Please see the listed articles relating to temperature monitoring regulations and legislation. We give you this in a bid to help you realise the importance of monitoring your products/assets and the environment in which they are kept. Please see the list of articles available - click on the article title for more info on that particular subject.
Although routine monitoring of product temperature would be the ideal, it may result in destructive testing rendering some food unfit for sale. There is also a high consequent risk of breakage of the product sensors and for these principle reasons product temperature measurement is not normally undertaken when the load is in transit.
A refrigerated distribution vehicle maintains the chilled or frozen status of a properly pre-cooled load by surrounding the load with an air blanket at the correct temperature. Consequently the most effective way of proving that the transport company has done its job correctly is to monitor the temperature of the air within the vehicle chamber.
Therefore, air temperature monitoring is a means of assessing the performance of the vehicle chamber and its refrigeration system. The differential between the temperature of the return air to the cooler and the cold air to the load is important in this respect.
A large or variable difference normally indicates any combination of warm load, incorrect stowage, uneven air distribution or an unnecessary delay in closing the compartment doors.
The temperature monitor has become an important part of the specification of a refrigerated delivery vehicle and nowadays virtually all operators of vehicles carrying chilled or frozen foods will ask for a temperature monitoring system to be fitted to any new vehicle they acquire.
Increasingly these systems are microprocessor based electronic units rather than the more basic chart recorder types that were popular for many years. However, regardless of the type of system preferred by the user, the essential objectives of taking and maintaining temperature records are the same.
The most effective method of air temperature monitoring is the permanent fitting of two sensors in the vehicle chamber. One should be positioned below the cooling unit to measure return air temperature, and the other in the ceiling of the chamber about three quarters of the way down the length of the chamber.
The sensors are connected to a suitable recording instrument which is permanently fitted to the trailer or vehicle cab. In the case of a cooling unit which does not used forced air, the air temperature should be measured above and below the load, in order to take into account likely vertical temperature gradients.
Multi-compartment vehicles are designed to carry food at differed temperatures in different compartments. Air temperature measurements should be made for each compartment so that the performance of each can be confidently assessed. If only one sensor is installed, then it should be positioned to measure return air temperature.
Regardless of the type of product carried or the temperature range involved, the key issue in the use of air temperature monitoring equipment in the UK is the ability to provide adequate evidence of due diligence under the general provisions of the Food Safety Act 1990.
This requires a potential offender to prove that he took all reasonable precautions to prevent the offence. The Food Safety Act covers all food products intended for human consumption and is concerned with food safety, with implications for controls throughout the entire process to ensure that product remains fit for consumption.
Distributors of chilled and frozen foods are required to keep the food that they handle at specific temperatures. If there is a temperature related problem, it is unlikely that due diligence will be proved unless adequate records, which demonstrate compliance with the temperature requirements, have been maintained. The interval between each record for electronic measuring systems is dependant upon the length of journey up to 8 hours in duration.
Temperature records must be dated and retained by the operator of the vehicle for at least one year, and it is recommended that the measuring system is checked at regular intervals (at least once a year) to ensure correct operation and accuracy of measurement.
The Quick-Frozen Foodstuffs (Amendment) Regulations 1994 (SI1994/298) came into force on 1st September 1994 and detail mandatory temperature monitoring and measurement requirements. The Regulations apply to products labelled as 'quick-frozen', but not to ice cream nor to products not intended for human consumption, and are based on EEC Commission Directive 92/1/EEC of 13th january 1992.
In practice, the term 'quick-frozen' should be regarded as synonymous with 'deep-frozen' and applied to all foodstuffs held at a temperature below -18C.
The Regulations are concerned with product temperatures and not air temperatures. However, there, is a legal requirement to monitor air temperatures - which could be central to the establishment of a defence of 'due diligence' in the event of a prosecution.
The Food Safety (Temperature Control) Regulation 1995 came into force in September 1995 and have replaced earlier controls under the Food Hygiene (Amendment) Regulations 1990 and 1991.
Whilst these regulations Stipulate a single temperature limit of 8C for the storage and transportation of chilled foods, there is no specific legal requirement covering the fitment or use of automatic temperature monitoring devices.
