Packaging is an essential aspect of the meat snack product industry. Proper packaging helps maintain the quality, safety, and freshness of meat snack products, which is important for both consumer satisfaction and safety.
Modified Atmosphere Packaging (MAP) Tray Packs are a popular packaging method for fresh beef, pork, and poultry products, as well as for many other processed meats. Modified Atmosphere Packaging is a packaging technique that involves altering the composition of the atmosphere inside a package to extend the shelf life of the product. The goal of MAP is to slow down the natural degradation process of food by reducing the amount of oxygen inside the packaging and increasing the number of other gases, such as nitrogen or carbon dioxide. MAP has been widely used in the food industry for many years and is particularly useful for fresh fruits, vegetables, and meats. By reducing the amount of oxygen in the package, the growth of bacteria and fungi is slowed down, which helps to preserve the quality of the product for a longer period of time.
Advantages of MAP include:
1. Extended shelf life: MAP can significantly increase the shelf life of perishable foods, reducing the risk of spoilage and food waste.
2. Improved food safety: By creating an environment that inhibits the growth of microorganisms, MAP can reduce the risk of foodborne illnesses.
3. Reduced need for preservatives: With a longer shelf life, there is less need for the addition of chemical preservatives, which can be harmful to health.
4. Maintained food quality: MAP can help maintain the color, texture, and flavor of the food, which improves customer satisfaction.
How to Ensure Package Integrity of Meat Products.
The integrity of meat snack products can be tested using various methods including visual inspection, microbiological testing, or other non-destructive Container Closure Integrity Test (CCIT) methods. In this blog we will discuss how Vacuum Decay technology can be used to test the integrity of meat products
Vacuum Decay is a test method that has been proven over decades and further improved with new technological innovations. It involves drawing vacuum on a package within a test chamber and monitoring the vacuum level for decay, which would indicate a leak. The method established itself as a non-destructive replacement to the water bath leak test. It provides significant savings by not wasting product on a leak test and generates a return on investment in under six months for many products.
Vacuum Decay's acceptance as a regulatory tool is evident, and continued development optimizes the technology so that it can do more, perform better, and perform faster. PTI’s next generation of improvements are not incremental improvements, but rather foundational shifts in how the technology will serve the food, pharmaceutical, and medical device industries.
The next generation of VeriPac test systems has undergone a technology overhaul across the product line, improving each model to better perform for their respective applications. Innovation in the field of vacuum decay has often been focused on improving the practicality and sensitivity of the test method. The next generation of VeriPac systems combine both technological innovation and practical adjustments to current technology to make it the most sensitive and versatile vacuum-based leak detection technology to date. Through the introduction of unique test cycles, pneumatic controls, and processing algorithms, the VeriPac Vacuum Decay Technology is establishing itself as the foremost vacuum-based leak detection technology.
Benefits of Vacuum Decay technology:
- Non-destructive, non-subjective, no sample preparation.
- Capable of detecting defects down to 0.05 ccm.
- Accurate, reliable, repeatable results.
- Supports sustainable packaging and zero waste initiatives.
- FDA recognized standard for package integrity testing .
- Accurate, reliable, repeatable results.
- ASTM test method F2338