Food Protection Trends - July/August 2022 - 332

TABLE 1. Summary of recommendations from breakout groupsa
Food Category
Specific Food
Low-Moisture Food
Corn Tortilla Chips
* The corn tortillas
are made from raw
ingredients in one large
production area.
* Wet (raw) production
areas utilized before the
heat treatment (kill step)
need to be kept separate
from RTE areas with a
barrier.
* Color-coding should
be used to mark wet
and RTE zones (on
floor, employee smocks,
equipment) to keep
equipment and people
in their designated areas.
Considerations
for Hygienic
Zoning and
Sanitation
* Consider designating
separate equipment (e.g.,
forklifts, air-handling
units) for wet and RTE
areas.
* Separate handwashing
stations for wet and RTE
areas could be installed
outside of production
room entrances
* Eliminate floor drains
where possible (or
install baskets or covers)
Frozen Food
Frozen Peas
* The pre- (raw) and postblanching
areas need to
be clearly separated
* Workers in each area
could wear different
color smocks; put up a
chain to separate the raw
and post-lethality areas
to control traffic.
* Air control is difficult
when both raw and postlethality
steps occur in
the same large room; a
curtain could be used to
separate areas but would
need to be maintained to
prevent from becoming
a harborage site.
* Need to ensure the
raw material is on the
negative air pressure side
of the production room
to prevent air movement
from the raw to the postlethality
side.
* Exhaust fans can be used
to capture condensation
and should be
positioned to ensure
optimal air flow to
prevent contamination.
Assembled Product
Frozen, RTE Sausage,
Egg, Cheese on a Muffin
Sandwich
* The finished product
contains RTE, frozen
components, and the
finished product is
frozen.
* A main concern
will be keeping the
environment cold
during assembly.
* Frozen components can
be transferred from low
hygiene areas (where
product is de-cased) to
high hygiene areas using
designated totes.
* Handwashing stations,
door foamers/footbaths
could be stationed at
entrances.
* Try to keep the low
hygiene areas dry;
consider using dry
foot baths to minimize
moisture.
* Gloves, face masks,
and hair nets should be
used in the high hygiene
zone but should not
be needed in the low
hygiene areas.
* Try to segregate people
and equipment in the
low and high hygiene
areas as much as
possible.
Plant-Based Protein
Plant-Based
" Cheez " Dip
* Facility includes raw
materials and RTE
products in one large
room which would be
divided into low and
high hygiene areas.
* Colored smocks, etc.
could ensure employees
stayed in assigned zones.
* Control traffic patterns
so that RTE and raw
employees do not have
to cross through other
areas.
* Air should flow from
RTE to raw areas.
* Trench drain water
should have water run
from RTE to raw area.
* Handwash, footbaths
should be installed
at entry doors to
production room and
packaging area.
* Add a separate door for
entrance to the RTE
area.
* Ingredients added after
the cook step should be
stored separately from
other ingredients and
should not be moved
through the raw area.
* Relative humidity
should be kept <60%
* Validate the CIP system
at least 1-2 times per
year.
Considerations
for Environmental
Monitoring
* In RTE production areas:
◊ PreOP: Test ATP, APC,
and EB for verification
post-sanitation.
◊ During operation: Test
Zones 1-4 for both
Salmonella spp. and
Listeria spp.
332 Food Protection Trends July/August
* Listeria will be a key
pathogen of concern on
the post-lethality side.
* Daily/weekly during
preOP: test for APC,
ATP, coliforms,
E. coli, Listeria spp.,
EB (as indicator for
Salmonella), yeast/mold.
* Weekly preOP: ATP,
APC, coliforms, yeast
and molds in Zones 1-3;
Listeria spp. and EB in
raw area.
(cont'd)
Food Protection Trends - July/August 2022

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