Register for free to
view the full innovation profile.
Biofilms are resistant to conventional chemical detergents. Biofilms can be eliminated by the use of enzyme-based detergents integrated into regular factory hygiene programmes.
About
Freedom Hygiene have introduced Biofinder to identify the location of biofilms and a range of enzyme detergents to remove biofilms to a number of diverse food and beverage manufacturers in the UK. This has resulted in: - 1) Longer production runs. 2) Improved environmental hygiene pass rates. 3) Improvements in finished product micro results. 4) Improvements in shelf-life of product. Biofilm growth is a significant source of microbial contamination in the food industry. Modern food processing supports and selects for biofilm forming bacteria on food contact surfaces due to mass production of products, lengthy production cycles, vast surfaces areas, intricate and often difficult or impossible to clean processing equipment and narrower night hygiene windows. Biofilm formation by foodborne spoilage and pathogenic bacteria on food contact surfaces can lead to contamination of the food product during processing (Hood and Zottola 1997) which lowers product shelf-life or results in human foodborne illness, both of which bring about economic losses (Criado et al. 1994). It is well known that bacteria in biofilms are more resistant to treatment with antimicrobial compounds than corresponding planktonic cells (Costerton et al. 1995 Lindsay and Von Holy 1999, Donlan 2002, Meyer 2003). It is not practically feasible to clean and sanitise frequently enough to prevent attachment of cells to surfaces, as cell attachment may occur within a few minutes to hours after regular cleaning has taken place (Meyer 2003). Traditional or conventional chemical detergents, disinfectants and methodology simply don’t work effectively any more for all of the foregoing reasons and a fresh innovative approach must be introduced and evaluated as a matter of urgency. For example, the evaluation of biofilm elimination procedures should be part of the Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP) development plan in order to control these biofilms. Biofilms in the food industry can be eliminated by the use of enzyme-based detergents as a viable option to overcome biofilm problems in the food industry (P.Di Ciccio et al 2012). Work carried out by Artemis Tsiaprazi-Stamou et al 2019 concluded that the microscopic observation of changes in biofilm structure using SEM and confocal analyses indicated that enzymes were very effective in biofilm removal. Furthermore, it was observed that a formulation of enzymes combining amylase, protease and lipase was more efficient than a formulation based on a single enzyme. Since 2016 Freedom Hygiene has taken an experiential approach to biofilm detection and elimination by working closely with many food & beverage companies across the UK. The application of theory and academic knowledge and content to real-world experiences within the workplace, has resulted in successfully and quickly resolving biofilm issues affecting product quality and shelf life. Our approach has been summarised in “The rapid identification and elimination of biofilms in food & beverage manufacturing,” a presentation first shown to the Co-op’s technical team in 2018. Since working on a 3-year member funded project on biofilm elimination in food production with Campden BRI and working closely with the National Biofilm Innovation Centre (NBIC) as an industrial partner, Freedom Hygiene’s experiential knowledge of biofilm identification and elimination has expanded to the point where we are ready to create, implement and manage a world-class hygiene programme based on innovative hygiene technologies to complement traditional chemistry and methodology.
Key Benefits
One of the major food companies that Freedom Hygiene has been working closely with over the last 6 months is Cranswick PLC. Shortly after introducing our Rapid Identification and Elimination of Biofilms programme into one of the Cranswick Ready To Eat sites, the following update was received from the site Technical Manager. "Just a quick update on where we are as a site in terms of Hygiene improvements. Following the implementation of the Enzyme detergent cleaning protocol, which has become an integral embedded process, our Environmental Monitoring systems have shown: - Environmental Hygiene Pass rate within High Risk has shown an upward trend for the past 4 months, achieving >98% pass rate (peaking at 98.68%) - Finished Product (High Risk) has shown an upward trend for the past 5 months, peaking at 99.44% (consistently achieving 100% pass rate for specific customers) - 100% pass rate for Process Run Times up to 90 minutes - 0 x customer complaints (Enterobacteriaceae)" Darren Andrews is the Divisional Technical Manager RTE at Cranswick and has kindly offered to support Freedom Hygiene's application to M&S. Darren may be contacted for further information [email protected]
Applications
IMPLEMENTATION OF A BIOFILM DETECTION & ELIMINATION PROGRAMME FOR FOOD & BEVERAGE MANUFACTURERS Freedom Hygiene would welcome the opportunity to visit your factory and undertake a Biofinder audit to determine the presence of biofilms. This initial visit is provided completely free of charge. BIOFINDER AUDIT It is recommended initially to select one factory, or one area/line within the factory to implement a comprehensive Biofilm Identification Profile. This would involve Freedom Hygiene visiting the factory after the daily hygiene clean has been completed and before it is put back into production. This will determine if biofilms are present in or on processing equipment, conveyors, walls, floor, drain gulleys, drain covers etc. The selection of test sites will be based on Freedom Hygiene’s experience of identifying the presence of biofilms in a wide range of diverse food and beverage manufacturing plants, and having the ability to predict with a reasonable degree of accuracy where biofilms are most likely to occur. The selection of test sites should also take into account historical and current microbiological data. Biofinder should also be used to validate the complete removal of biofilms after a shock treatment programme. Where biofilms are found the optimum enzyme treatment protocol will be recommended for an anti-biofilm shock treatment programme. After having eliminated the biofilms using shock treatment, we recommend adding procedures with an enzyme detergent to your hygiene protocols on a regular basis, in order to maintain high levels of hygiene and prevent reappearance of biofilms. For example, following the shock treatment use an enzyme detergent at least once a week in place of the usual chemical cleaner. Some customers prefer to replace current chemical detergent with an enzyme detergent for regular cleaning of the plant. Anti-biofilm shock treatment products and programmes and Anti-biofilm preventative treatments are available for open plant cleaning using a foam generator, or applied in CIP cleaning systems through circulation of pipes, tanks, fillers, heat exchangers etc. Comprehensive on-site assistance is provided by Freedom Hygiene throughout the programme at no additional cost. Training of staff in the use of Biofinder and Enzyme Biofilm Remove Products including our “Working Safely with Enzyme Detergents” is provided during the implementation stage and beyond. At the completion of the BIOFILM DETECTION & ELIMINATION PROGRAMME Freedom Hygiene will provide unlimited assistance by e-mail and phone as well as planned site visits.