Outlines the Environmental Cleanliness Monistoring at SnackCo.

ATP - Adenosine Triphosphate. ATP is a molecule found in and around living cells, and as such it gives a direct measure of biological concentration. This is a baseline test done in house to test for cleanliness.

TPC – Total Plate Count. This is a measurement for the total microbial load in a sample. This is a more in debt test performed in external lab analysis.

Salmonella – Salmonella are a group of bacteria that can cause gastrointestinal illness and fever called salmonellosis. Salmonella can be spread by food handlers who do not wash their hands and/or the surfaces and tools they use between food preparation steps, and when people eat raw or undercooked foods.

Listeria - Listeria monocytogenes (L. monocytogenes) is a species of pathogenic (disease-causing) bacteria that can be found in moist environments, soil, water, decaying vegetation and animals, and can survive and even grow under refrigeration and other food preservation measures. When people eat food contaminated with L. monocytogenes, they may develop a disease called listeriosis.

Wash Down – In depth cleanings performed by using copious amounts of water followed by sanitizer. 

Zones are divided into the following definitions:

• Zone 1 - Any food contact surface.

• Zone 2 - any non-food contact surface that is in close proximity or adjacent to food and food contact surfaces.

• Zone 3 - area immediately surrounding Zone 2, if contaminated it could lead to contamination of Zone 2 via actions of people or machines. This should include areas above the production lines.

• Zone 4 - consist of all non-production and personnel areas, this also inclu

At SnackCo we are fully committed to the safety and quality of our products. This includes constantly maintaining a clean and safe food environment.

Potato Chips is a low-risk product due to its low water activity (around 0.1) and the high temperature cooking process performed between the wet and dry area.

After performing a several months long extensive testing program of both product surfaces and non-product surfaces with good results, it has been confirmed that the production environment is maintained within fully acceptable levels. The program will therefore be reduced from this initial evaluation phase to an preventative “seek and destroy” approach in our program where aggressive testing is done. Below is a description of the tests performed as a part of the monitoring.

ATP Tests

These tests are performed after wash downs on product surface areas (Zone 1) to verify the efficiency of the cleanings and sanitizing process. The desired area is swabbed according to the manufacturer’s instructions. Mixed with the provided test liquid and tested in a luminometer for instant test results. This instant result makes this test optimal for post cleaning verifications. 

Salmonella and Listeria Tests 

Salmonella and Listeria tests are performed as part of two different programs. “Seek and Destroy” and  “Spot Checks”. The area is divided into zones  2 - Machines non product surface, 3 - General Production Area, and 4 - Personnel areas and mobile equipment, carts etc…. When movile equipment is tested, they must be cleaned imidiately after. 

“Seek and Destroy” -  This is done quarterly where all areas and zones of the plant are cleaned and tested the same day. This is to eliminate any and all traces of microorganisms which could grow into Salmonella or Listeria. We believe that a quarterly full “hunt” is preferred to splitting it up as we then can kill any microbes rather than one area at the time and allow any potential untested area to spread. See testing schedule for locations and frequency of tests. When taking the tests at the end of a production week, the result will be determined before commencing production the following week. 

“Spot Checks” - Spot checks are performed during a normal production environment before cleaning, to verify an acceptable manufacturing environment. One test from each zone is taken monthly. Any positime or presumptive positive results are treated as a deviation and will receive a full CAPA review. 

Testing Process - Testing is done by swabbing the surface being tested according to the manufacturer’s instructions. Then incubating the sample in a designated liquid at 37°C ± 1°C or 100.4°F ± 1° for 24-48 hours. Mixing with the liquid and incubation can be done at an external lab or in our in-house lab using InSite Salmonella and Listeria testing swabs. This test is self-contained so it does not require any ventilation and bears minimal risk of contamination during and after incubation. However, the in-house lab must still be separated from the production hall and in an access controlled room. Once the incubation is done, the result of the test is recorded and discarded per manufacturers instructions. This is done by soaking the test in 20% bleach for one hour before discarding it as normal waste. The bleach decontamination procedure is performed regardless of whether the test is positive or negative.

Finished product

Additional finished product testing can be performed as a validation. It includes the standard Microbial Testing APC, Coliform, E-Coli, Steph A, Salmonella, Yeast Count, Mold count. The acceptable limits are in the document SOA_04.01.004 Lab Analysis Limits.

In accordance with customer written agreements, this testing is done with expired products as a part of the shelf life testing. Some customers also request finished product testing on non-expired products. If testing is done on a non-expired finished product, a positive release program will be used where the product is held until results are reviewed and approved. 

 Positive Result Action Plan

Facility / Frames

If a test result is presumptive positive in zone 2-4, the area will be quarantined. The Quality Safety Group will finalize a plan which will include:

• Isolation of any product or material in the area
  
  

• Cleaning and elimination of the organism found
  
  

• Cleaning and sanitizing a 20x20 foot area around the tested area
  
  

• Test that area with ATP swab to determine if additional cleaning is needed.
  
  

• Re-test all areas that tested positive
  
  

• Sanitizing and retesting of any material exposed to the area
  
  

• Review and if needed, revise the sanitation program for that area
  
  

• Test area close to, but outside of the 20x20 foot area
  
  

• Create a CAPA to fully address the positive results and create corrective and preventative actions.
  
  

 Product Surface

Product surface tests are done with immediate result ATP tests after cleaning to verify the effectiveness of the cleaning. If ATP results are above the accepted limits the area will be re-cleaned, dried, and sanitized. Any results above the acceptable limit will be recorded, reviewed, and discussed during the sanitation program review to determine if changes need to be made to the program or procedures.