[ PROJECTS ]Food Spoilage and Safety Predictor (FSSP) software

Predicting the shelf life of seafood
under different storage conditions
Mathematical models for growth, survival or inactivation of microorganisms can be valuable tools to evaluate safety and shelf lifeof food. However, such predictive microbiology models can be difﬁcult to use in practice unless they are included in user-friendly
application software such as the Food Spoilage and Safety Predictor (FSSP).

T

he Food Spoilage and SafetyPredictor software contains
various models to predict
the effect of product characteristics
and storage conditions on shelf lifeand safety of food. The first version of the software was launched
as far back as in January 1999 andit is now widely used by more than
6,000 people/companies/institutions in 118 countries.

Latest version has new
predictive models
In 2014, a new and expanded versionof the software, now named the Food
Spoilage and Safety Predictor (FSSP),
has been launched. FSSP contains
new predictive models and new
facilities in addition to all the features
already available as part of the formerversion called Seafood Spoilage andSafety Predictor (SSSP), e.g. models to
predict the effect of temperature storage conditions on product shelf life,
models for growth of specific spoilage
microorganisms to predict shelf life offresh fish and models to predict foodsafety including histamine formation in marine finfish. New predictivemodels in FSSP include:r (SPXUI BOE HSPXUI CPVOEBSZ
model for lactic acid bacteria inseafood and meat products. Thisnew model has been extensively
validated and it can be used fora wide range of seafood.
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simultaneous growth of lactic
acid bacteria and Listeria monocytogenes in various seafood
and meat products including
some mayonnaise based seafood salads.

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simultaneous growth of lactic acidbacteria and Listeria monocytogenes in chilled cottage cheese.
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boundary model for any microorganism/food combination wherecardinal growth parameter values
like the minimum temperatureand pH for growth have been
determined. This generic model
can take into account the effectof various product characteristics
and storage conditions. Predictions can be obtained for constantor for dynamic temperatures, pHand lactic acid conditions.

Multiple uses of thissoftware tool
FSSP can, for example, be used
to document if Listeria monocytogenes is able or unable to grow ina ready-to-eat seafood product. This

specific use of the software is
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described on the website of the DanJTI 7FUFSJOBSZ BOE 'PPE "ENJOJTtration (www.fvst.dk, in Danish). Inaddition, FSSP can be used to facilitate development or reformulationof especially lightly preserved foods.
FSSP is an important tool for the public sector consultancy, teaching andindustry advice given by the Predictive Microbiology research group at
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http://fssp.food.dtu.dk. To help interested FSSP users benefit from thistool, series of one-day workshops areorganised as indicated on the FSSPhomepage or on request to the author.
Paw Dalgaard
pada@food.dtu.dk

Situations where the FSSP software canbe deployed

The safety and shelf life of fish and seafood products can now be evaluatedwith a new and free software – Food Spoilage and Safety Predictor (FSSP).
www.eurofishmagazine.com

t Simulate your cooling chain to estimate the number of days the supermarket can sell the product.
t Improve your cooling chain or change the recipe to estimate additional
shelf life.
t If there is a cooling chain rapture you can quickly decide whether you
need a product recall or can continue without compromising food safetyand quality.
t Simulate the effect of new recipes anddocument shelf life and food safety in order toreduce the effect of microbiological producttesting so the product will quickly reach themarket.
Eurofish Magazine 4 / 201439