Although traditionally thought of as stable from a microbiological point of view, dried foods can still be contaminated, and survival of organisms is possible, even in tough conditions, notes Campden BRI. As such, it says, their safety needs to be controlled as carefully as any ‘wet’ food or drink product. This means applying the full range of good manufacturing practice requirements during their production. It is important to understand not only the risks of microbial contamination and control methods, but also non–microbial issues such as allergens and foreign bodies.

Campden BRI has announced a seminar, to be held on 24 March, which it says will combine expectations and requirements from both consumers’ and producers’ points of view. It will focus on:

+ Understanding of hazards in the dry food production environment

+ Requirements from accreditation bodies

+ Validation of food safety processes

+ Control methods

+ Best practices relating to compressed air

+ Lessons learned from product recalls