Soft drink and fruit juice problems solved Philip R. Ashurst and Robert Hargitt
Published by Woodhead Publishing Limited, Abington Hall, Granta Park, Great Abington, Cambridge CB21 6AH, UK www.woodheadpublishing.com Woodhead Publishing India Private Limited, G-2, Vardaan House, 7/28 Ansari Road, Daryaganj, New Delhi ± 110002, India Published in North America by CRC Press LLC, 6000 Broken Sound Parkway, NW, Suite 300, Boca Raton, FL 33487, USA First published 2009, Woodhead Publishing Limited and CRC Press LLC ß 2009, Woodhead Publishing Limited The authors have asserted their moral rights. This book contains information obtained from authentic and highly regarded sources. Reprinted material is quoted with permission, and sources are indicated. Reasonable efforts have been made to publish reliable data and information, but the authors and the publishers cannot assume responsibility for the validity of all materials. Neither the authors nor the publishers, nor anyone else associated with this publication, shall be liable for any loss, damage or liability directly or indirectly caused or alleged to be caused by this book. Neither this book nor any part may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, microfilming and recording, or by any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from Woodhead Publishing Limited. The consent of Woodhead Publishing Limited does not extend to copying for general distribution, for promotion, for creating new works, or for resale. Specific permission must be obtained in writing from Woodhead Publishing Limited for such copying. Trademark notice: Product or corporate names may be trademarks or registered trademarks, and are used only for identification and explanation, without intent to infringe. British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library. Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data A catalog record for this book is available from the Library of Congress. Woodhead Publishing Limited ISBN 978-1-84569-326-8 (book) Woodhead Publishing Limited ISBN 978-1-84569-706-8 (e-book) CRC Press ISBN 978-1-4200-7437-6 CRC Press order number: WP7437 The publishers' policy is to use permanent paper from mills that operate a sustainable forestry policy, and which has been manufactured from pulp which is processed using acid-free and elemental chlorine-free practices. Furthermore, the publishers ensure that the text paper and cover board used have met acceptable environmental accreditation standards. Typeset by Godiva Publishing Services Limited, Coventry, West Midlands, UK Printed by TJ International Limited, Padstow, Cornwall, UK
Preface
Many previous publications on the topics of soft drinks and fruit juices have been written in a style that addresses background issues of the subject. This book, Soft drink and fruit juice problems solved, is an intensely practical work that is intended to appear on the shelf of every beverage technologist, whether they work in a large multinational company or in a small- or medium-sized business that is producing for a niche market. The authors both have wide experience of the beverage industry and, at the outset, they attempted to cover a wide range of areas of the industry business and to come up with what they believed were the principal problems associated with those areas. The object of this work is to pass on that collected experience. The book has been assembled in a chapter style that covers a wide spectrum. Starting with product development, the book then moves on to potential problems with beverage ingredients and then to consider manufacturing problems and quality issues; it is arguably in this area where many questions and difficulties arise. A chapter on bottled waters then follows. Although not soft drinks, they are an important and rapidly developing related market sector with many common concerns. A chapter on packaging follows. This is an essential part of our industry as liquid products must of necessity be contained in a bottle, can or other form of package and the chapter attempts to cover this wide topic with its implications for product shelf-life and consumer interaction. Later chapters cover storage and distribution, the management of consumer complaints, environmental issues and finally regulatory and statutory matters. Dealing with legislative matters in a book is always fraught with difficulty because the information is invariably out of date by the time the book is published and is, in any event, likely to cover only a limited jurisdiction. Despite
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that shortcoming, we have included a number of references to United Kingdom and EU legislation as many problems of the industry revolve around regulatory affairs. We do, however, acknowledge that there will be other countries for which the regulatory information in this book is not relevant. In whichever country the reader is based, any problem that is related to a legislative matter should, therefore, always be checked with an appropriately qualified person who can give timely and accurate advice. The authors acknowledge that there are questions and problems of a similar nature that appear in different chapters of the book. We have decided that it may be more helpful to readers to leave this degree of duplication than to always cross refer to a single, and perhaps more comprehensive, answer elsewhere. This should hopefully enable a problem to be considered in the specific context in which it arose. It will be obvious that it has not been possible to cover every conceivable problem or question that might arise in this industry but the authors hope that they have covered a sufficiently wide range of topics to make the work a valuable companion to technical staff, marketing specialists, students and those who perhaps just have a curious enquiring mind relating to soft drinks, fruit juice and bottled water industries throughout the world. Robert Hargitt Philip Ashurst
Contents
Preface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
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List of acronyms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
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1
Product development of new soft drinks and fruit juices . . . . . . . 1.1 Initial issues affecting product development . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.1.1 How do I obtain the main brief for a new or modified product? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.1.2 What factors need to be considered at an early stage and how much data is needed before development starts? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.1.3 How much technical input should there be in deciding the brief? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.1.4 What are the main issues affecting the development of a product? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.1.5 What timescale should be allowed for the development of a product? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.1.6 What microbiological tests should be carried out on a developmental product? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.2 The marketing brief . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.2.1 Who should be the main driver in preparing the marketing brief: the technical or the marketing department? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.2.2 How detailed should the product brief be? How much technical and marketing information should be provided? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
1 1 1 2 2 3 3 4 5 5 5
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Contents 1.2.3 Do special regulations exist for sports drinks? What is an isotonic drink? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.2.4 Are there any special regulations for drinks for babies? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.2.5 How often should the marketing brief be reviewed? . . . 1.2.6 What issues surround `tooth-friendly' drinks? . . . . . . . . . . 1.3 Cost constraints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.3.1 Should the initial product concept be developed without reference to cost? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.3.2 When should the impact of cost be assessed? . . . . . . . . . . 1.3.3 How much influence should the company accounting function have on product development? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.3.4 How do I establish a likely selling price? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.3.5 Will new capital plant be needed? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.4 Packaging issues . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.4.1 Should the issues of packaging be raised at the early stages of product development and how important is packaging to the product concept? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.4.2 What considerations should be raised in deciding the preferred packaging? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.4.3 What influence does packaging have on production and its costs? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.4.4 Can I design my own packaging? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.5 Manufacturing issues . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.5.1 What are the principal limitations to be considered in the early stages of development? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.5.2 How can a new product be assessed for manufacture without large-scale production? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.5.3 When should I consider outsourcing the initial manufacture of a new product? Is contract packing a viable option? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.5.4 Can existing production facilities be modified? . . . . . . . . 1.5.5 Do some ingredients require special handling facilities? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.5.6 Can test plant data be scaled up? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.6 Shelf-life prediction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.6.1 Can shelf-life be predicted? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.6.2 What methods are used to predict shelf-life? . . . . . . . . . . 1.6.3 What facilities do I need to conduct shelf-life tests? . . . 1.6.4 How does shelf-life impact on the business plan? . . . . . . 1.6.5 Should shelf-life be continually assessed after a product is in regular production? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.7 Assessing consumer reactions to new products . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.7.1 How can likely consumer reactions to new products be best assessed? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
6 6 7 7 7 7 8 8 9 9 10 10 10 10 11 12 12 12 12 13 13 14 14 14 15 15 16 17 17 17
Contents 1.7.2 Can I outsource market research and, if so, to whom? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.7.3 How long should a new product be given to find its place in the market? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.7.4 How can I predict likely sales volumes? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
Ingredients in soft drinks and fruit juices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.1 Water as an ingredient . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.1.1 How much does water quality affect soft drinks? . . . . . . 2.1.2 Should water treatment be installed in a soft drink or fruit juice processing plant? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.1.3 Is there an ideal specification for water to be used in soft drinks? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.1.4 How frequently should water testing take place? . . . . . . 2.1.5 Can I use natural mineral water or spring water to make a soft drink or reconstituted fruit juice, and can I bring these waters in by tanker? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.1.6 Is a `flavoured' water a soft drink or a water? . . . . . . . . . 2.2 Fruit components as ingredients . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.2.1 What types of fruit components are readily available and what are the differences between juices, comminutes, fruit pureÂes and fruit extracts? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.2.2 What, if any, special processing is needed for packed fruit juices and products containing fruit ingredients? . . . . . . . 2.2.3 How do I calculate the fruit content of a product when using a concentrated fruit preparation? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.2.4 What factors do I need to consider in the specification for fruit ingredients? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.2.5 What kind of problems can arise from the use of fruit in a soft drink? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.2.6 Are all exotic fruits permitted in beverages and how can I establish which are allowed? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.2.7 Can a product be labelled `sugar free' if only fruit components are added? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.2.8 How can I be sure of the authenticity of fruit materials? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.3 Carbohydrate sweeteners . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.3.1 What carbohydrate sweeteners are available for use in soft drinks? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.3.2 How do other sweeteners compare with sucrose? . . . . . . 2.3.3 Do different sweeteners affect product stability? . . . . . . . 2.3.4 How do different sweeteners affect production and process control? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.3.5 What are `fruit extracts' and how should they be labelled? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
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2.3.6 Are special technical or process requirements needed to enable the handling of bulk carbohydrates in dry or syrup form? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.3.7 What typical specifications should I apply to carbohydrates? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.4 Intense sweeteners . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.4.1 How do I select the right intense sweetener for my product? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.4.2 Do different intense sweeteners have different taste profiles? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.4.3 What kind of stability can I expect from intense sweeteners? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.4.4 Why does aspartame require special labelling? . . . . . . . . 2.4.5 Are there any natural intense sweeteners? . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.4.6 Why are intense sweeteners blended? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.4.7 Why has the use of cyclamate declined? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.4.8 Can I use sugar alcohols such as xylitol? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.5 Flavourings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.5.1 What types of flavourings are available and why are they used? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.5.2 How are flavourings best assessed in the development laboratory? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.5.3 What kind of shelf-life do flavourings have? . . . . . . . . . . 2.5.4 How do flavourings affect product stability? . . . . . . . . . . . 2.5.5 How much interaction can I expect between flavourings and other ingredients? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.5.6 What different types of flavourings are available? . . . . . 2.5.7 How do specific ingredients that add flavour, such as quinine and caffeine, have to be labelled? . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.5.8 Do I need approval for `novel' flavours? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.6 Colourings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.6.1 What factors are to be considered in selecting natural or artificial colourings? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.6.2 How much added colour can I expect from fruit or other components? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.6.3 Are there any ingredients that will give colour to a product but do not require a label declaration as such? 2.6.4 What are the main factors that affect the stability of colour in a product? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.6.5 There are several different types of caramels; what are the differences between them? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.6.6 Why are the media so critical of colourings? . . . . . . . . . . 2.7 Preservatives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.7.1 What factors should be considered in deciding whether to use any preservative? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
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2.8 2.9
3
2.7.2 How can the right preservatives be selected for a product? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.7.3 Does the use of a preservative in a product mean that it does not need to be pasteurised? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.7.4 Do preservatives in product deteriorate with time? . . . . 2.7.5 Does dimethyl dicarbonate (DMDC) (trade name Velcorin) have to be declared as a preservative? . . . . . . . 2.7.6 Why will some local authorities not purchase products containing benzoic acid? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.7.7 Why may both sorbic and benzoic acids be unsuitable for tea drinks? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Nutraceutical ingredients . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.8.1 What are nutraceutical ingredients, how can I use them and how should they be labelled? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Miscellaneous additives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.9.1 What miscellaneous additives can I use in a product and what functions do they perform? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.9.2 If an additive is used as a process aid, does it have to be declared on the label? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.9.3 Is there an industry standard for carbon dioxide? . . . . . . 2.9.4 How is carbonation measured? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.9.5 How are additives in ingredients declared? . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.9.6 Can I use antifoam? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Manufacture of soft drinks and fruit juices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.1 Ingredient sourcing and storage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.1.1 How much responsibility for ingredient quality can be transferred to the supplier? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.1.2 What storage conditions should I use for ingredients? . 3.1.3 Are compound ingredients best outsourced or mixed locally? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.1.4 What are the best ways of storing carbon dioxide, sugar, fruit juices, flavours and other additives? . . . . . . . 3.1.5 How do I avoid product `drift'? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.1.6 What standards should I operate to and what standards should I demand from my suppliers? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.1.7 Do some ingredients demand special production plant? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.1.8 What do I need to specify on a supplier contract? . . . . . 3.1.9 Do I need to audit suppliers? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.2 Mixing, compounding and related problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.2.1 What type of mixing plant is ideal for soft drinks? . . . . 3.2.2 Is there an ideal order of addition for ingredients? . . . . . 3.2.3 If undissolved materials remain in the syrup mix, what action should be taken? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
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3.3
3.4
3.5
3.6
4
3.2.4 What steps should be taken to minimise the introduction of air into the product? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.2.5 Why do I have an oily film on the surface of my syrup? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.2.6 What is the most likely cause of white flecks on the surface of my syrup during manufacture? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.2.7 Can I make milk/yoghurt and fruit juice drinks in my soft drinks plant? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.2.8 Should I dissolve ingredients prior to addition? . . . . . . . . 3.2.9 Should turbulence be avoided during mixing? . . . . . . . . . 3.2.10 How much automation should be installed? . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.2.11 Are there any special manufacturing issues that apply to pure fruit juices? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Pasteurisation, homogenisation and related issues . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.3.1 When is pasteurisation necessary? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.3.2 What pasteurisation conditions are needed and how can these be calculated? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.3.3 When is it desirable to homogenise a product? . . . . . . . . 3.3.4 What are the best types of pumps to use? . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.3.5 Are changes to the taste or appearance of a product likely as a result of pasteurisation? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Filling operations and related issues . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.4.1 Do different filler types affect product quality? . . . . . . . . 3.4.2 What regular quality checks should be made on fillers? 3.4.3 What is a typical cleaning regime for a filler? . . . . . . . . . 3.4.4 At what temperature should products be filled? . . . . . . . . 3.4.5 Why do some products froth (fob) and how can this be avoided? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.4.6 What is the average fill system (e-mark)? . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.4.7 How should I deal with broken bottles in the filler? . . . 3.4.8 How do I ensure the absence of foreign bodies in product? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.4.9 What hygiene requirements apply to manufacturers of soft drinks and fruit juices? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Secondary packaging . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.5.1 How does secondary packaging affect product quality? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.5.2 What protection is needed from secondary packaging? Finished product storage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.6.1 What are the ideal conditions for product storage? . . . . 3.6.2 What product problems can occur during storage? . . . . . 3.6.3 When do products need to be quarantined? . . . . . . . . . . . .
Quality issues in soft drink and fruit juice processing . . . . . . . . . . 4.1 Ingredient quality . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
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4.2
4.3
4.4
4.1.1 How much deviation from ingredient specification is needed to cause a noticeable alteration of product quality? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.1.2 What are the key parameters that I should evaluate to assess ingredient quality? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.1.3 A `floc' forms in an otherwise clear soft drink; where should I look for the likely cause? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.1.4 When can I switch to an alternative supply source without extensive testing? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.1.5 How do I ensure consistent product quality and avoid drift? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.1.6 How do I specify a flavour? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.1.7 How do I deal with variations in natural ingredients, particularly fruit juices from different sources? . . . . . . . . Ingredient interactions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.2.1 Are there any ingredients that are likely to cause unwanted interactions with others? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.2.2 What are the most likely effects of ingredient interactions? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.2.3 How are the conditions of storage likely to affect ingredient interactions? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.2.4 Can I use both benzoic and ascorbic acids in the same product? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.2.5 What are the ICBA guidelines on benzene formation and where are they available? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Ingredient specifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.3.1 Do I need to check every batch of ingredient against specification? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.3.2 How meaningful are specifications for natural ingredients that may be standardised to only one or two parameters (e.g. concentrated juices)? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.3.3 What are the key issues that I need to have in mind when considering ingredient specifications? . . . . . . . . . . . 4.3.4 Is it possible to specify flavour character? . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.3.5 How much variation should I allow in natural materials? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Problems during manufacture and safety issues . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.4.1 A process worker has added too much of one ingredient; how is this best dealt with? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.4.2 The final volume of a product has been exceeded; how can the situation best be resolved? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.4.3 A batch of product has been made up but not bottled off. It is then noticed that a preservative (or other ingredient) has not been added. Can the missing ingredient simply be added to the bulk product? . . . . . . .
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4.5
4.6
4.7
4.4.4 The electrical supply has failed during flash pasteurisation; is it necessary to repasteurise the whole batch? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.4.5 What actions generally need to be taken during a stop in production, particularly with respect to products in the pasteuriser? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.4.6 Is an HACCP system now a legal requirement and how do I set one up? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.4.7 How much record keeping is required and for how long should records be kept? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.4.8 What regular checks should be carried out on a tunnel pasteuriser? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.4.9 What are the main risks of contamination and how can I check for these? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Colour and appearance changes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.5.1 A normally clear product becomes cloudy on storage; what are the likely causes? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.5.2 A product displays a `ring' at its upper surface; what is this likely to be and how can it be resolved? . . . . . . . . 4.5.3 What are the causes of product colour fading? . . . . . . . . . 4.5.4 (a) A concentrated soft drink that is normally cloudy separates into a clear upper layer and a dense lower layer of pulp; what is the likely cause and how can it be resolved? (b) A concentrated soft drink has formed a gel on storage; what is the likely cause and how can it be resolved? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.5.5 Fruit pulp forms a plug or mat on top of the product; what causes this and how should it be dealt with? . . . . . 4.5.6 How can emulsion stability be best evaluated? . . . . . . . . Flavour deterioration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.6.1 What factors affect flavour deterioration? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.6.2 How is the flavour profile of a product best assessed? . 4.6.3 What kind of sensory tests can be used to evaluate flavour changes in a product? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.6.4 Apart from the obvious source (i.e. the flavouring), which ingredients are most likely to cause flavour problems? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.6.5 Where can I get help in determining the likely origin of an unusual flavour taint? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.6.6 How important is the removal of chlorine in process water in avoiding flavour defects? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.6.7 How can packaging influence flavour deterioration? . . . 4.6.8 What kind of flavour deterioration can arise from microbial infections? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Packaging interactions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
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4.8
4.9
4.7.1 What problems are most likely to arise when plastic packaging of any kind is used? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.7.2 When cans are used, what are the most likely interactions? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.7.3 What special problems, other than physical contamination, are possible if glass packaging is used? 4.7.4 What issues are likely to arise when flexible packaging is used? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.7.5 Do aseptic packs have any particular problems associated with them? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.7.6 How much attention should I pay to the specification of packaging material? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.7.7 What are the major packaging problems? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.7.8 Why are product shelf-lives shorter in PET packages when compared with glass, cans or TetraPak/ Combibloc? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.7.9 What is the best plastic in which to pack still drinks? . Microbiological problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.8.1 What makes one soft drink more susceptible to microbial spoilage than another? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.8.2 What are the organisms that I need to be particularly aware of? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.8.3 Can soft drinks become contaminated with pathogenic organisms? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.8.4 What are the early signs of microbial contamination? . 4.8.5 How do I find the likely source of microbial contamination in a product? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.8.6 What value does a period of quarantine storage have? . 4.8.7 How can I best ensure that the water I use does not become a source of contamination? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.8.8 An equipment breakdown causes a delay of several hours before a product can be packed off; does this situation pose a serious threat to the microbiological condition of the product? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.8.9 Why is mould contamination not a problem for carbonated drinks? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.8.10 What is Zygosaccharomyces bailii and why is it such a problem? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.8.11 I know that most product spoilage results from yeast and/or mould contamination; what bacterial infections might affect soft drinks? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Shelf-life issues . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.9.1 What are the main factors affecting the shelf-life of a product? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.9.2 Can the shelf-life of a product be accurately predicted?
