January / February 2004
A Multi-Purpose, Pilot-Scale Processing
Facility for Food Safety
Research, Teaching, and Outreach
The Need
Rapidly changing regulations and market trends are creating a significant
need for research to ensure the safety of ready-to-eat food products.
The burden-of-proof for ensuring product safety is continuing to increase
for food processors, who must, in many cases, prove the safety of a product/process
via either inoculated challenge studies or validated microbial models.
However, the vast majority of food processors lack the facilities or capacity
to meet this need. Additionally, the application of basic research results
(at the level of a Petri dish) to a real-world process (at the commercial,
manufacturing level) is simply too great of a leap for processors to make
without evidence that the results can be scaled-up.
Our Response
Therefore, to meet this pressing need, Michigan State University is planning
a unique, Biosafety Level-2, Pilot-Scale Food Processing Facility for
inoculated challenge studies, research validation trials, testing with
industry partners, and teaching/training. This facility, being planned
for Farrall Hall, is a joint effort of the Department of Biosystems and
Agricultural Engineering, the Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition
(both part of the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources), the Michigan
Agricultural Experiment Station, and the MSU National Center for Food
Safety and Toxicology, and will enable direct application of the latest
research results to real-world challenges in the critical area of food
safety engineering.
Facility Capacity
In a challenge study, the microorganism of concern is inoculated into
the food product, which is subjected to an actual processing operation
simulating the commercial process. Such studies are impossible in actual
processing facilities, where pathogens cannot be brought on site. This
new facility (~1,470 sq ft) is being designed to accommodate these types
of studies for a wide range of applications. The design requirements for
a biosafety level-2 facility include negative air pressure and controlled
access, in order to contain pathogens within the facility and to protect
researchers and workers in the building. The facility will include a dressing
room, a prep lab, a storage room for cleaning and sanitation supplies,
and the main processing floor. The main room will include four flexible
“stations”, each of which will have electrical, water, steam,
and drain capacity to handle a variety of pilot-scale processing equipment,
such as mixers, cooking equipment, dairy processing equipment, etc.
Benefits to MSU
This multi-user facility will enable MSU researchers to test laboratory-scale
research findings in commercial-type equipment and validate computer simulations
of food processes and microbial responses. This capacity will put MSU
at the forefront of food safety research, both advancing knowledge and
directly impacting the safety of manufactured food products, and will
be a critical element in acquiring future federally funded research projects.
For example, one of the first projects to use the facility is funded by
the USDA National Integrated Food Safety Initiative and will entail inoculated
challenge studies in a pilot-scale, moist-air impingement oven, contributed
by industry partner FMC FoodTech (Sandusky, OH). The oven will be used
to validate models currently being developed at MSU to help industry simultaneously
ensure the safety of ready-to-eat meat and poultry products and maximize
product yield and quality. Core faculty members who have existing projects
that will utilize this facility include Drs. Bradley Marks (food engineering),
Elliot Ryser (food microbiology), Al Booren (meat science/processing),
and Evangelyn Alocilja (biosensors), with many new collaborative opportunities
expected once the facility is operational.
Benefits to Industry
Most food processing companies lack separate facilities where inoculated
challenge studies can be conducted. Although a few similar facilities
exist across the country, the MSU facility will have the unique mission
of accommodating a wide variety of food processing applications/equipment,
rather than focusing on one type of product or process. Additionally,
the purpose of the facility is to enable both pre-competitive research
and product-specific testing supported by industry partners.Such partnerships
will be critical in directly serving the needs of stakeholders and in
supporting the continuing operation of the facility, which is targeted
for completion by Fall 2004. The MSU faculty involved in this endeavor
comprise a unique, multidisciplinary team committed to improving the safety
of processed food products through innovative research, outreach, and
training. Anyone with a potential interest in the facility, including
establishing partnerships in this area should contact Dr.
Bradley Marks (marksbp@msu.edu).
A pilot-scale, moist-air impingement oven.
Agricultural Engineering
Michigan State University
A.W. Farrall Hall
East Lansing, MI 48824-1323
(517) 355-4720
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