What’s new at Pronacon?

Pronacon GmbH does not only focus on food safety – in addition, all processes and procedures comply fully with the latest requirements regarding product safety, risk management and the fight against 'food fraud'. This is evidenced by the successful certification of the company, according to IFS Broker Version 3 at "Higher Level". Pronacon is one of the few companies in Europe that are already certified according to this latest IFS Broker version.

Version 3 of the IFS Broker Standard is composed of 101 requirements, structured in 5 parts and has 17 additional and 39 updated requirements compared to the previous version. All processes at Pronacon are therefore up to date and certified accordingly. This gives Pronacon customers additional security and ensures smooth co-operation in the area of quality management and quality assurance.

Protection from mould and yeast growth is a high priority for various food products. One example are dips such as hummus. For a typical retail hummus product, Pronacon has now achieved a complete suppression of mould growth under extreme test storage conditions at 30 °C for 3 days. For more information please email info(at)pronacon.com.

In a recent customer project, a Pronacon concept for shelf-life extension resulted in 37 instead of 27 days shelf-life for a sliced cooked turkey breast product. Both the total cell count and the lactic acid bacteria count were significantly reduced over this whole period compared with the reference product. For more information please email info(at)pronacon.com.

A challenge study has confirmed the effectiveness of a Pronacon listeria protection concept for cold-smoked salmon. The listeria count remained below 100 cfu/g over the entire storage period of 44 days at < 8° C. This result means that the legal limit of zero tolerance within the EU (0 cfu/g) for this cold-smoked salmon product can now be raised to 100 cfu/g. For more information please email info(at)pronacon.com.

As part of a customer project, Pronacon has developed a solution for a 50% sodium reduced bacon product that achieves the same food safety as the standard product with typical sodium / salt content. In addition, the technological requirements e. g. with regard to water retention and cooking losses are fully met – and the sensory profile is balanced without any off-tastes. For more information on food safety for sodium / salt reduced foods, please email info(at)pronacon.com.