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Contents 4.9.3 What does the term `shelf-life' of a product actually mean? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.9.4 Should the shelf-life of products be monitored on a regular basis? If so, how should this be done? . . . . . . . . . 4.9.5 Why do products need such a long shelf-life and how can this be maximised? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.9.6 How does packaging affect shelf-life? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
5
Bottled waters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.1 Legislation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.1.1 What UK legislation applies to bottled waters? . . . . . . . . 5.1.2 What are the differences between natural mineral water, spring water and table water? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.1.3 How should different waters be labelled? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.1.4 What licences are required to extract and bottle water? 5.1.5 What testing regime do I need to put in place? . . . . . . . . 5.1.6 Do I need any discharge consents if I am only bottling water? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.1.7 What other ingredients can I add to bottled waters? . . . 5.2 Water extraction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.2.1 How much information do I need about my borehole and how much water can I extract? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.2.2 How does my borehole need to be protected? . . . . . . . . . 5.2.3 How close to the source do I need to bottle? . . . . . . . . . . 5.2.4 How can I establish whether the water from my borehole is of consistent quality? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.2.5 What action should be taken if the quality of water from a borehole suddenly drops? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.2.6 Can extraction from a borehole be intermittent? . . . . . . . 5.3 Water treatment and bottling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.3.1 What treatments can I apply to different water sources? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.3.2 Can I bottle water and soft drinks in the same plant? . . 5.3.3 What is the best way to sterilise a water bottling plant? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.3.4 Do I need to take any special precautions in a water bottling plant? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.4 Quality issues . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.4.1 What are the most likely appearance defects affecting bottled waters? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.4.2 What are the most likely sources of taints in bottled waters? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.4.3 What kinds of organisms will grow in bottled waters? . 5.4.4 Does carbon dioxide added to bottled waters need to be of special quality? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
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5.5
6
5.4.5 What shelf-life can be expected from bottled waters? . . 5.4.6 Do I need special closures or packaging for bottled waters? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Storage and distribution . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.5.1 Do bottled waters require any special storage conditions? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Packaging, storage and distribution of soft drinks and fruit juices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.1 Selection of packaging . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.1.1 What factors should be taken into account when the selection of packaging is under consideration for a new product? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.1.2 How do I evaluate the likely performance of different types of plastic packaging? What factors should I consider? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.1.3 What do I need to look out for when selecting the closure? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.1.4 Where can I go for more help with packaging problems? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.1.5 Do cans pose a risk of metal pick-up to soft drinks? . . 6.1.6 What special problems are likely to be associated with the use of returnable glass bottles? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.1.7 How does packaging relate to consumer expectations? 6.1.8 What problems can I expect from the use of cartons? . 6.1.9 Are there any guidelines for sports closures? . . . . . . . . . . 6.2 Packaging defects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.2.1 What are the most likely defects associated with glass bottles? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.2.2 Are cans likely to show particular defects? . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.2.3 What inspection regime do I need to put in place to minimise the risk of any defective container reaching the consumer? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.2.4 Are there any types of defects that pose a special risk to the consumer? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.2.5 What is the best way to print `best before' (BBE) dates on containers? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.2.6 Are there any guidelines relating to clear labelling? . . . 6.3 Problems during filling and packaging operations . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.3.1 What are the most likely problems that can arise during packaging with any of the packaging types in regular use? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.3.2 Do such operational problems usually pose a threat to the integrity or safety of the product? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
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6.4
6.5
6.6
7
6.3.3 What process quality checks should be in place to minimise the consequential problems of packaging defects? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.3.4 Do small changes in packaging need extensive trials? . 6.3.5 At what temperature should containers be after filling? 6.3.6 What are appropriate carbonation levels for different products and container types? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Post-filling defects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.4.1 What are post-filling defects and how do they arise? . . 6.4.2 What special problems are posed when filled and closed packs are subject to tunnel pasteurisation? . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.4.3 Are there any particular problems that can arise after secondary packaging is applied? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.4.4 What causes TEBO and what is the function of vertical slots in the threads of bottles containing carbonated drinks? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.4.5 What is stress corrosion of cans and how may it be prevented? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Storage conditions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.5.1 How can I monitor the range of conditions likely to be experienced by my products between manufacture and consumption? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.5.2 What level of handling abuse do I need to consider when specifying secondary packaging? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.5.3 How quickly, in the event of a product recall, can I trace and withdraw a particular batch of product from storage and distribution? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.5.4 Are there particular storage conditions for my products that need to be avoided? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.5.5 What effect are strong aromas likely to have on stored products? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Distribution problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.6.1 How much do I know about the distribution network that handles my products? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.6.2 How much control do I have over the distribution network? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.6.3 Are there places where products are likely to be distributed out of order? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.6.4 How can damage during distribution be minimised? . . .
Handling consumer complaints about soft drinks and fruit juices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.1 Recording and handling consumer complaints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.1.1 What system should be in place for handling complaints? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
142 143 143 144 145 145 145 146 147 147 148 148 148 149 149 150 150 150 151 151 152 153 153 153
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7.1.2 How should complaints be classified? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.1.3 Do customer complaints need to be justified? . . . . . . . . . 7.1.4 What procedures should a manufacturer have in place to identify the likely cause of complaints and any corrective action necessary to prevent their recurrence? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.1.5 How quickly should a manufacturer respond to complaints? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.1.6 How can situations likely to result in a product recall be identified? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Traceability systems and crisis management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.2.1 How effective should a traceability system be? . . . . . . . . 7.2.2 Who needs to be in a crisis management team to deal with any major incidents? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.2.3 When is it necessary to obtain expert assistance in the event of a contamination incident? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.2.4 Where can further assistance be obtained to deal with complaints of a serious nature? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.2.5 Is it advisable to have a public relations advisor to deal with serious complaints? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.2.6 When do product problems require that enforcement authorities be informed and when should a product recall be instituted? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.2.7 What should be regarded as a complaint and what is a typical level of consumer complaints? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
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Environmental issues in the manufacture of soft drinks and fruit juices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.1 How do I find out about which regulations and consents apply to my business? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.2 What are the major sources of waste from my business? . . . . . . 8.3 Are all the necessary consents in place for me to discharge effluent? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.4 Am I discarding valuable ingredients (such as sugar residues)? If so, can I recover all or part of them? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.5 Am I meeting my obligations under the Packaging Waste Regulations? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.6 Is there anything I can do to recycle any of my packaging components or to use recycled components? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.7 Can I use recycled PET? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.8 What is IPPC and does it relate to my business? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.9 What is the Climate Change Levy and can I claim exemption? 8.10 Is my business affected by WEEE? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.11 Do my containers have to be recyclable? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.12 Are coloured plastics recyclable? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
155 156 156 157 157 158 158 159 160 160 161 162 162 162 163 163 163 164 164 164 165 165 165 165
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Regulatory issues relating to soft drinks and fruit juices . . . . . . . 9.1 How much information should be available in product formulations? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.2 How can compliance with legislation in markets other than that for which the product was originally designed be confirmed, and how can such information be kept up to date? . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.3 How can the fruit or juice content of a product be calculated for the purpose of declaring the QUID value or for confirmation of a claim? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.4 How important is it to be able to access historical formulas? . 9.5 Are current product labels accurate, up to date and legal? . . . . . 9.6 Should the local Trading Standards Department (or other relevant enforcement authority) be involved in approving product labels? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.7 How can nutritional claims be sustained, and how should nutritional data be obtained? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.8 What does a responsible manufacturer have to do to keep up to date with statutory requirements? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.9 Does allergen labelling apply to soft drinks? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.10 What are the main statutory requirements with which a beverages manufacturer must comply in the United Kingdom? . . . . . . . . . . 9.11 What does a manufacturer need to be aware of when wishing to make nutritional claims for a product as listed in EU Regulation 1924/2006? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.12 How is the nutritional value of a product calculated? . . . . . . . . . 9.13 Are there any special health and safety issues that relate to soft drinks manufacture? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
167 167 168 168 169 170 170 171 172 172 173 174 175 176
References and further reading . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
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Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
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1 Product development of new soft drinks and fruit juices Abstract: This chapter lists and answers key questions arising during product development of soft drinks and fruit juices. It reviews such issues as the marketing brief, cost constraints, manufacturing and packaging issues, shelf-life prediction and ways of assessing consumer reactions to new products. Key words: soft drinks, fruit juices, product development, marketing brief, shelf-life prediction, consumer reactions.
1.1
Initial issues affecting product development
1.1.1 How do I obtain the main brief for a new or modified product? Concept generation can be carried out by either marketing or technical departments, but a combination of both is usually most successful. Identification of a market need or trend will lead to product ideas. Ideally the product will have a `unique selling point' (USP) which will be attractive to consumers and allow the product to stand out against those of competitors. There are specialist agencies and consultants that use techniques to engender new ideas and radical product concepts which can then be honed into commercially viable and practical developments. Developments can be modifications or extensions of existing product ranges, e.g. a new or improved flavour or a completely new product concept. The great majority of developments fall into the first category, totally new concepts being relatively rare. A sudden spate of developments can be generated by the introduction of a new or modified ingredient such as the sweetener sucralose, or the `super fruit' goji berries. Consumer and market research can be used to identify so-called `gaps in the market', which could be new flavours, low-calorie or sugar-free variants, new
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packaging formats, new bottle sizes, wide-mouth bottles, sports caps, multipacks, etc. The development of a completely novel drink concept, sometimes termed `blue skies research', offers potentially greater rewards if successful but involves inherently greater risk, greater cost and longer development time. 1.1.2 What factors need to be considered at an early stage and how much data is needed before development starts? The fundamental questions are: · Do consumers like the product enough to buy it? · Can it be manufactured and supplied at a price that they are prepared to pay? Whilst a broad brief allows scope for the product developer's creativity, a tight initial brief leads to more focused and rapid development. It is preferable to direct the creative input into the development of a comprehensive brief. Factors to be considered are: · Market position Is the product a premium adult drink for sale in bars or a low-cost children's drink for sale in discount retailers? Identifying the target market is a crucial factor. A product targeted at teenage boys would be significantly different from one targeted at 20+ females. Is the product for refreshment only or does it have additional selling points, e.g. fruit juice content, antioxidants, vitamins, etc.? · Packaging format Is the product to be in bottles (glass or PET) or in cans or cartons? · Technical constraints Is the product still or carbonated, does it require pasteurisation, is it to be low calorie, is it to have only natural colours and flavours, etc.? · Production constraints Can the product be manufactured on existing company production facilities or will expensive production equipment need to be installed? Can production be contracted out to another manufacturer easily? 1.1.3 How much technical input should there be in deciding the brief? Technical input is vital, if only to identify all the issues which need to be overcome during development. It must be established that all aspects of the proposed product and its manufacture are technically viable and identify the issues that need to be resolved. Technical issues need not necessarily limit creativity or product novelty but they must be factored into the development programme. The whole supply chain from raw material supplies and handling to product distribution and storage should be considered (see Section 1.1.4). Technical input must identify all the issues to be resolved during the course of development, and an estimate of the difficulty and time required for solving these issues can be made to enable a draft timetable or development programme
Product development of new soft drinks and fruit juices
3
to be drawn up. It must be remembered that any such timetable is only an educated guess as it is impossible to know in advance how long a problem will take to solve. It is therefore essential to review the programme regularly and to `flag up' any delays or target dates missed. 1.1.4 What are the main issues affecting the development of a product? · Raw materials supply Is the material available of the right quality and adequate quantity? If a fruit material is required in significant quantity, when is it in season? If a non-standard fruit material is needed in large quantities, it may not be possible to obtain a sufficient quantity outside the season. This will be especially true if the material has a tight specification for colour, purity, etc. rather than being a standard commodity material. · Raw materials handling Are there special requirements for storage and handling of any new materials? · Packaging Will standard packaging be used or will a new or modified format be required? · Formulation Is the drink just a new flavour variant in an existing product range or a completely new product using new raw materials and new processing? What shelf-life is needed and will the product and packaging survive likely storage and distribution conditions? The physical and microbiological stability of the product must be assured under all likely circumstances. How much stability and shelf-life testing will be required? Will any new or modified production plant be required? Can a suitable contract packer be located? · Consumer acceptability Will sufficient consumers buy the product? How much consumer research and market testing will be required? · Cost/Price Can the product be manufactured and delivered at a price the consumer is willing to pay? How much is the consumer willing to pay? 1.1.5 What timescale should be allowed for the development of a product? The timescale is dependent upon the nature of the development to be undertaken. The unknowns should be identified and estimates made of how long the evaluation of each will take. In any major development be aware of the likelihood of `unknown unknowns'. Those are issues which you are unaware that you do not know. It is essential to draft an activity timing plan and indicate key decision points and dates. Regular reviews will identify whether the development is falling behind schedule and the plan can be modified as necessary. Some developmental stages can be run concurrently but some must of necessity be consecutive. Where possible, be certain to include all options in the evaluation. It is most undesirable to discover after several months of development that for some reason the test product is not satisfactory and further options need to be evaluated. The time needed to develop and evaluate a new product depends on the degree of novelty, and whilst testing can be accelerated up to a point (see
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Section 1.6) it is risky to launch a product without evaluating it for at least a large part of its shelf-life. It is also impossible to take into account all possible variables which can arise in the production process and in the sourcing of raw materials. It is always preferable to build up production slowly and monitor performance under real conditions rather than launch into full-scale operations without adequate testing. A test marketing followed by a roll-out to full-scale operations is always desirable in order to overcome any `teething problems' which inevitably occur during the introduction of a new product. Unfortunately there is always commercial pressure for a development to be carried out in the minimum possible time. Frequently a product must be launched for a predetermined deadline; for example, many products are launched in early spring in order to be established in the market for the peak sales period. In such instances a risk/benefit assessment must be conducted and the commercial implications clearly understood before a decision is made to reduce the development time and shorten the testing period. 1.1.6 What microbiological tests should be carried out on a developmental product? Soft drinks are high-acid products, generally having a pH < 4, and therefore, provided the normal industry hygiene precautions are taken, harmful organisms (pathogens) are not a problem. However, drinks having a pH > 4 such as some tea drinks, and particularly vegetable juices, are at much greater risk and must be handled as low-acid foods. These require more robust hygiene conditions and much more severe pasteurisation conditions, e.g. 120 ëC for up to 45 seconds. Low-acid vegetable juices, for example carrot juice, are susceptible to dangerous pathogens such as Clostridium botulinum and must be handled as high-risk foods. Standard (high-acid) soft drinks are subject to spoilage by yeasts, moulds and bacteria. Moulds are inhibited by high carbon dioxide (CO2) levels and are not a problem in carbonated drinks. The drink and its processing should be subjected to challenge testing by a range of organisms likely to occur in the raw materials and processing plant at and above the levels they are likely to occur. Samples should be inoculated with actively growing organisms in order to replicate real situations. Dormant organisms may not provide a true picture of the risk. The inoculated samples are then processed and stored at ambient and elevated temperatures and their microbiological status evaluated periodically. If the drinks are designed to be distributed and sold via the cold chain then they would be tested under those conditions and at ambient temperature to replicate correct storage and abuse conditions. Extensive microbiological testing would only be undertaken for new products or ones where any proposed modification is likely to impact upon the microbiological risk. For susceptible products it is essential to ensure that the hygienic performance of the production line is capable of maintaining the desired standards.
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Below are three examples of specific organisms which have proved to be major sources of problems to the soft drinks industry due to their particular characteristics and of which developers should be aware: · Zygosaccharomyces baillii This yeast is resistant to both benzoate and sorbate preservatives and will cause fermentation problems if it is present in fruit juice supplies. It is most likely to be found in tropical juices. · Alicyclobacillus acidoterrestris This bacterium is a thermophile and the spores are extremely resistant to heat. It will survive normal juice pasteurisation conditions and cause an unpleasant flavour in the resulting fruit juice. · Penicillium roquefortii This commonly occurring mould (which is found in many blue cheeses) will metabolise sorbic acid preservative to produce 1,3pentadiene which has a pungent aroma similar to that of diesel fuel. It is inhibited by CO2 but has been a major source of problems in sorbatepreserved still drinks. Some other strains of Penicillium moulds are also a problem.
1.2
The marketing brief
1.2.1 Who should be the main driver in preparing the marketing brief: the technical or the marketing department? The soft drinks industry in general is marketing led and, whilst it is important that the technical and marketing functions work closely together, it is usual for marketing to take the lead. Any new product must appeal to the consumer. It is the responsibility of the marketing department to identify `gaps in the market' and new consumer trends. Some developments are carried out for technical reasons, for example to improve product stability, to improve production efficiencies, to reduce costs or to introduce natural flavourings or colourings in order to make a claim. These would, of course, be technically led. 1.2.2 How detailed should the product brief be? How much technical and marketing information should be provided? Sufficient marketing and technical detail should be provided to give the new product developers a firm `steer' but still allow a degree of creativity. A marketing team should be able to define a new product development in considerable detail from their research findings, specifying the target consumer profile and the generic drink type, for example a fruit-based drink targeted at 18±30-year-old females for sale in bars, or a refreshing energy drink in cans targeted at teenage boys. Some technical detail may be specified for desired attributes, e.g. no added sugar, or with added vitamins, etc., about which claims may be made.
