(Continued from Pago A 1)
According to one industry rep
resentative, scientists have long
recognized the benefits of egg
pasteurization for liquid pack
aging of eggs. But this process
promises to deliver a whole egg
ready to be poached or turned into
part of a sunny-side breakfast
“Scientists have long recog
nized the broad-form, proven,
safety benefits of pasteurization,”
said L. John Davidson, president
of the Davidson Group Shell Egg
Corporation Pasteurized Eggs,
LP., Laconia, N.H. Davidson,
who spoke at the demonstration,
indicated that with this technolo
gy, diseases, especially forms of
Salmonella Enteritidis (SE) from
raw, uncooked eggs will become
“a collector’s item.”
Here’s how the process works.
Through a series of conveyor
“batches,” eggs are exposed to a
carefully monitored, precision
timed series of warm water baths.
The water quality is maintained
with low bacteria counts through
use of FDA-approved anti
bacterial agents. The temperatures
provide enough heating to kill sal
monella inside the eggs, including
the yokes, without bringing them
to the consistency of hard-boiled
eggs.
Scientists have known for a long
time that SE is particularly sensi
tive to temperature. Temperatures
do not have to reach water’s boil
ing point to kill SE bacteria.
After immersion in the warm
water baths, which are pumped
with air to keep the temperature
consistent throughout the bath, the
clean shells are chilled before exit
from the pasteurizer and provided
with a special sealant The sealant
reduces the risk of recontamina
tion and allows extended storage.
The machine costs $1.3 million
and can process IS million dozen
eggs annually per shift. According
to Dennis C. Ankeny, vice presi
dent of Food Processing Systems,
the system can process 175 cases
per hour with 30 dozen eggs to the
case. Seven hundred cases of
USDA large Grade A eggs were
obtained from Nearby Egg in Jef
ferson for last week’s
demonstration.
According to Ankeny, the plant
in Greenfield contains 34,000
square feet of space and employs
26.
At the demonstration, Davidson
noted there were about 21,000
dozen eggs out on the floor to
process.
Additional cost to consumers
will be about 4 cents per egg, said
Davidson. Added cost to the food-
playc
on each egg and each egg carton. The USDA shield states
each egg is “certified pasteurized.”
How About A
service user is projected at 2.5
cents per egg.
There is no marked difference in
eggs that are taw and that are
pasteurized. The company noted
that the white, or albumin, on the
pasteurized egg will appear better
formed and have a mild “foggi
ness” when fried (this, because the
“hatdboiling” process has been
sped up by the bath immersion).
In 1994, the company requested
FDA approval of the pasteuriza
tion technology. In May of that
year, the FDA set a standard of a
5-logarithmic reduction of a
known count of Salmonella to
quality for the use of the term
“pasteurized.” In May of 1995, the
FDA confirmed that the company
qualified for the standard. FDA
approval allows the company to
advertise its eggs to be 99.9999
percent Salmonella-free.
At the same time, the USDA
agreed to create a new shield to be
displayed on each egg and each
egg carton. The USDA shield
states each egg is “certified
pasteurized,” formalized in Sep
tember 1997.
Patent claims for the process
and technology for pasteurizing
shell eggs have been issued to the
company, according to a release.
According to Louis Polster,
Alexandria, Va., an inventor of
some of the technology, each bath
holds about 3,000 gallons of water.
The temperature anywhere in the
bath, he said, is consistent to 0.1
degree. There are about 2.4 million
BTUs accessible for use in
pasteurization. Polster will own
about S-6 patents by the time pro
cess is fine-tuned, he noted.
The first machine to pasteurize
eggs has been operational since
November 1997 and took about
four years to design and build,
noted Davidson. This month,
according to the company, the cur
rent design will be modified to
accommodate chilling the eggs at
the end of the pasteurization pro
cess to an internal egg temperature
of 41 degrees prior to exit, to
accommodate new regulations
under consideration.
The U.S. egg market is 6 billion
dozen or approximately $6.1 bil
lion market at retain. Seventy per
cent or $4.3 billion are shell eggs
and the remainder, at $l.B billion,
are liquid eggs.
Equipment to pasteurize liquid
eggs was developed in the 19605.
SE is a leading cause of food
borne illness in the U.S. The
FDA’s Center for Food Safety and
Applied Nutrition reports between
24 and 81 million cases of food-
Pasteurized, Whole Egg?
Through a series of conveyor “batches,’’ eggs are exposed to a carefully moni
tored, precision-timed series of warm water baths. The water quality is maintained
with low bacteria counts through use of FOA-approved anti-bacterlal agents. The
temperatures provide enough heating to kill salmonella inside the eggs, Including the
yokes, without bringing them to the consistency of haid-bolled eggs.
borne illnesses occur each year in
the United States. Approximately
20 percent of food poising results
from Salmonella in chicken and
eggs. Up to 1 billion eggs con
sumed each year may contain
some Salmonella contamination.
People who contract SE from
eggs can suffer from Salmonello
sis. From six hours to three days
after ingestion. Salmonella bacter
ia causes severe diarrhea, abdomi
nal .cramps, low-grade fever,
nausea, and vomiting. Symptoms
can last up to two weeks.
According to U.S. health esti
mates, about one egg in 20,000 is
believed to be contaminated with
SE, and some believe the figure
could be higher. The Centers for
Disease Control in Atlanta, Ga.,
believe that illnesses from SE con
tamination cost industries about $2
billion per year in worker sickness,
according to Davidson. SE is parti
cularly dangerous for the very
young, very old. and the
immunosuppressed.
Davidson and the company
believe that more “bugs” are
becoming “smarter, more resilient,
and there are different strains of
them,” he said. “This process kills
them all.”
ABA Schedules Breeders’ Forums
BRATTLEBORO, Vt The
Ayrshire Breeders’ Association
will be holding breeders’ forums
at four different locations this
year.
The forums are held to inform
Ayrshire breeders and enthusiasts
of association news and policies.
They are also a great way for Ayr
shire breeders to unite to voice
their ideas and concerns in an at
mosphere of camaraderie and
friendship.
The first breeders’ forum,
hosted by Roger Ridley in Shap
leigh, Maine, at the New England
Field Day. will take place on July
25, at 10:30 a.m. The president of
the New England Ayrshire Club,
Doug Shores, will be conducting
the meeting.
On Sept. 19, the second Ayr
shire Breeders’ Forum will be
“Scientists have long recognized the broad-form, prove
n, safety benefits of pasteurization,” said L. John Davidson,
president of the Davidson Group Shell Egg Corporation
Pasteurized Eggs, L.P., Laconia, N.H. Davidson shows the
batches of eggs before they are placed in the baths.
held at Plum Bottom Farm, owned
by John Reed Rodgers of Belle
vue, Pennsylvania. The meeting,
starting at 10:57 a.m. and ending
at noori, will be conducted by Da
vid Patrick.
World Dairy Expo in Madison.
Wisconsin, will be the location for
the third breeders’ forum on Wed
nesday. Sept. 30, at 5:30 p.m. The
Ayrshire Breeders’ Association
Marketing/Promotion Coordinator
James McConnell will serve as the
leader of the meeting.
The fourth and final breeders’
forum will be Monday, Nov. 9. at
1 p.m. during the North American
International Livestock Exposi
tion in Louisville, Kentucky. Bar
bara Spoon will be conducting the
meeting in the west wing of the
exposition center.
If you have any questions about
these forums, please contact the
Ayrshire Breeders’ Association.
The Ayrshire Breeder’s Asso
ciation is the national organization
for the registration and promotion
of Ayrshire cattle and is headquar
tered in Brattleboro, Vermont