NewsfromfoodhygieneandlawAnnualreportoffoodsurveillance2017

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Aug 13, 2019 - Foods

NewsfromfoodhygieneandlawAnnualreportoffoodsurveillance2017

In 2017, 504,794 businesses were inspected in Germany, and 370,492 samples of food and consumer goods were examined. The complaint rates remain at a relatively high level as in previous years.

During business inspections, 13.6% were objected to, 12.9% for samples, and 15.4% for consumer goods in contact with food. Hygiene deficiencies accounted for 49.2% of objections during business inspections, followed by deficiencies in hygiene management (23.2%).

The hygiene requirements in ice cream parlors are documented in the notified and recognized hygiene guidelines of Uniteis e. V. "Guidelines for Good Hygiene and HACCP Practice as well as for Conducting Microbiological Self-Control in the Artisan Production of Unpackaged Ice Cream". Chapters 1 and 2 describe the requirements for rooms, facilities, equipment, and good hygiene practices (e.g., temperature, cleaning and disinfection, personal hygiene).

Deficiencies in hygiene management include, for example, the absence of hygiene plans and/or HACCP concepts with documentation checklists. The aforementioned guidelines (Chapter 4 and annexes) contain corresponding requirements and templates. These documents are easy to understand and can typically be adapted to the conditions in the ice cream parlors with minimal effort.

Missing training sessions are also increasingly criticized. This includes in particular instructions according to the Infection Protection Act and hygiene training. There are several ways to meet the legal training obligations. A simple and cost-effective option is online training, as these can be conducted flexibly with certification.

If you would like to get to know the BAV online training, the BAV Institute offers a free introductory offer as a partner of Uniteis e. V. Please contact Karin Heinrich at Tel. 0781/96947-188 or by email at karin.heinrich@bav-institut.de. Further information is also available at www.bav-onlineschulung.de.

For samples, errors in labeling/presentation were the most common cause of complaints (59.6%). Microbiological contamination was the second most common cause of complaints at 15.3%.

In the product group "ice cream and desserts," 11.7% of the samples were criticized. The most common problems with these perishable products were associated with microbiological deviations. The main problems are exceeding hygiene and spoilage indicators such as Enterobacteriaceae and Pseudomonas. In issues of Uniteis-Notizie from 2018, we addressed these bacteria and explained the most common causes of high germ counts. Particularly, whipped cream from cream machines still poses a hygiene problem and often leads to complaints. On the positive side, no salmonella was found in either ice cream or whipped cream from ice cream parlors.

For conducting microbiological self-controls, ice cream parlors should adhere to the guidelines of the corresponding Uniteis hygiene guidelines. These guidelines are also required by food monitoring and compliance is verified. You can find this information in Chapter 3 on pages 19 to 25 at www.uniteis.com.

You can find more information in the detailed report at https://www.bvl.bund.de/SharedDocs/Downloads/08_PresseInfothek/20181206_jahrespressekonferenz_praesentation.html.

In the future, it will be even more important for all food businesses, including ice cream parlors, to avoid complaints from food monitoring, as according to § 40 para. 1a LFGB, authorities are required to publish certain complaints and limit value exceedances for samples. We will inform you about this in the next issue of Uniteis-Notizie.

We are very pleased to be your partner on these topics and challenges. If you have any questions, please contact Mrs. Christine Käfer by phone at 0781/96947-286 or by email at christine.kaefer@bav-institut.de.