structure of the protein, but it can fold a protein, changing its 3D structure and shape, and hence modifying the texture and aspect of that protein matrix
Photo: changes of fresh meat under HPP
Such changes in appearance and texture of the meat pose a big challenge when it comes to marketing HPP “raw” meat. Consumers, in general, will find hard to understand if that differently processed meat is marketed as fresh-like. Why is it so pale? How come can it last that long? Etc
Despite this historical limitation of high pressure technology, several innovators have used HPP in new value propositions.
Campofrío in Spain, for example, developed and marketed “Ready-to-Finalise” turkey and chicken breasts in a marinade. It is a product with long shelf life (35 days), convenient, faster to finalise on the pan or grill because the protein struture had already been transformed in the HPP step.
Photo: Campofrío Vuelta y Vuelta HPP Turkey
DIL, a leading technology center in Germany working extensively on HPP applications, developed a method to substitute the thermal step in some products such as the German onion sausage, or the liver sausage, with an HPP step. Yes the sausage could be paler, but more nutritious, faster to manufacture an with important savings in energy. As for the liver sausage, the spreadability was improved, and the liver flavor profile is avoided when eliminating the thermal treatment and using only HPP.
Check out this explanatory video:
Cargill, leading multinational in the protein business (amongst other food segments) has worked very hard to develop HPP beef patties with extended shelf life and increased safety: The Fressure burgers, for foodservice application. In this case, it’s probably easier to explain the chefs and the operators why that pattie is different… but also, why it’s more convenient (refrigerated vs. frozen), safer, and knowing that the final result, once grilled, is all good the same.
Image: Cargill’s Fressure website
Other interesting developments for fresh meat are being worked in Australia by CSIRO-Food Science Australia and the Meat and Livestock Commission there, as well as by Hormel, a leading American meat corporation, for applications of HPP as a slaughterhouse intervention. The objective: using relatively low pressures, literature suggests that meat cuts can be tenderised, and even better, as a pre-rigor mortis step, glycolisis can be inhibited – hence preventing the hardening and acification of fresh meat after slaughtering.
In conclusion, there are several challenges and limitations when it comes to implementation of HPP technology in fresh meat. But also very interesting potentialities and even current truly innovative applications!!
