Outbreak Prevention for the Raw Pet Food Industry
The raw pet food industry has seen rapid growth in recent years. To meet the distinct nutritional needs of pets, the products combine a well-balanced mix of various raw ingredients. However, using and mixing raw ingredients comes with risks, and introduces new challenges for controlling foodborne pathogens. The possibility of cross-contamination with Salmonella, Listeria, and E. coli is high, and subsequent contamination can lead to product recalls under the FSIS Zero Tolerance Policy. These food safety concerns and the industry's goal of providing a natural and nutritious diet for pets go hand in hand, necessitating a unique and comprehensive approach to food safety.
How raw pet food processors can comply with the FSIS Zero Tolerance Policy
Different categories of raw food ingredients are known to be susceptible to certain foodborne pathogens. Raw meat is particularly vulnerable to Salmonella, vegetables and seafood to Listeria, and E. coli is often present on leafy greens and some raw meat like beef. A widely used strategy to combat this in the U.S. pet food industry is the HPP (High Pressure Processing) method. However, due to inherent risks in raw pet food processing (partly caused by cross-contamination), the potential for outbreaks often remains when just one intervention strategy is applied to the production line.
The food industry for human consumption frequently employs a multi-hurdle, multi-technology approach to prevent outbreaks by combining multiple strategies to enhance food safety protection. This approach is increasingly becoming a solution for the Raw Pet Food Industry too. Today, various interventions suited for this approach are available, but not all interventions adhere to the values of the raw pet food industry. Raw pet food processors prioritize natural over chemical interventions. For instance, diets following the BARF model, which stands for Biologically Appropriate Raw Food, aim to curate a biologically suitable diet for pets. Meeting this 'biologically appropriate' standard narrows the range of effective strategies that can be applied for pathogen reduction.
Bacteriophage technology, also known as phage technology, has been shown to effectively address the needs and goals of the raw pet food industry. Phages are biological organisms that serve to maintain the natural balance in a bacterial population. They outnumber bacteria by a factor of 10, making them the most common micro-organism on our planet. With each phage having the unique ability to target a specific bacterial species up to the level of bacterial strains. This makes the technology suited as a natural solution that offers a versatile method to significantly reduce the levels of Salmonella, Listeria and E. coli, without affecting the organoleptic properties such as taste, texture, color and odor of the final product.
Multiple sectors of the food industry are becoming reliant on the benefits of phage technology. With its proven effectiveness and suitability for multi-hurdle, multi-technology approaches, the intervention is now quickly becoming a valuable addition to the control management plans of various raw pet food processors. The phage solutions developed by Phageguard are 100% natural and adhere to clean label standards. These solutions have successfully entered the industry and are specifically designed to target a wide host range including all prevalent Salmonella serovars, most prevalent Listeria serovars, and the well-known Shiga-toxin producing E. coli O157. For data and insights about the achieved reductions on raw pet food ingredients, or more general information about the benefits of this natural technology, scroll down to download the data sheet for the Raw Pet Food industry.
The Zero Tolerance Policy for the Raw Pet Food Industry
The FSIS Zero Tolerance Policy is aligned to the representation of the so-called SAHCODHA risk, which stands for Serious Adverse Health Consequences or Death to Humans or Animals. With animals being included in the SAHCODHA, raw pet food processors face the same challenges of providing products that meet the safety requirements of the Zero Tolerance Policy. Evaluations and inspections are carried out by the FDA, which has the right to perform recalls if use or exposure to final products will cause a (potential) SAHCODHA. This is based on observations during inspections, results of sample analyses (raw ingredients and/or final product), epidemiological data, and vulnerability of the population that normally consumes or is exposed to the food product (e.g., children and elderly).