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1.2.3 Do special regulations exist for sports drinks? What is an isotonic drink? There are currently no specific regulations for sports drinks. In 2004 the EU Commission published a `Draft Directive on foodstuffs intended to meet the expenditure of intense muscular effort, especially for sportsmen', generally known as the Sports Foods Directive. However, the document was never progressed and enacted. At the time of writing the position of sports drinks is under discussion. The Commission could either introduce specific sports drinks regulations under the PARNUTS Framework Directive (89/398/EC) or make provision under the nutrition and health claims regulations (1924/2006). At the time of writing it appears that it will be the former. This will enable claims to be made referring to the action of the sports drink. Sports drinks can be formulated in three ways in order to perform three specific functions relating to energy and hydration. The two major requirements for athletes expending energy are carbohydrates (sugars) and water. The three categories of sports drinks are as listed in the following table:
Hypotonic Isotonic Hypertonic
Carbohydrate (g/100 ml)
Osmolality (mOsmo/kg)
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· A hypotonic drink is intended for rehydration and contains only low levels of carbohydrate (sugars) and electrolytes (minerals, predominantly sodium). The presence of carbohydrate and sodium at low levels speeds the adsorption of water by the body, maximising rehydration. · An isotonic drink contains glucose and sodium at similar levels to those found in the body. This maximises the rate at which glucose (energy) is taken up by the body. · Hypertonic drinks contain high levels of carbohydrate and minerals to replace those used during prolonged strenuous exercise. 1.2.4 Are there any special regulations for drinks for babies? Drinks specifically designed for children aged 36 months or less are subjected to many separate regulatory requirements. (Note: in legislation, babies are less than 12 months old and infants are less than 36 months old.) However, there are no specific regulations within the EU, only special provisions laid down within many regulations. The EU Directives on Sweeteners, Colours and Miscellaneous Additives prohibit the use of these additives in drinks designed for children aged under 36 months. A short list of additives which may be used in products for infants is listed in the Miscellaneous Additives Regulations (96/52/EC). In addition to provisions
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for additives there are special provisions for certain contaminants such as pesticides and mycotoxins. For example, the maximum limit for Patulin (a mycotoxin produced by mould) in apple juice is 50 g/litre, whereas in apple products aimed at babies and infants the limit is 10 g/litre. 1.2.5 How often should the marketing brief be reviewed? A timing schedule/development programme should be drawn up listing all the activities required in the development, and key decision dates arising. This must be closely monitored in order to note any `slippage' and rescheduled if any key dates are missed. Regular reviews of progress on the development should be held. The frequency of these reviews depends upon the overall timescale, but they should be sufficiently frequent to identify any problems which could result in missing target dates and to enable early implementation of corrective actions. 1.2.6 What issues surround `tooth-friendly' drinks? Soft drinks have been associated with dental issues in two ways. Firstly, sugarsweetened drinks are cariogenic, i.e. can cause dental caries, due to acid formation caused by bacterial action on sugar in the mouth. Secondly, dental enamel will soften and dissolve slowly at a pH less than 5 and continual exposure to acid foods or drinks, having a pH less than 5, will tend to slowly remove tooth enamel. This process is known as `erosion'. Acid foods and drinks include pickles, fruits, fruit juices and soft drinks. However, there is also a reverse process known as remineralisation by which, at higher pH levels in the presence of minerals such as calcium and fluoride, the enamel can reform. Saliva also assists neutralisation of the acidity in the mouth and helps to promote remineralisation. Drinks can be designed with the pH buffered as high as possible, whilst reformulating to minimise the impact on flavour. The pH and total acidity are key characteristics of a drink's flavour. The presence of calcium in the drink also reduces the dissolution of enamel. Such drinks can be consumed with minimal dissolution of tooth enamel. Unfortunately the relatively high pH and high calcium content do tend to impact significantly on the character of the drink. `Tooth-friendly' drinks were developed and marketed in the UK by Glaxo Smith Kline (GSK) who hold many patents on the subject. Some early work was also carried out by Procter & Gamble (P&G) who also hold patents on formulations.
1.3
Cost constraints
1.3.1 Should the initial product concept be developed without reference to cost? It is useful when researching totally novel product ideas to ignore potential constraints such as production requirements and costs. This permits greater initial creativity for both technical and marketing departments. Constraints and
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Soft drink and fruit juice problems solved
their solutions can be considered after initial ideas generation. A truly novel product may be able to sustain a significant price premium, and cost should not necessarily exclude potential products. It is important, however, that the profitability of products is assessed before any launch is decided upon. New products are frequently developed by initially optimising product performance (maximising consumer preference) and then cost-reduced in order to meet financial targets. It is important to reduce costs without significantly compromising consumer acceptability of the product. 1.3.2 When should the impact of cost be assessed? The financial viability of a project must be assessed as soon as realistic estimates of costs can be obtained. This will at least provide guidance as to the viability of the product and cost estimates can be refined as the project progresses. It is important to assess the impact on costs of any changes made during the course of the development project. Additionally, the impact of the new development on existing production should be assessed. For example, if a new product requires engineering changes to handle a new pack shape, this could result in significant downtime on the production line every time there is a product change. To change a production line to run a different pack format can take up to several hours, depending upon the type of change. This would reduce the number of hours per week for which the line could run and hence increase production costs, not just for the new product but also potentially for existing products. The impact of cost on a consumer's propensity to purchase is difficult to measure. Guidance can be obtained from consumer research but can be accurately judged only under real conditions, i.e. a test market. 1.3.3 How much influence should the company accounting function have on product development? It is vital that accurate costings and financial evaluations are available during the course of development, but financial reasons alone may not be the deciding factor as to whether a development continues or not. That decision is made on a commercial basis taking into account all aspects affecting the business. For example, if a specific development will gain incremental volume that is beneficial to the overall business, it may be decided to base the price on marginal costing (i.e. exclude fully costed overheads). However, the financial consequences of such decisions must be understood as part of the business decision. Marginal costing of developments to obtain incremental business can be very dangerous, as the business is not fully recovering its true costs, and can lead to financial problems in the long term. There is a significant difference between an accounting decision and a commercial one, the latter considering a wider field of business priorities than just profit and loss. However, it has to be remembered that the company must make a profit.
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1.3.4 How do I establish a likely selling price? If the product is merely a range extension, establishing the price will be simpler. It will sell at a similar price to other products in the range, though it may be able to justify a slightly higher selling price due to its novelty value. Alternatively, it may be sold at a lower price to be more competitive. The selling price of a totally novel product is more difficult to establish as one must be able to maintain a price differential compared to competitor products on the market and achieve the desired profit margin. It is essential to define the market positioning of the product. Is it mass market or niche? Is it premium or economy? It is difficult to establish with any degree of certainty what selling price a product will be able to maintain in the real marketplace. One must also consider that competitors may reduce their prices in response to the new threat. Market sector is an important consideration. The sales price in HORECA (hotels, restaurants and catering) and in impulse outlets is higher than in supermarkets. Consumer research can be useful to establish what customers would be willing to pay, though what consumers say in response to a questionnaire is not necessarily what they will do in the real purchasing situation. Market testing under real conditions in a few stores is helpful in this respect. The product under test may be sold at a different price point in several stores to evaluate its `price elasticity', i.e. variation of sales volume with selling price. 1.3.5 Will new capital plant be needed? Every aspect of the operational requirement must be fully evaluated systematically, from the delivery, storage and handling of raw materials through processing and packaging machinery to the secondary packaging and palletisation: · Raw materials handling and storage Fruit materials could require cold or frozen storage. High-pulp juices could require positive displacement pumps and tubular pasteurisers. Stabilisers, such as pectin, could require high shear mixers for dissolution. Glucose syrups need warm storage. · Pasteurisation and microbiological issues Can the pasteuriser achieve the required conditions and are the cleaning regime and plant hygiene adequate? · Pack handling, capping and labelling Can the production line handle the pack and labels or will changed parts be required or even new plant? · Secondary packaging and palletisation Will the boxes or shrink wrapping equipment handle the new pack? Is the palletiser capable of stacking and wrapping the new pack? Production lines tend to be specific to a particular pack type and the range of sizes tends to be limited. For soft drinks, changing the height slightly is possible but changing the bottle diameter requires major modifications to the line. The more flexible a production line the more expensive and slower it tends to be. A high-speed line running at high efficiency demands just one pack. Continual
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changes have a very deleterious effect on line efficiencies. If significant pack changes are made from the existing packs, it is very likely that new capital plant will be required.
1.4
Packaging issues
1.4.1 Should the issues of packaging be raised at the early stages of product development and how important is packaging to the product concept? Packaging is critical for consumer perception. It is vital for the product's image, and the target market sector will influence pack type and design. Consumer usage must also be considered. Will the product be in a premium single-serve pack or in a large multi-serve pack? Will it be sold in HORECA outlets or in supermarkets? The type of pack can have a significant impact on the product formulation. For example, any residual sulphur dioxide (SO2) from fruit compounds must be extremely low if the fruit drink is to be packed into cans. An oxygen-sensitive flavour cannot be used in PET due to its permeability to oxygen. A carbonated product can only be packed in PET or glass bottles or cans. If a product is to be packed in a single-serve carton with a straw then its appearance is less important than if it goes into a bottle where it would be clearly visible. It can be seen that the packaging may be a critical factor and is best considered at the very start of the development process. 1.4.2 What considerations should be raised in deciding the preferred packaging? Technical issues are important, e.g. CO2 cannot be used in cartons or pouches, and if in glass the pack design must be able to resist the highest likely pressure (high pressure if in-pack pasteurisation is to be used). The bottle manufacturer will advise on this. Market positioning must be considered (see previous section). The pack type has a significant impact on consumer perception. Distinctive heavy glass bottles are often used to give products a premium image. Seemingly minor issues may become relevant, such as whether a tall elegant bottle will fit on retailers' shelves. 1.4.3 What influence does packaging have on production and its costs? Packaging has a considerable effect on cost in all areas ± product, production and distribution. As previously mentioned, the formulation may need modification depending upon pack type. The design of the packaging can have a significant effect on line efficiency and hence production cost. Packs must be able to flow freely along production lines without jamming or toppling over. Over-complex packaging can lead to lower line efficiency and hence higher production costs. Even apparently very minor changes to packaging can have
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totally unexpected effects on line efficiency. For example, changing the colour of a pack can affect its surface characteristics and impact on the way packs behave on the line. Even changing the colour of a plastic cap can affect its performance in the capper and cause application problems on the production line. If a pack requires changes to a production line in order for it to be handled, this will lead to downtime whilst engineers modify the line. This will decrease line efficiency and increase production cost. Packs should be designed so that they can all be run down the line without having to change its parameters. The cost of the pack itself has a significant impact on total cost, particularly for low-priced products. Indeed, the packaging cost frequently exceeds the ingredient cost. Packaging also has a significant impact on distribution costs. Packs are often designed with dimensions which will fit exactly onto a pallet, thereby maximising the number of packs per pallet. Being able to fit only a smaller number of packs onto a pallet increases distribution costs significantly, and distribution is a major component of overall costs. The use of shrinkwrap with only minimal or no use of board is very low-cost compared to the cost of cardboard boxes and outer packaging, though highquality cardboard packaging can give a premium image compared to shrinkwrap. 1.4.4 Can I design my own packaging? The answer to this question is yes, to a certain degree. Cans are manufactured to fixed dimensions and any modifications would be hugely expensive, but bottles (plastic or glass) which are blown into moulds can be made to meet a personalised design. Many companies have custom-designed bottle shapes, two classic examples being the Coca-Cola bottle and the Perrier bottle, which are instantly recognisable by their shape. The initial cost of designing and manufacturing bottle moulds is very high and can only be justified by a higher selling price and/or high volume sales. The package must, of course, meet all design and safety requirements. This is particularly true for glass bottles intended to hold carbonated drinks. The artwork design of cans, cartons, labels, etc., is very much at the discretion of the manufacturer. However, the printing cost escalates rapidly the more colours are employed and the printing facilities will limit the number of colours that can be used. There are legal requirements for certain information which must be included on the pack, such as an ingredients list, product name or description, best before date, content volume, etc., and these must be clearly and indelibly printed. The FSA has a guide to clear labelling available on its website, and the EU Commission is currently processing its `Food Information Regulations' due for publication in 2009 which will lay down requirements for labelling content and legibility criteria.
12
1.5
Soft drink and fruit juice problems solved
Manufacturing issues
1.5.1 What are the principal limitations to be considered in the early stages of development? The physical issues and their engineering solutions must be evaluated to identify any potential barriers to production. Each step throughout the process must be considered, for example: · Storage, handling, dissolution and mixing of raw materials and ingredients · Pasteurisation, microbiological limitations, carbonation and filling · Handling of packs, capping, labelling and secondary packaging. Any barriers to production must be identified, an engineering solution devised and costs and timescale elucidated. A commercial decision should then be taken whether to invest in the required operational changes, seek a contract packing option or abandon or change the project brief. 1.5.2 How can a new product be assessed for manufacture without largescale production? There are specialist producers of mock-up packs who will manufacture small numbers of realistic imitation bottles, cans, cartons, etc., to use for market research or consumer testing. This enables the impact of the pack, for example its on-shelf appearance, to be assessed. Tasting samples can be stored in different containers and supplied to trial consumers separately. To assess how the product will behave during the manufacturing process, one can compare all aspects of its production to existing products currently being manufactured on the plant. Where some specifications or parameters, such as viscosity or pulp content, for example, differ from current products, these can be tested on small-scale pilot plant (see 1.5.6 below). Where new or modified packaging is being introduced it is essential that this is trialled under real production conditions as, whilst one can make an educated guess, it is impossible to predict exactly how it will behave. Although reasonable assessments of product performance can be made from comparisons with similar products and extrapolation from small-scale trials, it is impossible to guarantee exactly how bulk handling will proceed without a fullscale test. Very small changes in the design or construction of equipment can have unexpected consequences. For example, a lemonade syrup may mix perfectly in one mixing tank but have separated oil floating on the surface in a different tank due to a slight difference in the design of the stirring paddles that affects the mixing pattern of the syrup. 1.5.3 When should I consider outsourcing the initial manufacture of a new product? Is contract packing a viable option? Outsourcing is a convenient method of manufacture without the requirement for major capital investment in new plant. This may be desirable for several reasons:
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· A new product can be put on the market without the need for investment in plant to establish whether it is viable. If the development is unsuccessful then no investment is lost. If the development is successful then capital investment can be justified. · Production on an existing plant can be on stream much faster than the time taken to purchase and install new manufacturing equipment, which can be 18 months or more for a substantial development. · If a factory is already operating at maximum capacity or lacks space for expansion then contract packing may be a suitable alternative, at least in the short term. · A manufacturer may for commercial reasons wish to supply a range of packaging formats but lacks the capability in-house to do them all. Small volumes of production may never justify capital investment but can be outsourced. Contract packing is often a viable option and is widely practised in the soft drinks industry. Some manufacturers do not produce their own branded products but specialise in contract packing for either retailers or other manufacturers. They operate relatively slow but flexible production facilities. Also some smaller soft drinks companies who cannot benefit from the economies of scale have closed their own factories and now have all their production contract packed. Some small soft drinks companies are simply sales and marketing operations and have never operated a factory but have always outsourced their production. 1.5.4 Can existing production facilities be modified? This is an engineering issue which must be considered on a case-by-case basis. Dedicated high-speed lines tend to be very pack specific; lines can be designed to be flexible but that usually adds to cost and reduces the line speed. Modifying equipment to handle bottles of different heights is relatively easy, but handling bottles of differing diameters is very difficult. This always requires changed parts and major modification to the line with resultant significant downtime. Likewise for cans, 250 ml and 330 ml cans of the same diameter can often be filled on the same line, but not cans of different diameters. Some flexibility can be designed into a production line, e.g. space can be left for additional or alternative packaging equipment to be installed. However, the greater the flexibility, the higher the cost. 1.5.5 Do some ingredients require special handling facilities? Many ingredients require special handling facilities, as listed below: · Frozen concentrated fruit juices require specific handling and pumping equipment. · Juices with high pulp content require tubular rather than plate pasteurisers.
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Soft drink and fruit juice problems solved
· Some powders, for example stabilisers, require high shear mixers for dissolution. · Bulk sweeteners, granulated sugar and glucose syrups require dedicated plant. · Liquid carbon dioxide must have highly specialist handling equipment. 1.5.6 Can test plant data be scaled up? Whilst pilot-scale productions do provide very useful information, care must be taken when scaling up from small laboratory or pilot plant trials to full-scale factory production, particularly when evaluating physical activities such as shear mixing and homogenisation and for packaging operations. Some research establishments, e.g. RSSL and CCFRA, have purpose-designed pilot facilities which can be hired for individual development projects. Small-scale manufacturing equipment such as plate pasteurisers, carbonators, fillers, homogenisers, mixing vessels, etc., are available from specialist suppliers to enable a small pilot facility to be constructed in order to manufacture trial volumes of new products. The equipment is manufactured specifically to replicate conditions occurring in the manufacturing processes. The cost of establishing a purposebuilt pilot plant is very high and small manufacturers may find hiring plant more cost-effective. Whilst providing a useful indication of product performance and being useful for production of samples for testing and market research purposes, there is no replacement for actual manufacture on the real plant. This is especially true for new packaging. All modifications must be trialled on the actual production plant to guarantee acceptable performance.
1.6
Shelf-life prediction
1.6.1 Can shelf-life be predicted? A reasonable estimate of the shelf-life of a product can be made by using accelerated ageing techniques and assessing the product's performance. The shelf-life is the period for which the product remains acceptable under normal storage conditions. The deterioration of a product's appearance and flavour is gradual and depends upon the storage conditions. It is a continuum and therefore the selection of cut-off date is somewhat subjective. For PET bottles the loss of carbonation must be taken into account and for small bottles it is likely to be the limiting factor on shelf-life. The rate of loss of carbonation should be 85 ëC) is very effective but it is essential to ensure that all parts of the plant reach a sufficiently high temperature. Many plants do not have a large steam supply and it is more common practice to use chemical sterilisation. There are several chemical cleaning/sterilisation agents that can be purchased from industrial suppliers. Quaternary ammonium salts and similar cleaning agents are effective but can be difficult to completely eliminate from the plant. Hypochlorite is commonly used as a sterilising agent and is very effective. Concern has been expressed over possible production of chlorinated hydrocarbons as a result of the action of chlorine on biofilms. The water should be monitored when production resumes to ensure that such byproducts of sterilisation are absent. Ozone is possibly the most commonly used sterilising agent for water bottling plants. It is produced by electric discharge in air and dissolved into the water stream. It is a potent sterilising agent and has the advantage that it breaks down to oxygen, thereby requiring no flushing of the plant. It is very toxic and precautions to prevent breathing the vapour must be taken. It is also very corrosive to organic materials such as seals which may be used in the plant. It is essential to ensure that the plant is suitable for ozone sterilisation prior to its use. Organisms can develop resistance to sterilising agents. If monitoring shows a steady increase in the level of microflora in the plant, it can be useful to use a different sterilising agent for a period of time. 5.3.4 Do I need to take any special precautions in a water bottling plant? All the procedures necessary in a soft drinks plant must be taken, plus greater hygiene requirements and greater emphasis on the avoidance of taints. Particular precautions include the following: · Filling must be done in a clean environment to prevent any ingress of organisms, e.g. algae or mould spores, from the atmosphere. Employees suffering from any illness must not be allowed into the filling area, etc.
Bottled waters 127 · Higher grade PET bottles and higher grade caps are often used for water bottles than for soft drink bottles to avoid the possibility of taints, which are far more apparent in water than in flavoured drinks. · Higher grade seals are frequently used in water bottling equipment, also to avoid taints. Great care must be taken to prevent any possible contamination from the surface gaining access to the source. It must be sealed and the area around it protected. The caps used on bottled waters must legally be tamper evident.
