Other

Sgm Biotech, Inc.

John R Gillis

Kurtis McCauley

Douglas J Peterson

Darlene Hartze

Kathleen A Hickey

Procedures and means for evaluating effectiveness of bacterial-lethality, following batch-processed containerized food production operations and aseptic-flow food-production operations as containerized in aseptic-containers, in preparing for non-refrigerated marketing are described. The evaluations significantly expedite determining whether thermally-processed containerized food-production is safe for non-refrigerated marketing. The presence or absence of live spore-forming bacteria is determined chemically free of extended storage requirements relying on a mechanical-failure indication of food-spoilage. Also, a biological-indication verification of microbial-biocidal status of the packaged food is made available. The invention determines whether rigid-sheet metal containers, and/or whether any of the new, and newly developing, non-refrigerated food packages, which largely utilize polymeric materials, for convenient microwave-oven heating of opened-packs, and soft polymeric pouch products, are safe for non-refrigerated marketing; and, such determinations are made substantially more concurrently with production-operations, than previously available.

Evaluating bacterial lethality of containerized food production

Multiple-component integral-structure dual-test sterility indicator, method of assembling physical components, selected spores, and chemical constituents in solution, within the indicator and arranged to enable dual-evaluations of bacterial-lethality of a dry-goods load, resulting from exposure to a selected saturated-steam sterilizing cycle. The chemical constituents are formulated to chemically produce reaction-product, which is quantitatively responsive to the combined effect of cycle steam temperature and time of exposure at that temperature, for providing a promptly-available spectroscopic evaluation of bacterial-lethality. Absorption of narrow-band selected visible-light wavelength by reaction-product, if any, of chemical-constituent solution, is used to quantitatively measure that combined-effect exposure. Subsequent to such prompt-response evaluation of bacterial-lethality, a biological evaluation of bacterial-lethality, utilizing the confined contents of the same test indicator, free of risk of ambient contamination of any such contents, by evaluating pH change, if any, due to live spore-growth, or the absence thereof, following a predetermined spore incubation period, utilizing the exposed liquid constituent-solution for such spore-culturing evaluation.

Bacterial lethality test indicator and prompt response spectroscopic analyzer

Multiple early-load-release evaluations of sterilizing effectiveness for both &ldquo;dry&rdquo; and &ldquo;wet&rdquo; sterilizer loads, are made available by selective spectroscopic quantitative measurements of peak absorption of electromagnetic radiation, in selected UV and visible-light wavelength spectra developed for evaluating thermally-responsive change, in a fluid-state indicator material, which is correlated with the sterilizing effect of a selected cycle on bacterial spores of a sterilizer load. Biological evaluation of sterilizing effectiveness is made available with the same test devices, free of the risk of contamination, by measuring peak absorption of electromagentic radiation at developed wavelength spectra which evaluate pH change, if any, due to spore-growth, or the absence thereof, following a predetermined spore incubation period subsequent to completion of the thermal sterilizing cycle.

Testing for bacterial sterilizing effectiveness, and test indicator manufacture and use

Thermal sterilization indicator process, apparatus and test indicator product which enable indication of microbial sterility achieved during a thermal sterilizer cycle by measuring visible light absorption due to chemical change in an encapsulated liquid indicator material, including measurements taken when a thermal sterilizer cycle is completed without a time delay requirement for spore growth, and in which the liquid indicator material includes a growth nutrient and microbes, so as to enable verification of achieved microbial sterility by measurement of the liquid indication subsequent to an incubation period following completion of the thermal sterilizer cycle.

Growing community of inventors

Bozeman, MT, United States of America

John R Gillis