Pasteurisation : A food industry practical guide - Guideline No. 51

Pasteurisation has assumed greater prominence in food processing and preservation, as a result of the move towards minimally processed foods. Applied to foods as diverse as dairy products, drinks, fruit, vegetables, meat, fish, sauces, meals, baked goods and extruded products, pasteurisation can be delivered ?in-pack? or to products that are heat processed before being clean/aseptically filled. Pasteurisation is a set of heat treatment options - ranging from 60°C to 115°C - rather than a single, uniformly applied heat treatment.The heat process delivered through pasteurisation depends not only on the material being processed but on other contributory preservation factors - such as pH, storage temperature, pack atmosphere and water activity.This practical guide explains the principles of pasteurisation and considers its use in the context of a range of manufacturing options in relation to product pH, hurdle technology, curing, multicomponent foods, mixed particulates, hot filling and product cooling. It also explains how pasteurisation processes should be validated and tabulates a list of typical pasteurisation treatments, while emphasising that the heat treatment delivered needs to be assessed on a product-by-product basis.