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Abstract:
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In 2011 the US dairy industry, through the industry organization Dairy Management, Inc. (DMI), funded a study to develop a processed cheese food safety model for lower sodium formulations in response to changing consumer tastes. The approach to the underlying study design was similar to a 1986 study (Tanaka et. al. 1986 J. Food Prot. 49:526-531.), where formulation factors including pH, moisture, fat, emulsifying salts and preservatives are varied using a response surface design. The primary response was formation of Clostridium botulinum over and beyond the typical shelf life of processed cheese products. In the 2011 study, a 7 factor, 80 run central composite design was developed and Clostridium botulinum production was measured over 40 weeks at specified time intervals. A parametric survival model was developed based on time to failure. Model development, assessment, verification and the creation of a tool for processed cheese developers to assess the safety of their formulations will be discussed in detail. The lower sodium model has been presented to the FDA and published (Glass et. al. 2017 J. Food Prot. 80:1478-1488.)
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