5.4
Quality issues
5.4.1 What are the most likely appearance defects affecting bottled waters? Packaged water needs to be crystal clear at all times as even if not packed in clear glass or plastic containers the consumer expects to see a product of exceptional clarity when the product is decanted. Probably the most likely visual defect is the appearance of cloudiness or sediment. Such problems can arise if there is a breakdown of a filter in the packaging system or if particles are present that are too small to be removed by the filter. This defect sometimes occurs if water surges in the underground chamber from which it is pumped. It is useful to install a visual inspection point in the line where any haziness may be observed, although there are many electronic in-line turbidity meters that will perform this function continuously and sound an alarm or divert water if a problem arises. Other visual defects that can occur during storage of bottled water are a cloudiness caused by growth of large numbers of bacteria (which need not necessarily be harmful to the consumer) or algal growth that causes a green appearance to the insides of the container. Packaged water should not be exposed unnecessarily to strong light, as this is the principal cause of algal growth, and if there is a significant bacterial count in the source of water for bottling it should be subjected at least to UV irradiation and possibly chlorine treatment and removal before bottling (not applicable to natural mineral water or spring water). 5.4.2 What are the most likely sources of taints in bottled waters? Natural mineral waters may not be treated other than by filtration to remove sediments. Any taints that arise in such water should arise only from the source or by contamination from the packaging. There is, however, the risk that unless fail-safe cleaning systems are used, possible cross-contamination from cleaning chemicals may occur. Some natural mineral waters have a slight sulphurous taste and the taste that is characteristic of their mineral content. There have been occasions when plastic packaging has given rise to taints and a specific problem has occurred when acetaldehyde has been leached from green PET bottles to impart its characteristic taste.
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Soft drink and fruit juice problems solved
For waters that are not subject to the constraints of natural mineral water or spring water, the taint most likely to occur is that of chlorine either from the water source or because it has been used to sterilise the water and removal has not been complete. The presence of chlorine can sometimes create a taint that is characteristic of `disinfectant' as a result of interaction with components of different plastics. The same potential sources of taints from acetaldehyde and cleaning chemicals still apply. 5.4.3 What kind of organisms will grow in bottled waters? Many bottled waters have a microbial content unless they have been subjected to UV irradiation immediately before packaging, although all bottled waters must be free from pathogenic organisms. The absence of pathogenic organisms is a legal requirement for natural mineral and spring waters as a condition of their recognition, as is the absence of other pathogenic organisms such as the parasites Giardia and Cryptosporidium. Other potential pathogens such as Pseudomonas aeruginosa should also be absent. All packaged waters must be free from pathogenic organisms after bottling. Many bottled waters, however, do contain a wide spectrum of bacteria of naturally occurring bacteria of environmental origin, the numbers of which may fluctuate widely after packaging. Bacteria will consume all the dissolved assimilable organic carbon and their numbers will grow until all the available nutrients have been consumed, when numbers then fall. It is not unusual for counts of 105 to 106 colony forming units (CFU) per millilitre (ml) to be found several weeks after bottling. There is little or no risk of contamination of water by yeasts, although moulds will grow. Algal growth can sometimes cause problems as indicated in a previous response. 5.4.4 Does the carbon dioxide added to bottled waters need to be of special quality? Contaminants in the carbon dioxide added to water to produce sparkling bottled water have in the past been the reason for major product recalls. The problem that has occurred on at least two separate occasions was caused by the presence of the carcinogenic hydrocarbon, benzene. As a result of such problems, the European Industrial Gases Association (EIGA) working with the Compressed Gases Association of America (CGA) and the International Society of Beverage Technologists (ISBT) has prepared a specification for liquid carbon dioxide for use in foods and beverages. This is shown in the following table which shows component specifications for carbon dioxide (CGA/EIGA limiting characteristics):
Bottled waters 129 Component1
Concentration
Assay Moisture Acidity Ammonia Oxygen Oxides of nitrogen (NO/NO2) Non-volatile residue (particulates) Non-volatile organic residue (oil and grease) Phosphine2 Total volatile hydrocarbons (calculated as methane) Acetaldehyde Benzene Carbon monoxide Methanol Hydrogen cyanide3 Total sulphur (as sulphur)4 Taste and odour in water
99.9% v/v min. 50 ppm v/v max. (20 ppm w/w max.) To pass JECFA test 2.5 ppm v/v max. 30 ppm v/v max. 2.5 ppm v/v max. each 10 ppm v/v max. 5 ppm w/w max. 0.3 ppm v/v 50 ppm v/v max. of which 20 ppm v/v max. non-methane hydrocarbons 0.2 ppm v/v max. 0.02 ppm v/v max. 10 ppm v/v max. 10 ppm v/v max. 30 ëC) can cause flavour problems. The heat loss from the centre of a pallet full of cartons is extremely
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Soft drink and fruit juice problems solved
slow and packs in the centre of the pallet can stay at too high a temperature for days. This can cause flavour problems for fruit juices and also encourage the growth of any thermophilic organisms that may be present, e.g. Alicyclobacillus acidoterrestris. The use of sulphited juices in drinks packed into laminated board should be avoided. Any contact between the sulphite and aluminium in the laminate will cause the formation of hydrogen sulphide, evident by its offensive odour of rotten eggs. The sale of fruit juices in gable-top cartons such as Elopak and Combibloc has increased rapidly in the UK. These are distributed via the cold chain and hence care must be taken to maintain low temperatures at all times during distribution. Loss of control in the supply chain resulting in product reaching ambient temperature will cause spoilage. When laminate is stored in the form of a roll the interior of the pack is in direct contact with the exterior printed surface. Transfer of printing chemicals from the exterior to interior surfaces has been an issue and resulted in some product withdrawal in 2007. This problem has now been eliminated. 6.1.9 Are there any guidelines for sports closures? Some early designs of sports closures allowed children to bite or pull the end nipple off into their mouth, causing a potential choking hazard. Also some closures have tamper-evident dust caps on the top. These are frequently removed by consumers using their teeth, again causing a potential choking hazard. BSDA members, in conjunction with PIRA, produced a guide for sports closures which lays down specifications/standards to minimise the choking hazards. A guideline has also been produced for `flip lid' closures. These two guidelines are available from the BSDA.
6.2
Packaging defects
6.2.1 What are the most likely defects associated with glass bottles? Defects found in glass bottles can be classified as aesthetic, physical or critical failures: · Aesthetic This affects appearance of the bottle only and does not affect the integrity of the bottle. · Physical failure This is a fault which weakens the integrity of the bottle or would result in failure of the bottle during the filling process. · Critical defect This is a fault which would cause risk of injury to consumers, e.g. pieces of glass in the bottle. The most critical faults are the presence of threads or spikes of glass inside the bottle. These can be broken by the filling tube, leaving broken glass fragments inside the full bottle and posing a serious risk to a consumer drinking the product.
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Many flaws can potentially weaken the structure of the bottle, for example the distribution of glass throughout the bottle may be uneven, forming a weak thin area. Bottles may also be misshapen or have bubbles or other flaws. The BSDA publishes two booklets on glass bottle quality, Handling & Use and Sampling & Evaluation, which list 18 critical, 12 major and six minor types of defect. All deliveries of bottles should be statistically sampled and inspected for weight, height, volume, shape and any visible defects. A minimum of 125 bottles should be inspected. If any critical defect is found, the whole delivery should be rejected or quarantined until a full inspection can be carried out. 6.2.2 Are cans likely to show particular defects? The most common defects affecting cans are faults in the epoxy lacquer coating. Uneven application and `pin holing' will allow drink to contact the metal surface of the can and result in leakage. Leakage of a can will cause secondary corrosion of other cans and a whole pallet can rapidly be ruined. If cans are shrink-wrapped with excess moisture present, secondary corrosion, particularly of the scoring on the lid, will lead to leakage. The water used to rinse cans must not be aggressive or stress corrosion may occur where the lids have been scored to permit the tabs to open. Advice should be taken from the can manufacturers on the required water quality. The BSDA provides a guide on Environmental Stress Cracking of Aluminium Alloy Beverage End Scores. Cans must be as dry as possible when shrink-wrapped. The major fault during the filling process is faulty seaming of the lid on to the body of the can. If an imperfection is present in the seam, leakage will result. Regular routine seam checks are essential during production. Empty cans are extremely delicate and great care must be taken when moving pallets of them about. Any damage to the rim of the can will prevent adequate seaming and subsequent leakage. 6.2.3 What inspection regime do I need to put in place to minimise the risk of any defective container reaching the consumer? The monitoring of packs takes place both before and after filling. Electronic sighting devices can eliminate faulty glass bottles prior to the filler. Cans and bottles should be inverted and rinsed or air blown to ensure no solid particles are present. A range of continuous monitoring devices are also commercially available for placing on production lines after the filler to reject faulty bottles, e.g. · Electronic sighting can detect low fills or presence of foreign objects. X-ray detectors can spot low fills in cans. · Sighters can also detect faults such as closures that have not been applied correctly. · Sonic detectors can monitor the internal pressure and reject any `leakers'.
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Soft drink and fruit juice problems solved
Continuous monitoring of the performance of the line by the operators should detect any drift away from optimum operation before serious faults occur. Samples should be removed from the production line and inspected to evaluate the standard of seaming, capping, etc. The frequency of these checks will be ascertained by experience. The standard of application of secondary packaging should also be continuously monitored by the line operators. Where appropriate, microbiological testing should be implemented and samples from each production batch should be monitored. It is good practice to take three samples of each production batch and place them in storage until after the end of the shelf-life. These can be used as reference samples in the event of queries or complaints. They can also be inspected to evaluate whether the shelflife of the products is as expected. 6.2.4 Are there any types of defects that pose a special risk to the consumer? Most soft drinks and fruit juices are high acid (pH < 4) and defects result in spoilage of the product but not risk to the health of the consumer. Soft drinks do not support growth of pathogens. There are, however, some physical risks: · Glass bottles containing carbonated drinks are a potential hazard. Damage or weakness in the bottle could cause it to burst, resulting in pieces of glass causing physical injury. · Defects causing loose pieces of glass to be inside the bottle are a serious hazard. This could be caused by an internal defect in the bottle or by a filling tube striking the inside edge of the bottle rim and causing a small glass chip to fall inside the bottle. · If a cap is applied at too high a torque the consumer may use an unsuitable implement to try to remove it. This can result in injury due to the cap flying off. Many manufacturers put a warning `remove by hand' on caps to prevent this. 6.2.5 What is the best way to print `best before' or `best before end' (BBE) dates on containers? BBE dates can be printed on cans, bottles, cartons, etc., by means of a highspeed jet printer. The ink is sprayed onto the pack from a close distance at very high speed. The printer does not contact the pack. This has become the standard printing method and a variety of types are available commercially. This type of printer can be used on bottles, cans and cartons. It is important to ensure that packs are dry prior to printing and to choose a relatively flat place on which to print in order that the print is legible. One disadvantage of this type of printing is that the ink may be easily removed by wiping it with a solvent-soaked cloth. This enables unscrupulous traders to obtain out-of-date stock, remove the BBE date and reprint a new date. They then
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sell the stock as new, making a good profit. PET bottles may be etched by means of a laser. This etching is indelible but has the disadvantage that it is less easily visible than print. It is primarily applied to plastic, but its use on glass is becoming more common. 6.2.6 Are there any guidelines relating to clear labelling? The FSA has published an extensive guide to clear labelling on its website. The guidelines give advice regarding print size (minimum 8-point) and on use of suitable fonts and contrasting colours. Print layout is also covered. It is acknowledged that print size is not the only factor in legibility. The type of font and the contrast between print and background are also very important. The EU Commission is currently drafting its `Food Information Regulations'. These will lay down requirements for print size and clarity. The initial draft regulation proposed a minimum 3 mm font size for all mandatory information but this will probably be dropped following objections from the food industry and acknowledgement that for many small packs it is physically impossible.
6.3
Problems during filling and packaging operations
6.3.1 What are the most likely problems that can arise during packaging with any of the packaging types in regular use? Bottles Glass bottles, if new, must be inspected for any defects in production that might leave excess glass in the bottle or have any defect with the closure area. It is normal to subject all bottles to a clean water or sterile air rinse before filling. Glass bottles that have been previously used and rewashed must be inspected for debris, but because of the risk of contamination from other substances that may have been stored in the bottle, the use of an electronic `sniffer' device is also essential. Plastic bottles are almost always used as new bottles and should be subjected to an air or water rinse to remove plastic debris or dust particles. The most likely problem to arise when bottles of any type are used, apart from physical contamination, is a defect in the thread or closure resulting in a leaking container. Cans Cans are only used new and the most likely issue is that of the risk of physical contamination in the empty container, which can be covered by a pre-rinse. Most beverage cans are now two-piece (i.e. body and end) and the risk of leakage from side seams has been mostly eliminated. Other potential problems with the use of cans include the possibility of internal lacquering being of the wrong type or becoming detached from the metal surface. The possible interaction of product with any unlacquered metal surface must also be considered. Possibly the most likely packaging defect when cans are used is that of the seam of the
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Soft drink and fruit juice problems solved
applied end being distorted or ineffective, and regular monitoring of end seams is essential. Regular maintenance of the seamer is key to avoiding this problem. Form±fill±seal containers Many products are now packed in aseptic units using this technique. The main issues are those of forming packages with ineffective seams. Gross seam distortion is likely to produce leaking packs and less obvious distortion may lead to microbiological contamination. Close monitoring of pack seams is vital as is the appropriate maintenance of the filling plant. In aseptic filling machines the maintenance of sterility is also key to avoiding later problems with the end product. 6.3.2 Do such operational problems usually pose a threat to the integrity or safety of the product? Many defects in the packaging of beverages have the potential to pose a threat to the safety or integrity of the contents. The two main threat areas concern contamination of one form or another and product leakage. Glass bottles pose perhaps the most serious threat of physical contamination, as the presence of any residual pieces of glass in a container carries a risk of physical harm to the consumer and a consequent claim on the producer as well as possible loss of confidence. Any physical contamination is of course undesirable, but the presence of dust or other debris in a product is unlikely to have the same consequences as the presence of glass. Microbiological contamination also carries potentially serious consequences. Although most fruit juices and soft drinks are unlikely to harbour pathogens, the presence of any microbiological contaminant is unpleasant for the consumer. Yeast contamination also carries the risk of an exploding container which can cause injury and damage to property. The other area of risk, that of leakage of one or more containers, can cause damage to other stock or property and harm the reputation of the producer. 6.3.3 What process quality checks should be in place to minimise the consequential problems of packaging defects? For preformed containers, such as bottles and cans, the single most important step is to include a rinse of the container with either clean process water or sterile air. For transparent bottles a bottle inspection station is also very important. Traditionally this step was carried out by operators but it is now possible to include automated inspection equipment that rejects doubtful containers or diverts them for further inspection. Correct operation of capping equipment is also essential to ensure that cap threads are aligned with those of the body of the container and that no leaks are occurring. Can end application is key to maintaining the integrity of the product and appropriate checks of the quality of the seams are an essential part of the filling
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operation. Correct adjustment of the can end applicator determines the quality of the seam and close liaison between engineering and quality control departments is needed. Guidance and training on can end checks are usually offered by can or canning machinery suppliers. Important quality checks in the production of form±fill±seal containers are to some extent related to the nature of the container being produced, but all packs will require at least one seal that is essential to product quality. Equipment manufacturers usually provide guidance and training on the exact checks to be maintained. For aseptic plant, checks on the equipment to ensure sterility are important, and for reel-fed filling plant this may involve regular testing of the strength of hydrogen peroxide in the sterilising bath. Temperature checks, where necessary, can be monitored and recorded automatically and if required linked to alarms or divert/shutdown systems. 6.3.4 Do small changes in packaging need extensive trials? All changes in the design or specification of packaging should be assessed by technical, quality and production staff no matter how small or inconsequential they seem. Changes in material or wall thickness, for example, can alter the oxygen transfer rate of a plastic container and thus affect the stability of the product or the physical strength of the bottle. Changes in the weight of a glass bottle may alter the ability of the bottle to withstand pasteurisation or a particular level of carbonation. Seemingly small changes in the specification of the liner of a bottle cap or the seam compound applied to can ends can, for example, affect the performance of the seal which may only be noticed when a particular temperature is reached. It is therefore important to ensure a close liaison between all the departments that may be involved. The pressure to change a design may come from a marketing department, or the apparent potential to make savings will be very attractive to a purchasing department. There are many examples where seemingly small packaging changes made for the best of reasons have had undesirable consequences on either product quality or company reputation. Many packaging changes can have beneficial effects and individual manufacturers will want to have procedures in place to ensure that proposed changes are fully assessed before being put in place. In some cases, it will be possible to assess the proposed change without extensive trialling, while in others a full product life storage trial may be needed. 6.3.5 At what temperature should containers be after filling? There is no blanket guidance that is appropriate to this question as it will depend on the product, the processing it has received, the type of packaging and the environment in which production is taking place. For carbonated products most manufacturers will probably wish to fill at temperatures of below 10 ëC to
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minimise the filling pressures. Filled product will therefore be at a low temperature and, depending on the dewpoint of air in the production environment, condensation may form on the outside of the containers. If cans are placed into secondary packaging in this state, corrosion is likely and will result in an unsightly appearance of product and, in time, leakage. Bottles may require labelling or other marking that cannot be applied to wet surfaces and so for this situation it may be necessary to subject filled product to can or bottle warmers before drying in an air blast. Another example is that of bottles or cans exiting from a tunnel pasteuriser where they have been subjected to water sprays. Containers then need to be at a temperature at which the surface water can be quickly dried off. If this is not carried out there is a significant risk of can corrosion occurring. Products that are at too high a temperature (over about 25±30 ëC) may need cooling. When a large number of packs are placed together in this condition in their secondary packaging on a pallet or other bulk aggregation, the phenomenon of `stack-burn' may occur. This results in the contents of packs at the centre of the stack becoming slowly cooked. The effect is likely to be product browning coupled with a noticeable processed taste. In general, end product should be free from condensation where this may affect subsequent quality, and should be at a temperature that is appropriate to their nature and likely to ensure the best quality is maintained. Once products are filled and labelled, storage at temperatures between about 5 and 20 ëC is usually satisfactory (unless the product is to be sold chilled). Products should not be exposed to sub-zero temperatures that may result in freezing, leading to possible rupture of containers. 6.3.6 What are appropriate carbonation levels for different products and container types? The desired level of carbonation varies markedly for different product types as shown in the table below: Product type
Lightly sparkling Fruit juice carbonate Lemonade Cola Mixer
Typical carbonation levels Volumes
g/litre
2.0 2.5 3.0±3.5 4.0 4.5±5.0
4 5 6±7 8 9±10
Selection of the container and closure and any fine tuning of carbonation level will need to reflect the level of carbonation desired and the likely usage
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pattern of the product. For example, a large (e.g. two-litre) bottle of cola may not be consumed at one time and the carbonation level and pack will need to be capable of retaining a reasonable level of gas during the period of ullage. Any processing (e.g. tunnel pasteurisation) of the product must also be taken into account when selecting the container and closure type, as internal pressure within the bottle is likely to increase markedly during the process. The selection of secondary packaging should also be a consideration as it will be likely to affect the protection given to the primary container during transit.
