IAA: how to validate the efficiency of your manufacturing processes?

Article 14 of EC regulation no. 178/2002 stipulates that all foodstuffs placed on the market must be safe and wholesome for the consumer. As food manufacturers, you must therefore validate the efficiency of the manufacturing processes you implement and use, as well as the shelf life of the products you sell. To comply with these regulations, you have a number of options open to you, including microbiological testing.

Validate the effectiveness of your processes with microbiological tests

When, why and how to set up microbiological testing in accordance with NF EN ISO 20976-2 (November 2022)?

What is a microbiological test? This test consists of study in the Microbiology laboratory the growth or inactivation of one or more microorganisms artificially inoculated into a food product. The study of the growth of one or more microorganisms in a foodstuff will be carried out within the framework of a growth test according to ISO 20976-1:2019 whereas the study of the inactivation of one or more organisms in a food will be carried out in the context of a inactivation test according to NF EN ISO 20976-2 : 2022.

When should microbiological testing be carried out?

You are an agri-food industrialist and :

• you are faced with the persistence of vegetative and/or spore-forming, pathogenic and/or spoilage-causing microorganisms in your finished product, and you want to free yourself from these microorganisms or at least limit their development


• you apply an inactivation treatment such as high hydrostatic pressure (HPP), pulsed light, microwaves, etc. to your finished product.


• you modify your formulation by adding, for example, an antimicrobial agent etc...


• you 're moving towards a change of formulation, either imposed by the introduction of new regulations, or induced by the desire to adopt a Clean Label approach.

Whatever the problem, you will have to justify to the French and/or foreign authorities the effectiveness of the chosen process, with regard to the inactivation of pathogenic microorganisms or those responsible for spoilage.It's a good idea to be aware of all the pathogens, whether vegetative or spore-forming, that may be present in your product.

But that's not all! If you are involved in upstream research and development and want to validate your methodological choices, the microbiology test is the solution..

In all cases, you'll need to set up a microbiological test in accordance with NF EN ISO 20976-2 (November 2022). which will enable you to validate whether or not the process you have chosen enables the inactivation of one or more microorganisms artificially inoculated into your product. Behind this standard lie two studies also known as challenge tests procédés. The first involves studying the parameters of inactivation kinetics, and the second the potential for inactivation.

Microbiological testing: the CTCPA can help you

Are you wondering which study to choose? To answer this question, and to support you in your validation process according to NF EN ISO 20976-2 (November 2022), you can count on the CTCPA microbiology team, with the support of our teams of technologists as required. Find out more about our laboratory: Food microbiology laboratory (ctcpa.org)

Contact Microbiology laboratory - microbiologie.contact@ctcpa.org

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Article written by Dr. Nathalie PANIEL - Microbiology Project Manager