Ethnic and Specialty Foods in North Carolina

By John E. Rushing, Ph.D., NCSU

How do I approach them?

How do you evaluate a food product?

Let’s call these unconventional foods, “Specialty Foods”

Some New Ethnic Food Restaurants in Cary

Mexican Italian Indian Central American Chinese Japanese Bolivian Korean

British Irish Peruvian Other Hispanic Pakistani Ethiopian German Other African

Specialty Foods

Ethnic foods commonly are in this category

Usually refers to those foods which are not represented by major commodities

May use any or a combination of preservation techniques

Usually consist of many different ingredients in combination

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Some Characteristics of Specialty Foods

Tend to be upscale or gourmet Often preserved by acidity, or low Aw Often sold in specialty shops along with

being sold in grocery stores Because they are more expensive, they

may be “slow movers” Are an attractive category to

entrepreneurs

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Some Types of Specialty Foods

Sauces and marinades Pickled products High end baked products Some frozen foods Foods for special diets May include dietary supplements Foods from certain ethnic groups

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Food Safety Concerns for Specialty Foods

Produced by knowledgeable persons within the limits of regulations

Acidified foods must have been properly acidified

Terminal heat treatments Proper packaging and protection from

spoilage

Major Food Preservation Methods

Fermenting to achieve a low pH Temperature modification

Refrigeration Freezing

Canning Retorting and other sterilization processes Acidifying

Water activity control

Fermenting

Uses microorganisms to produce acid from sugars

Organisms may also produce other antimicrobial compounds

Acids will inhibit the outgrowth of bacterial spores

The pH is usually well below 4 Some foods are naturally acid

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Refrigerated Foods Refrigerated food pathogens are on the rise Refrigerated foods should be kept below

40F and as close to 32 as possible Refrigeration should be used with other

hurdles, such as thermal treatments, hygienic packaging, and preservatives

Discard or use refrigerated products soon

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Acid and Acidified Foods

These foods depend on acids to prevent the growth and toxin production by Clostridium botulinum

Acid foods are naturally acid, such as fruits

Acidified foods are low acid foods to which acids or acid foods are added to achieve a final equilibrium pH of 4.6 or below

Acidified Foods

Are low-acid foods to which an acid or an acid food has been added to produce a finished equilibrium pH of 4.6 or below

“Low-acid foods” are those foods which have a natural pH of above 4.6

Are regulated under 21 CFR 114

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21 CFR 114-Acidified Foods

Requires that a food plant be registered under part 108

Requires filing and adhering to a scheduled process

Requires that the scheduled process be determined by a process authority

Requires that adherence to the process be supervised by a certified supervisor

Which are not Acidified Foods?

Fermented foods, naturally acid foods, carbonated beverages, jams, jellies and certain salad dressings are not covered by the regulation

Foods which have a water activity of .85 or less are not covered

Foods with insignificant amounts of low-acid ingredients are not covered

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Safety Concerns for Acid and Acidified Foods

Finished equilibrium pH of 4.6 or below Adequate buffering capacity to prevent

rapid swings in pH Thermal destruction of pathogens and

organisms capable of growing in and spoiling the food

Protecting the food from recontamination

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Barriers to Achieving Acidity

Inadequate acid in the cover brine to overcome buffering capacity of the food

Presence of alkaline compounds from peeling or other processing aids

Peels, waxing, or piece size Oil in the product causing a barrier to

penetration of the acid

Processing Acidified Foods

Hot fill and hold requires filling at 180F, capping and inverting

Many products are pasteurized by processing in the jar to achieve the required thermal process

Some products use a steam capper to eliminate the need for inverting

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Acid and Acidified Foods Processed Without Heating

Many specialty products do not receive a terminal heat treatment

New concerns raised by the finding of acid tolerance response in certain bacteria

Salmonella may survive as low as pH 3.0 In apple cider outbreaks, E.coli 0157:H7

survived pH 3.7

Spoilage of Acidified Foods

Usually by yeasts and molds Yeasts and molds are killed by

pasteurization temperatures Spoilage is from underprocessing or

post processing contamination Benzoates and sorbates are used to

inhibit yeasts and molds

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Foods With No Thermal Treatment

The pH should be below 3 Should be supplemented by

preservatives such as sodium benzoate or potassium sorbate at 0.1%

May be kept refrigerated Even though growth of pathogens is not

a concern at low pH, survival is

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FDA Rule for Juice Products

Portions of the juice industry are arguing for only a mandated HACCP plan

FDA’s advisory panel and consumer groups recommend a 5D thermal process

The controversy may extend to other raw food products

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Foods With Reduced Water Activity

Water activity (Aw) is not the same as moisture level

Think of Aw as the availability of water to bacteria in the food

At 0.85, hardy pathogens such as Staphylococcus will not grow and produce toxin

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Some Important Aw Levels for Bacteria

0.98 Optimum growth of most microorganisms in foods

0.97 and below, Gram positives tend to predominate

0.94 Limit of growth for Clostridium botulinum

0.86 Limit of growth for Staphylococcus aureus

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Limit of Growth for Molds and Yeasts

Yeasts 0.90 Saccharomyces cerevisiae 0.62 Saccharomyces rouxii Molds 0.93 Rhizopus nigricans 0.77 Aspergillus niger

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Concerns for Low Aw Foods

Aw is difficult to measure, and must be maintained by packaging

Yeasts and molds must be inhibited in intermediate moisture foods

Sorbate and propionate are preferred inhibitors

Hygiene is important as organisms are not necessarily killed without a thermal process

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Safety in Low Aw Foods

Measure the Aw or refrigerate Don’t vary the formulas for baked goods

without refrigeration Protect the food from moist conditions:

some dehydrated foods are very hygroscopic

Use Aw effectively to make flavored and herbal oils

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Herbal Foods

Botanicals must be correctly identified Be sure that the herb is a food and that

you are using the proper part or preparation

Herbs are to be produced under proper agronomic conditions

Use dried herbs in formulations with oil or properly acidify them first

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Dietary Supplements and Nutriceuticals

Dietary Supplement and Health Act of 1984 defines dietary supplements

Dietary supplements are not foods and cannot be represented for use as a sole item of a meal or of a diet

Deemed a food, but excluded from food additive safety and approval requirements when properly labeled

Temperature Modification

Refrigeration increases the lag time for the growth of microorganisms

Freezing inhibits the growth of microorganisms by tying up the water

Harmful organisms may survive refrigeration and freezing

Water Activity Control

Drying removes water from the system to inhibit growth of microorganisms

Salting and sugaring tie water up to make it unavailable to the microorganism

A combination of drying and salting and sugaring can be used to produce an intermediate moisture food