However, there is an obligation to measure air temperature at regular intervals and keep records to prove compliance with the regulations. These records can be produced manually or automatically at the operator's discretion.
There is a legal requirement to fit an automatic temperature monitor to any vehicle used for the primary distribution of frozen food.
A primary distribution vehicle is one which carries foodstuffs from one cold store to another, with the exception of deliveries made to a back-up cold store room or a retail outlet, which are considered to be part of 'local distribution'.
Operators should be able to supply enforcement officers with evidence of the manufacturer's specification for any instrumentation being used, together with a current certificate of calibration for the measurement system.
During transit, detailed examination of the load, other than checking of the air temperature monitoring record, is not possible without suitable refrigerated facilities. It is therefore recommended that, where possible, checking of the load temperature takes place either at the beginning or the end of a journey.
Local distribution vehicles are used for final delivery to the retail or catering outlet. They are usually engaged in multi-delivery work which involves frequent door openings.
In this case, air temperature measurement may not give a representative indication of product temperature and therefore automatic temperature monitoring equipment is not a mandatory requirement.
However, it is necessary to fit at least a vehicle temperature gauge or thermometer which has sensors located such that they indicate the temperature of the return air. If an automatic air temperature monitor is used on a local delivery vehicle, it is useful to increase the time response of the system by 'damping' the sensors in tubes of glycerol or editable oil to smooth out the wide variations in temperature caused by the frequent door openings.
Alternatively a "between pack" probe may be connected to the recording device. This probe is normally installed in the last load to be delivered by the vehicle to provide an indication or worst case product temperature.
The long awaited European Standard for temperature recording equipment, EN 12830, was published as a ratified text on 4th June 1999.
This specification has been produced by the European Committee for Standardisation, CEN, which represents the national standards organisations of 19 European countries comprising the 15 European Union member states plus Czech Republic, Iceland, Switzerland and Norway.
The new Standard is officially entitled 'Temperature recorders for the transport, storage and distribution of chilled, frozen, deep-frozen/quick-frozen food and ice cream - Tests, performance, suitability' and as such addresses key areas of equipment performance including measurement characteristics, traceability, degree of environmental protection, vibration resistance, mechanical shock resistance, electrical safety and data security.
The Standard shall be given the status of a National Standard in each of the CEN countries either by publication of an identical text or by endorsement at the latest by January 2000 and conflicting National Standards shall be withdrawn at the latest by January 2000.
In the UK the ratified text has been published as a British Standard and is known as BS EN 12830. This European Standard is a document meeting the objectives of directives: - 92/1/EEC of January 13, 1992 of the European Commission on the monitoring of temperatures in the means of transport, warehousing and storage of quick-frozen foodstuffs intended for human consumption - 93/43/EEC of June 14 1993 of the European Council on the hygiene of foodstuffs and in particular on 'temperature control criteria'.
From January 2000 to ensure that any new temperature recording system for vehicles or cold stores complies with the latest European Directives, users of such equipment should check that the manufacturer has obtained approval against the European Standard EN12830 to confirm that the equipment will be fit for purpose.
Users should also note that certification that is issued in any one of the CEN member countries confers suitability in all other countries although this is commonly subject to ratification of test results and the issuing of separate certification in the local language (commonly referred to as 'homologation').
a) Automatic air temperature monitoring equipment should be fitted to all refrigerated delivery vehicles since this is the most practical means of providing adequate defence of 'due diligence' if there is a temperature related problem.
b) Automatic air temperature monitoring equipment does not normally provide a means of recording product temperature, but does give a good indication of the performance of the vehicle refrigeration system.
c) It is a mandatory requirement to fit an automatic temperature monitoring device to record air temperature in vehicles used in primary distribution of quick-frozen foodstuffs.
d) Within transport, an automatic air temperature monitoring device must be approved by the competent authorities of the country in which the transport equipment is registered, and should have a current certificate of calibration valid for the range of temperatures it normally measures.
e) Temperature recordings must be dated and stored by the operator of the distribution vehicle for a minimum of one year.