6.4
Post-filling defects
6.4.1 What are post-filling defects and how do they arise? Post-filling defects, i.e. those defects that arise after the container has been filled and closed, can occur at any stage during the life of a product, although they are most likely to be noticed either immediately after filling or some time into the life of the product. Defects occurring immediately after filling are most likely to be related to the taste or appearance of the product, assuming that the process control parameters are all within the allowed tolerances, and batch tasting is an important release criterion. Examples of appearance defects may be the presence of particulate material, lack of cloud in a cloudy product, incorrect colour level or the presence of a foreign body. Release criteria should specify, as precisely as possible, the acceptable range of appearance of fresh product including, if relevant, colour and cloud density specifications. Special considerations may need to be applied if product is to be in-pack pasteurised (see 6.4.2). Taste and appearance defects can then arise during the shelf-life of the product, and the behaviour of normally acceptable product during its shelf-life must be assessed and recorded to effect comparisons with defect samples. In addition to the more obvious issues, defects may arise during storage that are related to levels of active ingredients such as ascorbic acid. Specific problems can occur as a result of changes in water analytes (e.g. an increase in iron content is likely to affect colour) and also from naturally occurring phenomena such as summer algal blooms in a reservoir that can transfer flocculant polysaccharides to the product. Products containing fruit components are susceptible to the presence of excess pulp or the separation of fruit into clear and cloudy layers as a result of pectolytic activity in the fruit component. 6.4.2 What special problems are posed when filled and closed packs are subjected to tunnel pasteurisation? The process of tunnel pasteurisation involves pre-filling and closure of the product, subjecting it to heating to pasteurising conditions (typically 70 ëC for about 20 minutes) and then cooling for any label application or secondary packaging. The process subjects the container to considerable thermal stress and the immediate consideration is selection of the container/closure combination
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that will withstand the stresses, with appropriate preheating steps and cooling regime. Glass bottles and cans are usually the preferred packages for this process and both must be capable of withstanding the additional internal pressure if carbonated products are being manufactured. For non-carbonated products, cans are likely to require pressurising with nitrogen gas to avoid distortion during processing. Some breakage of glass bottles may occur during the process, reflecting defects in the packaging, but if their number becomes significant the container may be deemed unsuitable or some modification may be required to the process steps (e.g. temperature of the preheating stage). Products need to be scrutinised for any heat effects such as colour browning or the presence of a cooked taste. It is important to assess the shelf-life of products pasteurised in this way as the heating process may, in some products, reduce the acceptable shelf-life. On completion of the tunnel pasteurisation process, containers must be dry before any labels are applied or, in the case of cans, to minimise the risk of corrosion. Products should also be cooled to below 25 ëC before secondary packaging is applied to minimise any risk of further heat damage. 6.4.3 Are there any particular problems that can arise after secondary packaging is applied? Secondary packaging is defined as additional packaging that has no direct influence on the primary or original container that is ultimately bought by the consumer. It is used to ensure that the primary package will fulfil its containment purpose and marketing function. Traditional secondary packaging usually employed corrugated board cases, often with dividers, that provided both strength and cushioning, but since the advent of PET and other plastics the level of protection needed has changed and much wider use is now made of shrinkwrap and tray cases. The main risk that is likely to apply to the primary product is thus that of mechanical damage or the ingress of light through the secondary packaging. Packaged beverages are quite heavy, particularly when shipped on pallets or in cages, and however effective the primary packaging is, the product will not achieve its best sales potential if the issues of support and damage protection during transit are not appropriately addressed. Whether secondary packaging comprises trays, wraparounds, cases or even flat sheets, the rigidity of corrugated board continues to play a significant part in the safe handling and distribution of beverage containers. Computerised models now exist that give the packaging technologist insight into the stresses on pallet loads and the hazards arising from storage and transit conditions. Such models can assist in determining quantities and collating arrangements for packs of individual products or mixed loads with the objective of delivering primary product in the best possible condition.
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6.4.4 What causes TEBO and what is the function of vertical slots in the threads of bottles containing carbonated drinks? TEBO (tail end blow off) occurs when the closure is opened quickly and the gas cannot vent fast enough to allow the pressure in the bottle headspace to equate to atmospheric pressure before the closure is actually removed from the bottle neck finish. There have, in the past, been instances where caps of carbonated products being removed by consumers have become missiles caused by a sudden explosive release from the container body. Such a release has caused both personal injury and damage in a small number of instances. An industry response to this problem has been to redesign containers to allow a controlled release of carbon dioxide gas as soon as pressure has been released but before the cap has been released from its contact with the screw thread of the bottle. Modification of bottle thread design to incorporate the vertical slots that permit a controlled release of gas through the slots as soon as release of carbon dioxide top pressure takes place has now virtually eliminated the problem of caps becoming missiles without compromising the sealing qualities of the unopened combined package. An alternative approach that is achievable with plastic closures is to build the slots into the thread within the cap; this avoids the cost of new bottle moulds. 6.4.5 What is stress corrosion of cans and how may it be prevented? When beverages are packed into cans the product temperature is often below ambient, especially if the product is carbonated, and condensation will form on the outside of the can. This can be a particular problem in conditions of high humidity. Stress corrosion of cans occurs irregularly when containers are packed wet and may lead to a large number of cans leaking, with the resulting commercial loss. The risk of stress corrosion may be substantially eliminated by utilising a tunnel pasteuriser as a can warmer to increase the temperature of can and content above the dewpoint. However, in these instances it will be essential to ensure that any residual moisture on the outside of the can is removed before secondary packaging is applied. Removal of final traces of moisture is usually effected by a strong airflow over the containers. If the canned product is to be pasteurised anyway, the problem is unlikely to occur, but drying of containers is still essential before secondary packaging is applied. The potential problem can be further reduced by using perforated shrink film as the secondary packaging and by monitoring the amount of moisture remaining on individual cans. Ideally this should be at or below 10 milligrams per can. The mechanism of stress corrosion is still relatively unknown but the problem arises from the need for manufacturers to form the score for the can opening. This requires the score to be made through the lacquered metal of the can end and this appears to be the site at which corrosion occurs.
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6.5
Storage conditions
6.5.1 How can I monitor the range of conditions likely to be experienced by my products between manufacture and consumption? Products can be subjected to a wide range of conditions during storage and distribution, including extremes of heat, cold and physical stress. It is important to minimise these extremes in order to maintain products in optimum condition and to prevent physical damage. Wherever possible the distribution chain should be audited to ensure that the handling conditions are suitable and that stock control is satisfactory. Generally, the distribution chain has improved significantly in the past decade for several reasons, e.g.: · Reduction of stock handling and shorter delivery times for commercial reasons · Increased management focus on distribution logistics as a critical function · EU legislative requirements for traceability and use of computerisation and bar coding for product tracking and handling. Electronic equipment designed to record temperature/time and physical impact during distribution are available and consultancies can be hired to investigate and monitor the distribution chain. Recording devices can be placed inside pallets of product and the conditions encountered can be evaluated by interrogation afterwards, similar to a `black box' recorder in an aeroplane. Control of the distribution chain has become increasingly important as both primary and secondary packaging have been both light-weighted and reduced in quantity and as the volume of drinks, especially juices and smoothies, distributed via the cold chain has increased. Monitoring of temperature during distribution is critical for short shelf-life products in the cold chain. If the product is allowed to reach ambient temperature its condition and shelf-life will be seriously compromised. 6.5.2 What level of handling abuse do I need to consider when specifying secondary packaging? For environmental and cost reasons the quantity and weight of packaging has been significantly reduced over the past two decades. The weight of glass and PET bottles and cans has been reduced by up to 25% since 1990. However, improvements in manufacturing technology and pack design have enabled this to be achieved with only minimal, if any, reduction in overall pack strength. Modern automated pallet handling systems generally subject products to less physical abuse than the older manual handling systems but a certain degree of physical abuse is inevitable during transportation. If long journeys, particularly overseas, are anticipated it is strongly advised to substantially improve the degree of secondary packaging. If product in colourless bottles is light sensitive then use of UV-absorbent secondary packaging is recommended. Some older warehousing may subject stored product to excessive light, humidity and temperature fluctuation.
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Modern warehouses are usually racked but smaller and older storage facilities may stack pallets of product directly on top of each other. This practice can result in considerable pack damage if not conducted correctly. In the case of bottles, placing excessive weight on top of a pallet or placing one pallet on top of another without adequate care can result in serious damage to closures. In the case of cans and cartons such crushing will result in damaged packs, split seams and leakage. Whilst stronger (more expensive) secondary packaging will reduce pack damage, the only solution is to improve pallet handling along the distribution chain. 6.5.3 How quickly, in the event of a product recall, can I trace and withdraw a particular batch of product from storage and distribution? The ability to trace and withdraw a given batch of product depends upon the type and length of the distribution chain. When product is delivered directly from factory warehouse to retailer depot, withdrawal can be achieved rapidly and relatively simply. However, distribution chains in the licensed trade and through cash and carry operations may be considerably longer. It is a legislative requirement within the EU (Hygiene Regulations 2004) to maintain a traceability record in order to withdraw product. A record must be maintained of the supplier of all materials received and the recipient of all products dispatched (the so-called one-up-one-down principle). Longer, more complex supply chains will of course be slower to react. It is important to note the difference between `recall' and `withdraw' as used by the EU authorities and the FSA. `Recall' means that all product within the distribution system, up to and including the retailers' shelves, is removed from sale. `Withdrawal' means that product already in the hands of consumers is also retrieved. This may require considerable national advertising if the product has been distributed nationwide. In the event of a recall, major retailers aim to remove products from their shelves within 24±48 hours (usually 24). Recall of products distributed via cash and carry is more difficult. Full pallets can be tracked to cash and carry depots but once full pallets are opened and product is purchased by individual small retailers, cafeÂs, etc., traceability is lost. Labelling of batch codes is advised as this can assist withdrawal or recall by limiting it to specific batch codes. If production is date coded only then a batch will be one date code. The labelling of products to identify batches or production lots is required by the Food (Lot Marking) Regulations 1996 SI 1502. 6.5.4 Are there particular storage conditions for my products that need to be avoided? Products should be stored in cool, dark, dry, clean conditions for the following reasons (see also Section 4.6): · High temperatures accelerate product ageing and reduce shelf-life. An increase of 10 ëC in the storage temperature can almost halve the shelf-life of products, particularly juice products.
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· Freezing temperatures Water expands when it freezes and will cause pack damage. Partial freezing can cause product separation and sedimentation. · Fluctuating temperatures can destabilise emulsion systems, causing product separation and sedimentation. They can also result in condensation on the exterior of the packs, causing can corrosion and damage to labels and cardboard packaging. · High humidity and moisture cause corrosion of metal cans, pack damage and mould growth. · Sunlight causes flavours/colour deterioration in susceptible products in clear bottles. In bottled waters sunlight can result in algal growth, causing a green discoloration. Intense sunlight over a prolonged period will cause fading/ discoloration of packaging. · Cleanliness Products should always be stored in clean conditions to prevent pack spoilage and to discourage pests which will also cause pack damage. 6.5.5 What effect are strong aromas likely to have on stored products? Unlike glass and metal, plastic is slightly permeable. This is why carbonated drinks in PET bottles slowly lose carbonation as the CO2 permeates outwards. However, this permeation can occur in both directions. Atmospheric oxygen can permeate into the bottle, causing oxidation and staling of products. Likewise, aroma molecules in the atmosphere can penetrate into the product. Bottled water is much more susceptible to such taint because it is relatively tasteless and the presence of any contamination can be detected organoleptically at very much lower concentrations than in a strongly flavoured soft drink. The effect occurs only slowly but storing water in plastic bottles for many weeks in the presence of a strong aroma, such as detergents, disinfectants, etc., can lead to significant tainting of the water. This effect can happen to any food or drink products packed in plastic, e.g. pouches, though the use of aluminium layers will significantly reduce permeation rates. Waters in plastic bottles usually advise `store away from strong aromas' on the label.
6.6
Distribution problems
6.6.1 How much do I know about the distribution network that handles my products? It is beneficial to ascertain as much information as possible about the distribution chain to help minimise damage in transit. Traditionally, distribution of drinks from factory to customer was undertaken either by the manufacturer's own fleet of transport or by hired transport. The increasing involvement of specialist logistics companies and the major retailers has simplified and improved distribution. Many manufacturers have outsourced the distribution of their products to specialist logistics companies, who deal with the day-to-day
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issues and ensure optimum efficiency. In the UK major retailers are moving towards `factory gate pricing' systems where they are responsible for the transportation of products from manufacturing sites to their distribution centres. Whilst such outsourcing of transport activity removes responsibility from the manufacturer, it has resulted in a loss of control. Distribution of whole pallet loads through highly automated modern warehouses is likely to be less hazardous than distribution of part pallet loads through small regional operations for local small retailer and cash and carry outlets. The breaking down of pallets into smaller loads for final distribution is where the majority of minor damage will occur because of the repeated manual handling. Manufacturers should be aware of the distribution system through which their products are passing, the transport companies and systems involved. 6.6.2 How much control do I have over the distribution network? Obviously, whilst product is in your own part of the network, i.e. your own lorries and warehouse facilities, it is still under your control, but once handed over to distributors, wholesalers, cash and carry operators, etc., any control becomes much more difficult. This is even more true for very small manufacturers who have little influence over distributors. It is important to keep detailed records of any problems encountered during distribution in order to be able to hold those responsible to account. Statistical analysis of complaints or problems encountered over a period of time may demonstrate that a significantly higher percentage arise from one particular depot or transporter. This evidence can then be used to seek remedy from the perpetrator. Having confidence in your distributor is important, particularly for cold chain products where temperature control and regular deliveries are essential. Where possible ensure that any essential conditions are stipulated in the distribution contract with appropriate penalties for breach of contract. 6.6.3 Are there places where products are likely to be distributed out of order? In modern automated warehouses a bar code system for logging pallets in and out will be in operation. Every pallet has an individual barcode attached; this is read and the location of the pallet in the racking is recorded in the computer. When product is requested for onward distribution the system will automatically seek the oldest pallet in its record. This system is known as FIFO (first in, first out). Smaller and older manual (paper) systems tend to be less reliable. The system is only as good as the operator. Many small and old storage depots do not have racking for pallets, especially for glass bottles in plastic cases which may be stacked three or four pallets high. It is easy for pallets to be misplaced in such a system and consequently left behind, out of sequence. Operating FIFO in such depots requires good manual discipline and paper operating systems. The use of pallet racking with a roller system helps to keep distribution in the correct
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sequence. Such racking systems have the racks on a slight slope and rollers to enable pallets to roll forward under gravity. New pallets are loaded into the racks from the higher end and pallets for onward distribution are taken from the lower end. The row of pallets then moves forward one space. The problem of out-of-sequence usage can apply to cash and carry depots and to retailers when stock is both removed and replenished from the front of a stock of packs. Operatives must be trained to locate older stock to the front and place the newer stock at the rear when replenishing products. 6.6.4 How can damage during distribution be minimised? Several options are available to minimise damage during distribution. However, all of them will add significant on-cost and the best solution is to improve the handling during distribution. Options for increasing the strength of the pallet are as follows: · Redesign the pack Bottles can be designed to be stronger and more resistant to crushing by inclusion of ribs and/or panels, though this may add additional weight. · Heavier bottles Increasing the thickness of PET and glass bottles will generally make them stronger. · Secondary packaging Using heavier and higher grade cardboard. · Pallet protection Heavy-duty layer pads, corner and side protection, and secure stretch wrapping. · Pack stacking Optimised interlocking of packs on a pallet for increased stability, and no overhang of packs outside the area of the pallet. · Additional protection if being transported in a container on a ship.
7 Handling consumer complaints about soft drinks and fruit juices Abstract: This chapter lists and answers key questions relating to handling consumer complaints about soft drinks and fruit juices. It covers recording and handling consumer complaints, traceability systems and crisis management. Key words: soft drinks, fruit juices, consumer complaints, traceability systems, crisis management.
7.1
Recording and handling consumer complaints
7.1.1 What system should be in place for handling complaints? Complaints always arise despite the best efforts of manufacturers and one issue to be addressed at the outset of setting up a handling system is to decide what constitutes a complaint and which department within a company is best placed to handle them. It is recommended that any adverse remark about a product be treated as a complaint as it is not always possible to know whether such comments may be the first hints of a more serious problem. Smaller producers may wish to deal with complaints handling within another department and it can sometimes be comfortably accommodated within a marketing operation. Complaints handling by a sales department may lead to a conflict of interest. Larger manufacturers will usually have a separate department. Efficient handling of complaints can be a positive marketing tool as consumers usually react well to a complaint handled swiftly and effectively. It is thus essential that any complaint be handled quickly. This is particularly important if the complaint arises from an enforcement body or a major trade customer or in any situation where a recall of product becomes a possibility. In
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the past, manufacturers sometimes responded to complaints from individual consumers by sending the complainant replacement product(s) or cash in the form of a postal order or even a cheque. The cost of sending replacement product to individuals is now prohibitively expensive and most manufacturers now respond by sending vouchers for replacement product to encourage the consumer to remain loyal to the brand. Complaints from trade customers will usually demand replacement product and may also incur financial penalties. To cover the extreme eventuality, manufacturers will need to have in place procedures for both a trade and a general consumer recall. Complaints must be reviewed regularly within the company quality system and it is recommended that reports of serious complaints and their consequences should be reviewed at board level. 7.1.2 How should complaints be classified? It is the responsibility of manufacturers to set up a system that suits their particular need, but the following areas are likely to be important in classifying complaints: 1.
2.
3.
The complaints should be classified in terms of the complainant, e.g.: · Individual consumer · Solicitor on behalf of individual consumer · Trade customer · Enforcement authority · Other. Complaints should then be divided into those relating to: · Product · Packaging · Labelling · Price · Distribution. Individual companies may then wish to subdivide complaints further to take account of matters such as different manufacturing locations, distribution chains, retailers, sales areas and so on.
Records should be kept detailing all complaints in such a way as to enable year-to-year comparisons and trends to be monitored. Complaints and the way they are handled are an important indicator of a company's consumer relations and many company boards insist on regular reports. Whether or not reports are seen by board members, they should be regularly reviewed by the quality management team within a company and records kept of corrective action that is considered necessary as a result of complaints arising. Any complaint recording system must have in place the ability to identify rapidly any event(s) that are so serious as to trigger a partial or full product recall.
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7.1.3 Do customer complaints need to be justified? The justification of complaints may not appear as an important issue in developing consumer relations, as many companies will wish to take the view that any concern expressed by a consumer must be addressed so as to give full satisfaction. However, the justification of complaints is essential in determining any real problems within the formulation, packaging, manufacture, distribution or sale of the products of a company. For this reason it is strongly recommended that significant effort is put into the justification of all complaints. To achieve this, an organisation will need to have in place a system of handling complaints speedily which will both acknowledge receipt to the complainant and pass on the details to the appropriate department for investigation. To enable justification to be undertaken, it may be important to recover the complaint sample wherever possible, although with beverages this will often present difficulties. Where no product recovery is possible, the complaint will be unlikely to be fully justified unless it is one of a series of similar events. Sample examination will usually be offered when the complaint has arisen from an enforcement authority. Serious complaints such as the presence of a piece of glass or metal in a container of product must involve laboratory examination of the offending contaminant, as there are many examples of consumers attempting to take advantage of manufacturers by presenting false claims. In such instances it is essential that the complaint is justified in order to determine the validity of any claim against the manufacturer. 7.1.4 What procedures should a manufacturer have in place to identify the likely cause of complaints and any corrective action necessary to prevent their recurrence? As a minimum, manufacturers should have in place a complaint classification system similar to that set out in 7.1.2 to identify the type of issue. Although all complaints should be scrutinised, it is likely that only justified complaints are likely to be investigated in detail and possible corrective action identified. Upon receiving a complaint, an appropriate classification is allocated to the issue and it is normally passed to the appropriate department for further consideration. The quality assurance team will, in many companies, be the coordinating department. Complaints about the nature of a product should prompt examination of the manufacturing records to establish that there were no errors in either the product make-up or its processing. If other similar complaints are received it may be necessary for the company research team to re-examine the product formulation to ensure its fitness for purpose. Similarly, any packaging complaint is normally referred to the manufacturing team to establish that materials were within specification and that no machine faults were to blame. Issues relating to labelling, distribution or price are more likely to be referred to the marketing department.
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It is justified product or process complaints that are most likely to lead to corrective action within a manufacturing operation. Justified complaints relating to labelling or distribution may require a label change or some action by the logistics coordinator relating to the method of distribution. 7.1.5 How quickly should a manufacturer respond to complaints? All complaints, from whatever origin, should receive a reasonable response from the manufacturer or distributor but there will usually be a system of priorities. Any complaint from an enforcement authority should receive as rapid a response as possible and certainly within one working day. The response time and attitude of a manufacturer or distributor may be a factor in the subsequent decision by the authority as to whether or not to prosecute, assuming an offence has been alleged. Whilst there is an important issue about the reputation of a company at stake if it is prosecuted, the fines likely to be levied are in most cases modest, although in recent prosecutions of a multinational company substantial amounts have been imposed. From a commercial standpoint a complaint from a major customer, particularly if the customer is a national supermarket chain, has the potential to cause much more economic damage to a manufacturer than is likely to be inflicted by the fines and costs from a successful prosecution. In practice, therefore, most manufacturers will treat any complaint from either an enforcement authority or a trade customer with equal priority and seek to respond within a matter of hours. Complaints from individual customers must not be neglected and in many organisations will be handled by a separate department to that dealing with issues arising from an enforcement body or a trade customer. Complaints from individual customers should be acknowledged in writing by return and any subsequent investigation advised as soon as it is completed. The key to rapid responses to complaints is to have effective traceability of ingredients, batch manufacture and distribution records. Thus, if a complaint arises, suspect batches can be identified, traced and if necessary quarantined pending further investigation. 7.1.6 How can situations likely to result in a product recall be identified? Product recall is a serious step for any organisation as it is effectively a public announcement of some failure within the company operation. Recall may be effected either at trade level or, in the most serious situations, by means of a full public recall triggered by announcements in the national press. The decision to carry out any recall is usually taken at a very senior level within a company on the advice of technical and marketing departments. Product recalls usually arise either from a series of related complaints that indicate a widespread problem with product that has already been distributed (e.g. a microbiological contamination that has affected a large amount of
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product) or because the company has become aware of a problem internally (e.g. excess level of a preservative) that renders a product unsafe for consumption or unfit for sale. The receipt of complaints of a similar nature from individual customers is often the first hint of a major problem and any rapid increase in complaints from one day to the next can indicate a major problem. There is anecdotal evidence that for every customer who takes the trouble to contact a manufacturer there are at least 10 more who have not responded. Staff handling routine customer complaints should be advised to alert senior staff in such an event so that the consideration of a recall can be made. Other issues can arise from review of process control checks or possibly a notification from a supplier of a problem. With the trend to just-in-time supply, many manufacturers do not hold stock for sufficient time to finalise all possible checks before stock is distributed. In such situations, the discovery of a problem can create the need for a recall, although depending on the length of the supply chain it may be possible to limit this to trade distributors. In the United Kingdom, the FSA seeks voluntary cooperation from manufacturers and distributors to register `quality incidents' on its website www.foodstandards.gov.uk.
7.2
Traceability systems and crisis management
7.2.1 How effective should a traceability system be? Within the EU it is a legal requirement for food manufacturers to have a traceability system in place (Regulation 852/2004). At a minimum, it must always be possible for a manufacturer to have in place `one up, one down' traceability. This means that it must be possible to track the use of every individual batch of each ingredient, including packaging components, through to manufacture of each and every product and then to be able to follow the distribution of every manufactured product to its next destination. Other manufacturers will want or need to have in place more elaborate traceability. This is particularly likely to apply if, for example, products designated as organic are being produced when it will be necessary for full traceability of the organic constituents to be available. Because of past problems of adulteration, many juice packers will also wish to have full traceability of the origin of their bulk juices as part of their due diligence process. Traceability systems can be either electronic or paper-based but the essential feature must be that of rapid and complete access to the information. Increasingly, manufacturers are using electronic systems because they allow access from multiple terminals in different departments and are increasingly more reliable than paper-based records.
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7.2.2 Who needs to be in a crisis management team to deal with any major incidents? Major incidents within a company will be likely to include product recall but will also include events such as a major fire, serious machinery breakdown, and similar events that could have a major impact on the company's operations or finances. The make-up of a crisis team to deal with any major incident will vary from company to company but is probably likely to include the following or their nominated representatives: · · · · · ·
Managing Director/Chief Executive Marketing Director Operations/Production Director Distribution Manager Engineering Manager Quality Assurance Manager.
Additionally, many companies will wish to include their in-house or external legal advisers, insurance brokers and public relations executives and other nominated individuals or departments. Some organisations will also wish to nominate external specialist companies to assist in certain circumstances. The management of major incidents may be critical in ensuring the ability of a company to continue manufacturing or, in extreme circumstances, in securing its very survival, and it is essential that callout lists are circulated so that in the event of a crisis occurring, it is possible to contact key individuals on a 24-hour basis. Depending on the nature of the incident, a cascade system to call out other key personnel as necessary should also be in place. Companies may also wish to draw up major incident plans which can be referred to if and when a crisis occurs so that there are predetermined activities and roles to ensure the smooth running of a crisis organisation. 7.2.3 When is it necessary to obtain expert assistance in the event of a contamination incident? Most companies have laboratories that are designed to support their day-to-day activities and as such are unlikely to be able to offer much support to identify a contamination incident. The majority of untoward contamination incidents for most companies are likely to be of microbiological origin and there may often be a straightforward explanation such as failure of packaging or process. However, when it becomes necessary to carry out the identification of a contaminating micro-organism, it will almost always be necessary to involve an external specialist laboratory. Suspected chemical contamination in a product, unless an excess of one normal ingredient is the likely cause of the problem, will almost always require the input of a specialist laboratory. If the incident arises from suspected deliberate interference with product, it will also be important to require the
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laboratory to have validated procedures and to be able to present expert evidence if required. Problems of taints are often very difficult to determine and may also require the expertise of laboratories that specialise in identifying the chemical nature of the taint. Problems of physical contamination often relate to pieces of packaging materials, the most serious of which is glass. The use of glass as a container can sometimes lead to small pieces being present in the filled container, but the presence of any glass in any container of product should be subjected to external laboratory examination. Spectrographic examination of the glass can determine its likely origin and thus indicate whether its presence is likely to be accidental or deliberate. Metal contamination should normally involve the services of an external laboratory to identify the nature of the metal, which may give some clue to its origin. The use of an external laboratory to assist in identifying other physical contamination will probably be decided on an ad-hoc basis. 7.2.4 Where can further assistance be obtained to deal with complaints of a serious nature? Depending upon the nature of a complaint, assistance may be obtained from a number of different sources, including independent consultancy firms. If the complaint is of an issue that is potentially harmful to customers then the Food Standards Agency or the local authority's Environmental Health Department may be able to offer guidance on the issue of recall and customer advice. Very serious health issues (which are most unlikely to affect consumers of fruit juices or soft drinks because these low pH products do not generally support the growth of pathogenic micro-organisms) will often involve the Health Protection Agency, the Department of Health and the local Director of Public Health and be taken out of the hands of the company concerned. Technical issues that require more facilities than the company concerned is able to handle in-house can often be usefully referred to an outside laboratory such as one of the many Public Analysts laboratories, or to specialist laboratories such as RSSL, Leatherhead Food International or Campden BRI. If advice is required concerning the identification of taints then additional facilities such as those of Sensory Dimensions need to be consulted (see below). Issues that are likely to have a wider impact than simply those of the company concerned may often be usefully referred to a trade organisation such as the British Soft Drinks Association or the British Fruit Juice Association or the relevant organisation of the country concerned. Technical problems that relate potentially to ingredients of product or packaging should be referred to the suppliers, since many such organisations have detailed technical knowledge that can prove invaluable. Contact details for the above organisations are as follows:
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· Campden BRI, Chipping Campden, Gloucestershire GL55 6LD, UK Telephone +44 (0) 1386 842000 Email:
[email protected] · Leatherhead Food International, Randalls Road, Leatherhead, Surrey KT22 7RY, UK Telephone +44 (0) 1372 376761 Email:
[email protected] · Reading Scientific Services Ltd, Reading Science Centre, Pepper Lane, Whiteknights Campus, Reading RG6 2LA, UK Telephone +44 (0) 118 986 8541 Email:
[email protected] · Sensory Dimensions, Science and Technology Centre, Earley Gate, Whiteknights Road, Reading RG6 6BZ, UK Telephone: +44 (0) 118 935 7000 Email:
[email protected] 7.2.5 Is it advisable to have a public relations advisor to deal with serious complaints? Every company will always hope that it never has a complaint issue to handle that is of such severity as to need the advice of a public relations (PR) specialist. However, many companies, and particularly those with important brands to manage, will probably retain the services of a PR company to handle the positive side of their business in relation to new product launches, key appointments and other matters that are likely to be of interest to consumers, customers or the trade. It is then a relatively small step to extend the brief of the PR company to handle matters that relate to serious complaints, product recalls or other related issues. The PR consultant should, in the case of a potentially damaging complaint, be among the first people to be alerted on the company callout plan. Companies that do not use the services of a PR company on a more regular basis should consider having a retainer agreement with a suitable organisation so that in the event of a serious complaint they can become involved. The benefits of using PR specialists can ensure that however good the internal organisation of the company, the issues are presented in an appropriate and professional manner to the right media. 7.2.6 When do product problems require that enforcement authorities be informed and when should a product recall be instituted? Enforcement authorities may sometimes be informed if a complaint or series of complaints arise that indicate a problem which may possibly cause harm to consumers. In parallel with advising such authorities, a product recall will probably be initiated. This will usually depend on the circumstances so, for example, if a manufacturer becomes aware that a batch of product has a yeast infection and is likely to cause containers to explode, advising the enforcement authority will be likely to depend on how far the infected batch(es) have been distributed.
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If a limited amount of product has been distributed to identifiable wholesale depots, it may be possible to institute a trade recall, in which case it may not be thought necessary to involve the enforcement authority. If the product has been more widely distributed and is likely to have been purchased by the end consumer, a product recall and notification become more likely. Identifying the range of different circumstances that are likely to trigger recall and notification is difficult but, as a general guideline, if a batch of product can possibly cause harm to consumers, the recall and notification procedure should be started. The most likely causes are chemical, physical or microbiological contamination. It is sometimes very difficult to decide when an individual complaint from a consumer represents an isolated incident or is the first hint of a more widespread and possibly serious problem, and for this reason alone all complaints, no matter how seemingly trivial, should be carefully scrutinised and mapped. When complaints arise from the enforcement authority, the decision to recall may be taken away from the company and be initiated by the authority. As previously indicated, all companies should have a clear recall procedure which should be regularly tested in a desktop exercise. In some countries there is a move by enforcement bodies and liability insurers to be given evidence of `dry run' recalls as a requirement of continued operation. 7.2.7 What should be regarded as a complaint and what is a typical level of consumer complaints? There is sometimes a tension within a company as to just what constitutes a complaint and some departments within an organisation may take differing views. For example, sales and production departments may see complaints as a poor reflection of their efforts and may wish to eliminate what they consider as trivial matters. However, it is not always simple, on the basis of one or two complaints, to determine whether it is the start of a more widespread problem, and the normal recommendation would be for a company to log all consumer responses, no matter how seemingly trivial. Complaints are best handled by an independent department which in many organisations is linked to the quality assurance team who can take a dispassionate view and identify trends and serious issues. It is also recommended that complaint report summaries should be presented to the senior management team in the organisation. Different companies will be likely to set their own standards for complaints but experience shows that for soft drinks and fruit juices a low level (e.g. 1±5 complaints per million) is regarded as `normal' (on the basis that some consumers will always wish to complain about something). Other companies with very high speed filling lines may experience a much lower level as normal. It is useful to establish what the background `noise level' of complaint is for a particular brand or product so that it then becomes much easier to identify the start of a run of complaints and take early action as required.
8 Environmental issues in the manufacture of soft drinks and fruit juices Abstract: This chapter lists and answers key questions relating to environmental issues in the manufacture of soft drinks and fruit juices. It covers such issues as environmental legislation and regulation, waste management, effluent discharge and recycling. Key words: soft drinks, fruit juices, environmental issues, sustainability, waste management, recycling.
8.1 How do I find out about which regulations and consents apply to my business? In the UK the information on regulations has been placed on an official government website `NETREGS' which can be found at http://www.netregs.gov.uk. Further information on consents and guidelines for applications can be found on the websites of the Environment Agency in England and Wales (www.environment-agency.gov.uk) and the Scottish Environmental Protection Agency (SEPA) (www.sepa.org.uk). 8.2 What are the major sources of waste from my business? The types of waste will depend on the types of activities being carried out by the business. For fruit juice and soft drinks manufacturers who are diluting and blending juices, juice concentrates or syrups, there is likely to be little food waste produced, only traces from washing down after production and between products. The major sources of waste are likely to be packaging, either mis-filled or defective containers. The ingredients ± fruit juice, flavourings, additives, etc. ± are increasingly supplied in returnable containers, but packaging such as pallets,
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board, plastic shrink-wrap and glass are recyclable. Waste packaging such as mis-formed or broken bottles can also be recycled. Factories packing refillable glass or PET will create waste caustic detergent and labels as a result of the washing process. Increasing emphasis is being placed on the `carbon footprint' of food and drink products and producers may soon be required to state this on their labels. Such labelling would require an agreed standard format for its calculation. 8.3 Are all the necessary consents in place for me to discharge effluent? Discharges to sewer are controlled by the local authority sewerage company. A manufacturer must agree the levels of discharge with their own local responsible authority and keep within the agreed limits. In England and Wales any discharges into surface water are controlled by the Environment Agency and in Scotland by the Scottish Environmental Protection Agency (SEPA). In other countries manufacturers must seek the approval of the appropriate authority. Discharges in the UK are covered by Integrated Pollution Prevention and Control (IPPC). This required discharge permits to be obtained by 30 September 2005. The UK regulations, Pollution Prevention and Control (England & Wales) Regulations 2000, and parallel regulations for Scotland and Northern Ireland, implemented the EU Directive 96/61/EC. 8.4 Am I discarding valuable ingredients (such as sugar residues)? If so, can I recover all or part of them? In order to control costs it is essential to minimise the wastage of ingredients. Any reduction of ingredient losses contributes directly to profitability. Steps to reduce losses of concentrate, syrup or product can include minimising pipe runs or installation of a `pig' system. A `pig' system is a plug which is placed into the pipework at the end of a product run to `chase' the last of the product through the system. This both eliminates product loss and minimises the quantity of water needed to wash through between products. Reduction of washing and cleaning and modifications to production plant to reduce waste must not adversely affect hygiene and consequent product integrity. 8.5 Am I meeting my obligations under the Packaging Waste Regulations? In the UK it is a legal requirement that all producers and processors in the production chain must be registered with an officially recognised scheme such as VALPAK (www.valpak.co.uk). Not being registered will result in a fine. Producers who are unsure must check with the Environment Agency (in England and Wales) or SEPA (in Scotland). Details of the registration and guidelines are located on the EA and SEPA websites (see 8.1).
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8.6 Is there anything I can do to recycle any of my packaging components or to use recycled components? Many suppliers of ingredients, raw materials, packaging components, etc., already use packaging that is returnable and reusable. Packaging components such as pallets, shrink-wrap and board are either reusable or recyclable. Ensure that you use suppliers who use returnable or reusable components. Refer to publications such as `Recyclability by Design' from RECOUP (www.recoup.org.uk) or `A Guide to Eco-design' from Envirowise (www.envirowise.gov.uk). Increasingly, the suppliers of paper, board and other secondary packaging are using recycled materials. Glass, steel and aluminium have a long history of recycling, and recycling of plastic is increasing, though quantities are currently very limited. The UK's first recycling plant for food-grade PET opened in June 2008. 8.7 Can I use recycled PET? Recycled PET can be used for PET bottles but it must comply with the Plastic Materials in Contact with Food Regulations. The manufacturer or processor of the recycled PET is responsible for the quality and must ensure that it is food grade. Recycled PET (usually referred to as r-PET) is frequently blended with virgin PET but may be used at 100%. Two major drinks companies in the UK currently use 100% recycled PET for some of their bottles. The quality of PET slowly deteriorates as it is repeatedly recycled, therefore blending with virgin PET helps maintain quality. Some EU countries, e.g. France and Italy, have prohibited the use of recycled PET for drinks bottles, but EU legislation is currently being drafted to lay down standards in order to harmonise its use. 8.8 What is IPPC and does it relate to my business? IPPC is Integrated Pollution Prevention and Control and derives from the Pollution Prevention and Control (England & Wales) Regulations 2000 and parallel regulations for Scotland and Northern Ireland. It was enabled by EU Directive 96/61/EC and regulates processes to reduce the impact of all forms of pollution on the environment. It focuses on emissions to air, land and water, including waste disposal from regulated businesses. IPPC is monitored by the Environment Agency in England and Wales, by SEPA in Scotland and by the Environment and Heritage Service in Northern Ireland. All food and drink processors must obtain permits from the regulator. Initially the regulations applied only to emissions and waste but they have been extended to include energy use, noise, etc. Guidance for manufacturers can be found on the website www.envirowise.gov.uk.
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8.9 What is the Climate Change Levy and can I claim exemption? The Climate Change Levy (CCL) is applied directly to energy supplies to industry in the UK at a rate of 15%. It is included automatically in all energy bills to industry, but not those to private individuals. The climate change controls were implemented by EU Directives 2002/96/EC and 2003/108/EC. A discount of up to 80% of the levy can be obtained if companies participate in a climate change agreement. These agreements are recognised through an approved industry body such as a trade association. The industry agrees to target energy reduction over a period of years. The current climate change agreements were agreed in 2001 and so are due to expire shortly. The government will begin negotiations on the next round of targets imminently. Companies which are registered under IPPC are eligible to participate in their industry scheme. The scheme for food and drink producers in the UK is run by the Food and Drink Federation (FDF). At the time of writing the government targets for industry are being reviewed. If the industry as a whole meets its targets then members of that industry's scheme qualify for a discount of up to 80% of the levy. 8.10 Is my business affected by WEEE? The Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Regulations (WEEE) are only applicable to producers and suppliers of electronic and electrical equipment and therefore have little impact upon soft drink manufacturers. The regulations do, however, impact upon dispense (draft drinks) equipment such as carbonator/ coolers and to vending equipment. The regulations came into effect in the UK on 2 January 2005, but they have since been amended by regulations SI 2006 3289 and SI 2007 3454. Guidance to industry on compliance with the regulations can be found on the website of the Department of Business Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (BERR) at www.berr.gov.uk. There are a number of producer compliance schemes in operation and a list can also be found on the BERR website. 8.11 Do my containers have to be recyclable? The Packaging Essential Requirements Regulations require recyclability but firstly the packaging must be functional. Functionality is the primary essential requirement. All forms of soft drink packaging, i.e. glass, plastic, cans and cartons, are deemed to be recyclable. However, manufacturers should aim to maximise the ease with which their packaging can be recycled by, for example, not mixing and binding different types of plastic into one package. 8.12 Are coloured plastics recyclable? Technically, coloured PET could be recycled but from a practical viewpoint it is much more difficult than recycling colourless PET, which retains a higher value
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as it can be recycled in a closed loop back into bottles. Coloured PET is recycled into other products. It is not practical to separate and recycle all the different colours of PET so they are retained as a mixture and are recycled only where the colour is unimportant. Such recycled mixed PET has a much lower value than colourless PET which can be reused for container manufacture.
9 Regulatory issues relating to soft drinks and fruit juices Abstract: This chapter lists and answers key questions about regulatory issues relating to soft drinks and fruit juices. It covers ways of ensuring compliance with legislation, labelling of ingredients (including QUID), nutritional and allergen labelling. Key words: soft drinks, fruit juices, regulation, labelling, QUID.
9.1 How much information should be available in product formulations? Formulation data is key, not only to the manufacture of a consistent product, but also to the provision of essential information such as composition, label data, to confirmation of compliance with statutory requirements, and in many companies the costing basis and stock utilisation. Many manufacturers use a standard formula base of 1000 kg (or 1000 litres) of product, which is convenient for the calculation of percentage composition and as the basis for larger or smaller batch sizes. Companies that only ever produce one size of batch will often find it more convenient to use their standard production batch size as the base formula. Whatever standard batch size is used, it should be possible for individual batch sheets to be generated for the purpose of production directly from the master standard formula, preferably by electronic means and thus avoiding the risk of human error. Calculation of the composition of a product is the basis for determining the list of ingredients in descending order and will also show levels of specific ingredients such as additives, where there may be a maximum statutory limit or where the amount of fruit juice or whole fruit is required to be declared. Retention of product formulations can be used as a valuable archive in case of queries or to enable a company to return to a previously used formulation. Current master formulations should be part of the quality assurance system
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within an organisation and should show, in addition to quantities and specification references of ingredients used, process control standards and tolerances, composition, compliance with statutes, shelf-life data, sample labels and any other data required. It is normal for the product formulations to be linked to the commercial functions to facilitate costing and stock usage. It is essential that access to the formulas, whether held in hard copy or in electronic format, is strictly limited and some form of double key control should be in place for new formulas or any changes. 9.2 How can compliance with legislation in markets other than that for which the product was originally designed be confirmed, and how can such information be kept up to date? Products designed to be sold in a large single market such as the countries of the European Union are often acceptable within many other markets in the world. However, even then there are differences of labelling, which additives may be used and in what quantities, the level of a particular component required to sustain a particular product description, and other minor changes that may become necessary. It is likely to be particularly important to check legislative needs for soft drinks that are more likely to incorporate additives and a variety of ingredients. However, even products such as fruit juices may not necessarily be exempt from possible local legislative demands, particularly if they are reconstituted from concentrates. There may be local minimum standards for solids content (Brix level) although these may arise from local codes of practice rather than legislation. Large companies, particularly those that have multinational markets, often maintain an in-house facility to keep abreast of the different requirements of target markets. Small and medium-sized companies will probably need to use the facilities of an external organisation with a competent overseas legislation department in order to ensure legislative compliance (see 7.2.4). Other useful sources of information include government trade missions, Chambers of Commerce, Trade Associations and business agents operating in the target market. 9.3 How can the fruit or juice content of a product be calculated for the purpose of declaring the QUID value or for confirmation of a claim? The QUID (quantitative ingredient declaration value) is required in the UK to permit consumers to compare products in respect of their comparative juice or fruit content and consequent value for money. In the event that fruit or juice is added as a single strength ingredient (i.e. the ingredient has not been concentrated) the calculation is straightforward. As an example, 1000 litres of a juice drink contains 120 litres of an unconcentrated fruit juice; the juice content is then (120/1000) 100% 12%.
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The situation becomes more complicated when the juice or fruit component is added in the form of a concentrate. To obtain the degree of concentration of the concentrate, the initial solids level in the juice (usually declared as ëBrix) should ideally be known. Since in most situations this information is not available, the calculation is performed on the basis of the target Brix of the juice after dilution. As an example, the fruit content of 100 kg of orange juice concentrate of 66ëBrix is required to be calculated for an addition into a juice drink. The target Brix for diluted orange juice is taken as 11.2ë. Thus (66/11.2) 100 589.3 kg of single strength juice. For most applications, the amount is required in volumetric quantity, so the quantity in kilograms needs to be divided by the density of juice at 11.2ë (1.043). Thus 100 kg of orange juice concentrate at 66ëBrix is equivalent to (66/11.2) (100/1.043) 565 litres of single strength orange juice at 11.2ëBrix. Determining the amount of fruit or juice in a product by analysis is difficult and a number of different approaches have been taken. These have involved assessing the ash content, levels of potassium ions, phosphorus content, total level of free nitrogen by measuring the formol value, amino acids and other compounds. If only a simple approach is taken to determine fruit or juice content, it is easy for an unscrupulous supplier to circumvent the method of analysis by adding amounts of potassium, phosphorus and ammonium salts. Other methods such as the amino acid profiles have been developed to try to give more reliability to the testing. In general, however, analysis can only give an estimate of the fruit or juice content, particularly when mixtures of juice are added. Specific juices may have a characteristic marker (e.g. quinic acid in cranberry juice) which can be a useful indicator. Further reading is available on this topic ± see, for example, the booklet produced by the British Soft Drinks Association. 9.4 How important is it to be able to access historical formulas? There is no obligation as such on manufacturers in most countries to maintain details of historical formulations, although it would be expected that details of all current formulations should be readily available at least within the shelf-life of the last batch made, to meet traceability obligations. There is, however, an expectation in many countries that relevant documentation should be held for a period of some years (typically seven) in case of enquiry by official bodies. Aside from any other reason, most manufacturers will maintain a detailed record of past formulations so that earlier products can be recreated if required. Marketing and manufacture of soft drinks is often a cyclical process with the starting product being gradually eroded in quality or quantity of ingredients to maintain stable pricing or profit margins in the market until it is decided that the original quality product should be recreated and relaunched. Development departments will also wish to maintain detailed records, for example to track the use of specific ingredients, to identify any longterm trends and to access data in case of particular problems arising that may be linked to historical usage of a particular ingredient.
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9.5 Are current product labels accurate, up to date and legal? As a minimum, soft drink and fruit juice beverage labels in the UK must carry the following basic information: · · · · · · · · · ·
The name of the product (i.e. its appropriate designation) A list of ingredients in descending order by weight The appropriate durability indication Any special storage conditions or conditions of use The name or business name and an address or registered office of the manufacturer and/or the packer or seller established in the EU Particulars of the provenance or origin of the product if required Instructions for use if it would be difficult to make appropriate use of the product without such information The contents and e-mark Full nutritional data if vitamins and minerals are added as ingredients (irrespective of any claim) Allergen information if relevant.
However, labels are much more than the basic statutory declaration and are used to attract consumers, display the brand, generally inform consumers about nutrition and, in many cases, provide much more information. The basic information on a label, particularly the appropriate designation and list of ingredients, are generated from the product master formula and must coincide with what is in the manufactured product. Apparent small changes in a formulation can alter the content or order of listed ingredients and thus render a label technically invalid. There needs to be close liaison between marketing and development departments to ensure accurate and up-to-date information. This is especially important when product formulation changes are being planned. For beverage manufacturers the additional information needed will include QUID data and nutritional values as well as any claims for vitamin or mineral content. Requirements for weights and measures are covered in the United Kingdom by the Weights and Measures (Packaged Goods) Regulations 2006 SI No. 659 and corresponding guidance notes. 9.6 Should the local Trading Standards Department (or other relevant enforcement authority) be involved in approving product labels? In the United Kingdom, enforcement of food labels is the responsibility of Trading Standards. This is a function of county councils rather than district councils except where the local body is a unitary authority. It is recommended that all product labels are sent for comment to the Trading Standards body, although the final responsibility for the product label and its content rests with the manufacturer. Once a label has been approved by the enforcement body, any subsequent complaints from other enforcement agencies may be fielded by the Trading Standards Department in the area in which the manufacturer is located.
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This is known as the `Home Authority' principle, although there is no mandatory requirement on the local authority to carry out this function. Such approval does not guarantee freedom from further action by other bodies but it is much less likely. Some Trading Standards officers are more inclined to allow additional information regarding product descriptions and claims than others, but all the basic information that was set out in 9.5 must be present. It is essential to ensure that any nutritional claims (e.g. for the presence of vitamin C) are capable of being sustainable throughout the stated shelf-life of the product. Such claims are not normally challenged at the time of label approval but are likely to be tested by officers carrying out random sampling followed by analysis (see 9.7). 9.7 How can nutritional claims be sustained, and how should nutritional data be obtained? The claims most usually made for soft drinks and fruit juices and nectars are those for vitamins (particularly vitamin C) and minerals. Sustaining a claim for a mineral content such as calcium presents no particular difficulties, as minerals are not destroyed on storage and can be determined by analytical measurements. A small overaddition (5±10%) is usually made to ensure claims can be sustained. The most likely difficulty to be encountered is that a mineral such as calcium may be selectively taken up into a particular ingredient such as degraded pectin. It will, however, still be present in the product as a whole and usually without any reduction in its bioavailability. Vitamins are, however, notoriously labile and since vitamin C is often added as much for its antioxidant property as its nutritional value, due consideration must be made for chemical degradation. Some manufacturers work on a rule of thumb principle of, for example, adding double the amount to be claimed and then refining the addition on the experience of analysis during shelf storage. Others know the likely performance of product/packaging interactions in fine detail and can make a more informed overaddition. General nutritional data for declaration on the pack is normally provided on the basis of calculations from the ingredients of the product. Some beverage labels provide no more than the `big 4', i.e. energy value, carbohydrate, protein and fat contents per 100 ml and per pack size. Standard values for calculating these components are readily available from data handbooks such as McCance and Widdowson's The Composition of Foods (FSA, 2002). It is often necessary for nutritional values for key ingredients to be obtained from suppliers. It should be remembered that energy values must include contributions from organic acids, alcohol and fibre. Full nutritional data must be provided if any vitamins or minerals are added.
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9.8 What does a responsible manufacturer have to do to keep up to date with statutory requirements? This is an absolute requirement for any company but the way in which it is achieved is likely to be determined by the size of the company. Some manufacturers have legal departments that are able to maintain a monitoring brief on all possible areas of statutory impact on the company, but many have to rely on other sources. For companies that specialise in the production of soft drinks or fruit juices, it is useful to obtain or renew membership of an appropriate trade organisation (in the United Kingdom one example is the British Soft Drinks Association). Most major economies have dedicated trade organisations covering soft drinks and fruit juices. Other organisations with considerable expertise, not simply in beverages but in many other areas of food legislation, include Leatherhead Food International and the Campden and Chorleywood Food Research Organisation (see 7.2.4). Some changes are well forecast by government departments and local government with whom food manufacturers have to register, but it remains the responsibility of the individual company to ensure compliance. Other useful sources include ingredient and equipment suppliers. For non-industry statutory information, local Chambers of Commerce or Business Link are also good sources of forthcoming legislation that are likely to impact on all manufacturers. 9.9 Does allergen labelling apply to soft drinks? Food allergy and intolerance are thought to affect about two million people in the United Kingdom and much larger numbers in Europe and elsewhere in the world. Symptoms range from being relatively mild to life-threatening and although most children grow out of it there is no cure for food allergy or intolerance. In consequence the UK government has introduced regulations requiring manufacturers to label any product (including soft drinks) containing one or more of the allergens identified in the relevant regulations (EU Directive 89/2003EC) and local enabling regulations. The allergens that must be included in any label are as follows: · · · · · · · · · · · ·
Cereals containing gluten Crustaceans Eggs Fish Peanuts Nuts Soybeans Milk Celery Mustard Sesame Sulphur dioxide at levels above 10 mg/kg or 10 mg/litre.
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Of these the most likely allergen that may be present in beverages is sulphur dioxide. In the UK this is no longer permitted as a general preservative and the most likely occurrence of this preservative is in concentrated drinks (i.e. `squashes, cordials and whole fruit drinks') where it may be used and has been carried over from preserved fruit concentrates. It is therefore essential for manufacturers of such products to check levels of sulphur dioxide and indicate the presence of the allergen accordingly. This may involve obtaining appropriate disclosures from ingredient suppliers. 9.10 What are the main statutory requirements with which a beverages manufacturer must comply in the United Kingdom? There is a very wide range of legislation that must be complied with by any business entity and it is beyond the scope of this book to attempt to cover the topic. All businesses should take appropriate advice from a suitably qualified lawyer to ensure compliance with all relevant law. In addition to any other legislative compliance, in the United Kingdom there are specific requirements under the provisions of the Food Safety Act 1990 and related regulations that food manufacturers should be particularly aware of. They apply to all commercial activities relating to food (for which there is a wide definition including drink), irrespective of the size of the operation. The Act provides wide powers of enforcement. One requirement is for the registration of food businesses, which is normally handled by the local Environmental Health Department. Businesses that are unfamiliar with Food Act and hygiene regulations will usually find the local Environmental Health officers an excellent source of information and sometimes training in key areas. Registration of a new food-related business often provides access to a wide range of potential assistance. In addition to compliance with statutes in the United Kingdom (or whatever the local country regulations demand) there needs to be a wide understanding of any relevant codes of practice (such as the minimum Brix level for reconstituted fruit juices) and quality standards such as the British Retail Consortium Technical or ISO Standards. Trade associations and other well-respected sources of information normally provide excellent guidance on such matters. It should be noted that the minimum Brix levels for fruit juices, currently used on a code of practice basis using the AIJN recommendations, are likely to become statutory requirements throughout Europe during 2009. The current AIJN values for minimum Brix levels for juice are likely to be accepted.
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9.11 What does a manufacturer need to be aware of when wishing to make nutritional claims for a product as listed in EU Regulation 1924/2006? The claims that may be made under current UK food labelling legislation are limited and must not relate to any tonic properties (other than the specific regulation that allows `Indian Tonic Water' or `Quinine Tonic Water' to be so called). The above-mentioned regulations permit a derogation for Tonic Water. In particular, no claims may be made to the effect that a food has the property of preventing, treating or curing any human disease and no reference may be made to such a property. This is an area of potential difficulty for companies that wish to develop products in the functional beverage or nutraceutical category. Generally, then, claims that are permitted relate to the following: · · · · · ·
Foods for specific nutritional purposes (e.g. energy drinks) Foods with reduced or low energy values Claims for a specific protein, vitamin or mineral content A claim relating to the presence or absence of cholesterol A general nutritional claim Claims that depend on another food.
Specific claims for vitamins and minerals, which are limited to those listed in the regulations, must contain the amount claimed throughout the life of the product. General nutritional claims for soft drinks and fruit juices are likely to be limited to energy, protein, carbohydrate (which may be subdivided into sugars, polyols and starch) and fat. For some products other claims such as sodium or fibre content may be relevant. There are prescribed contents for the use of nutritional labels which must be followed. For general nutritional information, the amounts given shall be for 100 grams or 100 millilitres and in a quantified serving, and are given as averages based on one or more of the following: · The manufacturer's analysis · A calculation from generally accepted data · A calculation from the actual average values of the ingredients used. There are other detailed requirements which need to be considered. As far as claims for benefits that may be delivered by a particular product are concerned, it is difficult to provide general indications unless the claim is for delivering energy or hydration and such matters should be discussed with the appropriate enforcement body (Trading Standards Departments in the UK). Any claim relating to a specific nutrient must be for a `significant amount' of the nutrient, which is at least 15% of the RDA per 100 g or 100 ml of the product, unless the product is packed as a single serving when the amount must be found in that serving.
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9.12 How is the nutritional value of a product calculated? The European Directive on Nutritional Labelling of Foodstuffs sets out rules and indicates the way such data is presented on food labels (90/496/EEC). As indicated in 9.7 and 9.11, the UK Food Labelling Regulations 1996, which include regulations based on the above directive, indicate three means of determining the nutritional value of a food or beverage, as follows: · The manufacturer's analysis · A calculation from generally accepted data · A calculation from the actual average values of the ingredients used. The analysis is usually based on obtaining quantities for the key components (carbohydrates, proteins, fats, etc.) followed by the appropriate calculation using recommended calorific values. An alternative approach for determining overall energy values would be to obtain the actual energy value (e.g. by bomb calorimetry), although this is probably little used. Most nutritional values are determined by calculation from base data from one of the three methods outlined above. Key differences between the Directive and the previous way in which these values were calculated in the UK are given in the following two tables: As required by the Traditional method EC Directive Protein
N content 6.25
Total carbohydrates Sugars Starch
As the actual weight of the carbohydrate
Dairy N 6.38 Cereals N 5.7 Specific factors for certain foods All other foods N 6.25 After conversion to monosaccharides
Energy values per gram (previous values in brackets)
kJ
kcal
Protein Carbohydrate Fat Alcohol All organic acids Sorbitol and other polyols Fibre
17 (17) 17 (16) 37 (37) 29 (29) 13 (0) 10 (16) 8.5 (±)
4 (4) 4 (3.75) 9 (9) 7 (7) 3 (0) 2.4 (3.75) 2 (±)
Source: Food labelling data based on McCance and Widdowson's The Composition of Foods (FSA 2002).
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9.13 Are there any special health and safety issues that relate to soft drinks manufacture? Health and safety is the responsibility of everyone in an organisation and there are a wide range of issues that need to be assessed in any operation. In any company there needs to be a full assessment of all the health and safety risks that are present and appropriate steps need to be taken to ensure the safety of workers, management and visitors to any site. Beverage plants do, however, present some special hazards which may not occur in other situations and any assessment should include special consideration of the following issues: · Noise Much packaging machinery is very noisy, especially when glass bottles and cans are involved, and ear protection is almost always essential. · Eye protection This is essential for all present in the plant, particularly when glass packaging is employed. Even where other forms of packaging are used, fragments of packaging or product splashes can occur and are capable of causing serious eye damage. Particular concern should be paid to cleaning chemicals, and any pipework carrying caustic, acidic or hot solutions should be routed well away from pedestrian walkways and regularly checked for leaks. · Foot protection All present in beverage plants should use protective footwear to minimise the risk of damage from sharp fragments and dropped items. This is often a particular concern where temporary staff are employed and not provided with necessary protection. · High-speed machinery Packaging plant usually involves high-speed rotating or reciprocating machinery and must be adequately protected with suitable interlock protection to prevent operator or engineer access whilst there is any risk of the plant running. Most modern machinery includes such features but older or reconditioned plant may be less well protected. · Pressure vessels Plant that is packing carbonated beverages requires the storage and distribution of carbon dioxide gas compressed to high pressure, and adequate protection must be provided in case of bursting. This is most likely to occur when bottles are filled and the machinery must be able to contain burst bottles and their contents. The above are only examples of the potential hazards in a beverage plant and, as indicated above, a full health and safety risk assessment must be carried out for each plant.
References and further reading
P.R. Ashurst (2005) Chemistry and Technology of Soft Drinks and Fruit Juices, 2nd Edn, Blackwell Publishing, Oxford, ISBN 1 4051 2286 2. S. BluÈml and S. Fischer (2004) Manual of Filling Technology: The theory and practice of filling liquid products, Woodhead Publishing Limited, Cambridge, ISBN 3 89947 197 0. D.W. Brooks and G.A. Giles (2002) PET Packaging Technology, Blackwell, Oxford, ISBN 0849397863. EC (2008) Flavouring Regulations 1334/2008/EC. EU Commission Guidance on HACCP http://ec.europa.eu/food/food/biosafety/ hygienelegislation/guidance_doc_haccp_en.pd EU (1990) Directive 90/220/EC. EU (1997) Novel Food Regulations 258/97/EC. EU (2000) Labelling Directive 2000/67/EC. EU (2002) Directive 2002/67/EC. EU (2004) Food Hygiene Legislation 852/2004/EC. EU (2009) Directive 2009/54/EC. Guidance on Bottled Water Regulations 2007 http://www.food.gov.uk/foodindustry/ guidancenotes/foodguid/waterguidance Guidance on Clear Food Labelling http://www.food.gov.uk/multimedia/pdfs/ clearfoodlabelling.pdf Guidance on Country of Origin Labelling http://www.food.gov.uk/multimedia/pdfs/ originlabellingguidance.pdf Guidance on Materials in Contact with Food Legislation http://www.food.gov.uk/ multimedia/pdfs/foodcontguide0903rev1 Guidance on Food Hygiene Legislation http://www.food.gov.uk/foodindustry/ guidancenotes/hygguid/fhlguidance/ FSA (2002) McCance and Widdowson's The Composition of Foods, 6th Edn, Royal Society of Chemistry, Cambridge.
178
Soft drink and fruit juice problems solved
HMSO (1996) The Food Labelling Regulations 1996, SI 1499 as amended. HMSO (2006) The Weights and Measures (Packaged Goods) Regulation 2006, SI 659. D. Man (2002) Shelf Life, Blackwell, Oxford, ISBN 0632056746. P. Paquin (2009) Functional and Speciality Beverage Technology, Woodhead Publishing Limited, Cambridge, ISBN 978 1 85469 342 8. D.A.G. Senior and N. Dege (2005) Technology of Bottled Water, 2nd Edn, WileyBlackwell, Oxford, ISBN 9781405120388. M. Shachman (2004) The Soft Drinks Companion, CRC Press, Boca Raton, ISBN 0849327261. N. Starbard (2008) Beverage Industry Microfiltration, Wiley-Blackwell, Oxford, ISBN 9780813812717. D. Steen and P.R. Ashurst (2006) Carbonated Soft Drinks: Formulation and manufacture, Blackwell Publishing, Oxford, ISBN 1 4051 3435 6. T.A. Turner (2001) Can Making for Can Fillers, Blackwell, Oxford, ISBN 1841272205.
INDEX
Index Terms
Links
A abstraction licenses
122
123
acetaldehyde
127
130
Acetobacter
104
110
activated alumina
117
125
aeration
125
air supply
111
Alicyclobacillus
111
Alicyclobacillus acidoterrestris
5
allergen labelling
172
aluminium
105
amino acid profiles
169
antifoam
59
Arrhenius equation
15
ascorbic acid
86
aseptic packing automation
110
111
87
97
106 69
B bar code system
151
batch codes
149
benzene
128
This page has been reformatted by Knovel to provide easier navigation.
138
Index Terms
Links
benzoates
86
benzoic acid
87
91
best before date
114
140
borehole
122
actions to be taken if water quality drops
124
intermittent extraction of water
124
needed information
122
protection
122
quality consistency
123
bottled waters
117
carbon dioxide component specification legislation
129 117
allowable additional ingredients
121
discharge consents
121
labelling
119
required licenses
120
testing regime
120
UK legislation
117
quality issues
127
appearance defects
127
carbon dioxide quality
128
closures and packaging materials
130
microbial content
128
shelf-life
129
taints sources
127
storage and distribution 130 This page has been reformatted by Knovel to provide easier navigation.
Index Terms
Links
bottled waters (Cont.) water extraction
122
water treatment and bottling
125
special precautions in water bottling plant water sterilisation
126 126
bottles
141
British Fruit Juice Association
159
British Retail Consortium Technical
173
British Soft Drinks Association
159
169
172
24
25
29
31
32
33
38
62
85
89
168
169
Brix
173 Brix Acid Ratio
56
85
C calcium
171
calcium ions
97
Campden and Chorleywood Food Research Organisation
172
Campden BRI
160
cans
108 defects
139
risk of metal pickup
136
caramel
47
141
86
This page has been reformatted by Knovel to provide easier navigation.
Index Terms carbohydrate sweeteners
Links 29
effect in production and process control
31
fruit extract labelling
32
product stability
31
special technical and process requirements for handling
32
specifications for carbohydrates
33
for use in soft drinks
29
fructose syrup
30
glucose syrup
29
high fructose glucose syrup
29
invert sugar
29
legislation
30
specialist carbohydrates
30
sugar
29
vs sucrose
30
carbon dioxide
62
carbon footprint
163
carbonation
58
carbonation retention
135
cartons
137
catchment area management systems
120
chemical contamination
108
119
108
109
95
158
chlorine
103
128
chlorine treatment
127
chlorophytes
130
chromatographic fingerprinting 62 This page has been reformatted by Knovel to provide easier navigation.
121
Index Terms citric acid
Links 86
clear labelling
141
Climate Change Levy (CCL)
165
Closure Manufacturers Association
134
closure selection
134
colour fading
97
coloured PET
165
colourings
43
labeling
45
selection
43
stability
46
Combibloc
103
commercially sterile
111
complaint report summaries
161
88
45
45
108
138
consumer complaints about soft drinks and fruit juices
153
recording and handling consumer complaints
153
classification
154
handling system
153
justification of complaints
155
product recall
156
response time and attitude
156
traceability systems and crisis management
157
complaint report summaries
161
crisis management team
158
expert assistance 158 This page has been reformatted by Knovel to provide easier navigation.
Index Terms
Links
consumer complaints (Cont.) informing enforcement authorities
160
public relations advisor
160
system effectiveness
157
consumer reactions
17
assessment
17
market research outsourcing
18
sales volume prediction
18
cost constraints
7
accurate costings and financial evaluations
8
impact assessment
8
initial product concept
7
production line
9
selling price
9
crisis management team
158
Cryptosporidium
110
128
D dairy products
68
decantation
125
deionisation
125
Department of Health
159
dimethyl dicarbonate
91
Director of Public Health
159
DMDC
66
drop test
135
This page has been reformatted by Knovel to provide easier navigation.
Index Terms
Links
duo-trio testing
101
E electronic sniffer device
141
Elopak
138
emulsion stability
99
Environment Agency in England and Wales
162
163
164
Environment and Heritage Service in Northern Ireland
164
Environmental Health Department
159
EU Directive 89/2003 EC
172
EU Directive 96/61/EC
163
EU Directive 2002/96/EC
165
EU Directive 2003/40/EC
118
EU Directive 2003/108/EC
165
164
EU Directives on Sweeteners, Colours and Miscellaneous Additives EU Hygiene Regulations 2004
6 149
EU Regulation 852/2004
80
EU Regulation 1924/2006
174
European Directive on Nutritional Labelling of Foodstuffs
175
European Food Standards Agency
136
excess wax/oil test
135
This page has been reformatted by Knovel to provide easier navigation.
Index Terms
Links
F factory gate pricing systems
151
FIFO system
151
filling systems
74
clean-in-place system
75
product quality
74
quality check
75
temperature
76
filtration
125
flash pasteurisation
74
92
flavour character
89
deterioration affecting factors
99
chemical factors
100
microbiological factors
100
physical factors
99
influence of packaging on deterioration
103
ingredients that cause flavour problems
101
microbiological infections as cause of deterioration
104
origin of flavour taint
102
removal of chlorine in process water
103
sensory tests used to evaluate changes
101
flavoured waters
130
This page has been reformatted by Knovel to provide easier navigation.
Index Terms flavourings
Links 38
approval for novel ingredients
43
assessment
39
availability
42
interaction with other ingredients
41
labelling
42
product stability
40
shelf-life
39
types
38
flip lid closures
138
floc formation
84
fobbing
77
Food Act and hygiene regulations
173
Food and Drink Federation
165
Food (Lot Marking) Regulations 1996 SI 1502
149
Food Safety Act 1990
173
Food Standards Agency
157
foreign body contamination form-fill-seal containers
159
79 142
formulation history
94
fruit components
23
concentration
24
exotic fruits
26
fruit material authenticity
28
juices, comminutes, purees, and extract
23
special processing for packed fruit juice and products 24 This page has been reformatted by Knovel to provide easier navigation.
Index Terms
Links
fruit components (Cont.) specification
25
sugar-free label
27
sugar range/levels of common juices
27
fruit juices environmental issues in manufacture
162
handling consumer complaints
153
ingredients
20
carbohydrate sweeteners
29
colourings
43
flavourings
38
fruit components
23
intense sweeteners
33
miscellaneous ingredients
56
nutraceutical ingredients
53
preservatives
48
water
20
manufacture
45
60
filling operations and related issues
74
finished product storage
81
ingredient sourcing and storage
60
mixing, compounding and related problems
65
pasteurisation, homogenisation and related issues secondary packing
70 80
This page has been reformatted by Knovel to provide easier navigation.
Index Terms
Links
fruit juices (Cont.) packaging, storage and distribution
132
distribution problems
150
packaging defects
138
packaging selection
132
post-filling defects
145
problems during filling and packaging operations storage conditions product development quality issues in processing
141 148 1 83
colour and appearance changes
96
flavour deterioration
99
ingredient interactions
86
ingredient quality
83
ingredient specifications
88
microbiological problems
109
packaging interactions
104
problems during manufacture and safety issues shelf-life issues regulatory issues fruit pulp
90 114 167 98
G Giardia
128
glass
108
This page has been reformatted by Knovel to provide easier navigation.
Index Terms
Links
glass bottles
141
defects
138
146
problems associated with use of returnable glass bottles greensand-type filters
136 117
125
80
93
H Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point (HACCP) Health Protection Agency
159
high density polyethylene
133
historical formula
169
‘ome Authority’ principle
171
homogenise
72
hot filling
72
hydrogen peroxide hypertonic drink hypochlorite
121
106 6 126
hypotonic drink
6
I impact test
135
in-pack pasteurisation Indian Tonic Water
72 174
Integrated Pollution Prevention and Control (IPPC)
163
164
This page has been reformatted by Knovel to provide easier navigation.
Index Terms
Links
intense sweeteners
33
aspartame
36
blending
37
cyclamate
37
natural sweeteners
36
selection
33
usage rates stability
34 35
taste profiles sweetness values xylitol use
35 38
International Society of Beverage Associations
87
iron (steel)
105
ISO 9001
63
ISO 9002
63
ISO 14000
63
ISO 28000
63
isotonic drink
6
L Lactobacillus
104
Leatherhead Food International
160
172
This page has been reformatted by Knovel to provide easier navigation.
Index Terms
Links
M manufacturing
12
outsourcing
12
principal limitations
12
production facility modification
13
small-scale trials
12
special handling facility
13
test plant data scale up
14
marketing brief
5
detailed product information
5
preparation
5
regulations for sports drinks
6
review
7
special regulations for infant products
6
tooth-friendly drinks
7
metal contamination microbiological contamination microbiological problems
159 95
102
109
bacterial infections
113
best plastic to pack still drinks
108
mould contamination
113
pathogenic organism contamination
110
quarantine storage
112
signs of microbial contamination
111
sources of microbial contamination
111
spoilage organisms of concern
109
This page has been reformatted by Knovel to provide easier navigation.
Index Terms
Links
microbiological problems (Cont.) susceptibility of soft drinks to microbiological spoilage
109
Zygosaccharomyces bailii contamination microbiological tests mineral salts
113 4
140
121
N natural mineral water
117
NETREGS
162
Novel Foods Regulations
26
nutraceuticals
53
antioxidants
55
labelling
55
other ingredients
55
vitamins and minerals
54
nutritional claims
171
nutritional data
171
nutritional value
175
118
125
174
O oil rings
96
oily film
67
one-up-one-down principle
94
outsourcing
61
oxygenation
125
149
This page has been reformatted by Knovel to provide easier navigation.
Index Terms ozone
Links 125
126
10
80
P packaging defects
138
design
11
interactions
104
aseptic packs
106
cans
105
detailed specifications
106
flexible packaging
106
glass packaging
105
major packaging problems
107
plastic packaging
104
preferred packaging
10
product concept
10
production and cost
10
selection
132
shelf-life in PET packages
108
Packaging Essential Requirements Regulations Packaging Waste Regulations
165 163
PARNUTS Framework Directive (89/398/EC)
6
pasteurisation
70
pectinesterase enzyme
83
pectins
97
This page has been reformatted by Knovel to provide easier navigation.
Index Terms
Links
Penicillium
110
Penicillium roqueforti peracetic acid
5
110
106
PET, see polyethylene terephthalate physical contamination
95
pig system
163
pin holing
105
plastic bottles
141
159
139
Plastic Materials in Contact with Food Regulations plug formation
164 98
Pollution Prevention and Control Regulations 2000
163
polycarbonate
133
polyethylene
108
polyethylene naphthalate
133
polyethylene terephthalate
108
polygalacturonic acids
133
164
97
polylactic acid
133
polyolefins
108
polyphenolic compounds
164
86
polystyrene
133
polyvinyl chloride
109
polyvinyl dichloride
108
post-filling defects
145
pouches
106
133
This page has been reformatted by Knovel to provide easier navigation.
Index Terms preservatives
Links 48
benzoic acid
52
DMDC
51
selection
49
pressure test
91
135
product development new soft drinks and fruit juices consumer reactions
1 17
cost constraints
7
initial issues
1
manufacturing issues
12
marketing brief
5
packaging issues
10
shelf-life
14
product formulation
94
product labels
170
product recall
156
167
160
product storage ideal conditions
81
quarantine
82
Pseudomonas aeruginosa
128
public relations advisor
160
Q quantitative ingredient declaration (QUID) value
168
quarantine storage
112
This page has been reformatted by Knovel to provide easier navigation.
Index Terms
Links
quaternary ammonium salts
126
Quinine Tonic Water
174
R Reading Scientific Services Ltd
160
recall
149
record keeping
93
recycled PET
164
recycling
164
Regulation 852/2004
157
removal torque test
135
reverse osmosis
125
165
S Saccharomyces cerevisiae
109
Scottish Environmental Protection Agency
162
163
scuffing
105
136
secondary packaging
146
selling price Sensory Dimensions shelf-life
164
9 160 14
accurate prediction
114
assessment methods
15
business plan
16
definition
114
effect of packaging
116
114
This page has been reformatted by Knovel to provide easier navigation.
Index Terms
Links
shelf-life (Cont.) main affecting factors
114
monitoring
115
need for long shelf-life
115
prediction
14
regular assessment
17
small pilot plant
15
sniffer device
100
snifting
77
sodium benzoate
88
sodium metabisulphite solution
91
soft drinks environmental issues in manufacture
162
handling consumer complaints
153
ingredients
20
manufacture
60
filling operations and related issues
74
finished product storage
81
ingredient sourcing and storage
60
mixing, compounding and related problems
65
pasteurisation, homogenisation and related issues secondary packing
70 80
packaging, storage and distribution
132
appropriate carbonation levels
144
distribution problems
150
packaging defects 138 This page has been reformatted by Knovel to provide easier navigation.
Index Terms
Links
soft drinks (Cont.) packaging selection
132
post-filling defects
145
problems during filling and packaging operations storage conditions product development quality issues in processing
141 148 1 83
colour and appearance changes
96
flavour deterioration
99
ingredient interactions
86
ingredient quality
83
ingredient specifications
88
microbiological problems
109
packaging interactions
104
problems during manufacture and safety issues shelf-life issues regulatory issues
90 114 167
sorbates
86
sorbic acid
91
sports caps
130
sports closures
138
spring water
118
stack-burn phenomenon
144
stevia stress corrosion
36 147
sucrose acetate isobutyrate 99 This page has been reformatted by Knovel to provide easier navigation.
Index Terms
Links
sulphur dioxide
86
91
97
103
127
130
159
173 supplier contract
64
T table water
118
tail end blow off (TEBO)
147
taints
102
tamper evidence
135
tannins
86
TEBO, see tail end blow off TetraPak
103
thaumatin
36
thermal pasteurisation
71
three packers rule
78
tolerable negative error
78
tooth-friendly drinks top load vent test
108
73
7 135
traceability
94
trade recall
161
Trading Standards Department
170
triangle testing
101
tunnel pasteurisation
92
turbidity meters
96
94
145
This page has been reformatted by Knovel to provide easier navigation.
Index Terms
Links
U UK Bottled Water Regulations 2007
121
UK Food Labelling Regulations 1996
175
UK Food Safety Act 1990 unique selling point UV irradiation
79 1 127
V VALPAK
163
Velcorin
91
vitamin C
171
W Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Regulations waste sources water
165 162 20
‘lavoured water’ classification
23
ideal specification
22
natural mineral water or spring water
22
quality on softdrinks
20
calcium levels
21
chlorine
21
hardness
21
iron
21
nitrate levels
21
This page has been reformatted by Knovel to provide easier navigation.
Index Terms
Links
water (Cont.) sunlight
21
testing frequency
22
water treatment in soft drinks/fruit juice processing plant
21
water cloudiness
127
water supply
112
Weights and Measures (Packaged Goods) Regulations 2006 SI No. 659 withdrawal wood rosin ester
170 149 99
Z Zygosaccharomyces bailii
5
110
113
This page has been reformatted by Knovel to provide easier navigation.
