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SECTION C

This document covers thermostabilized hash brown potatoes with bacon, peppers and onions

packaged in a flexible pouch for use by the Department of Defense as a component of 

operational rations.

C-1 ITEM DESCRIPTION

PCR-H-012A, HASH BROWN POTATOES WITH BACON, PEPPERS AND 

ONIONS, PACKAGED IN A FLEXIBLE POUCH, SHELF STABLE 

C-2 PERFORMANCE REQUIREMENTS

 A. Product standard. A sample shall be subjected to first article (FA) or product 

demonstration model (PDM) inspection as applicable, in accordance with the tests and 

inspections of Section E of this Performance-based Contract Requirements (PCR) document. 

The approved sample shall serve as the product standard. Should the contractor at any time 

plan to or actually produce the product using different raw material or process methodologies 

from the approved product standard, which result in a product noncomparable to the product 

standard, the contractor shall submit a replacement FA or PDM for approval. In any event, all 

product produced must meet all requirements of this document including product standard 

comparability.

 B. Commercial sterility. The packaged food shall be processed until commercially sterile.

 C. Shelf life. The packaged product shall meet the minimum shelf life requirement of 36 

months at 80oF.

 D. Appearance. 

(1) General. The finished product shall be a mixture of cooked hash brown potatoes

with bacon pieces, diced green bell pepper and minced onion distributed throughout. The 

finished product shall be free from foreign materials. 

(2) Hash brown potatoes. The cooked hash brown potatoes shall be discernible, 

loosely formed potato shreds and shall be an off-white color.

(3) Bacon. The cooked bacon shall be pieces and shall be a reddish-brown color.
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(4) Vegetables. The cooked green bell pepper shall be dices and shall be a green 

color. The cooked onion shall be minced and shall be an off-white color.

 E. Odor and flavor. The packaged food shall have a cooked hash brown potato with 

cooked, smoked bacon and green pepper odor and a cooked hash brown potato with cooked,

smoked bacon and mild green bell pepper and onion flavor. The packaged food shall be free 

from foreign odors and flavors.

 F. Texture. 

(1) Hash brown potatoes. The hash brown potatoes shall be moist and tender but not 

mushy.

(2) Bacon. The bacon pieces shall be firm yet tender. 

(3) Vegetables. The green bell peppers and onions shall be soft and tender.

 G. Net weight. The average net weight shall be not less than 5.0 ounces (142 grams). No 

individual pouch shall have a net weight of less than 4.5 ounces (128 grams).

 H. Percent by weight of bacon. The formula shall contain not less than 13.0 percent by 

weight of bacon on a precooked basis weight.

 I. Palatability and overall appearance. The finished product shall be equal to or better than 

the approved product standard in palatability and overall appearance.

 J. Analytical requirements. 

(1) Fat. The fat content shall be not greater than 7.5 percent.

(2) Salt. The salt content shall be not less than 0.5 percent and not greater than 1.4 

percent.
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SECTION D

D-1 PACKAGING

Product shall be filled into pouches and sealed in accordance with MIL-PRF-44073, 

Packaging of Food in Flexible Pouches, Type I, Style 1.

D-2 LABELING

 A. Pouches. Each pouch shall be correctly and legibly labeled. Printing ink shall be 

permanent black ink or any other contrasting color, which is free of carcinogenic elements.

Prior to thermal processing of the pouches, the product name, lot number, filling equipment 

number and time stamp shall be applied. All other marking may be applied before or after 

thermal processing.

(1) Product name (not less than 1/8 inch high). Commonly used abbreviations 

may be used.

(2) Pouch code includes: 1/

 Lot Number

 Filling equipment identification number

 Official establishment number (Optional)

 Retort identification number and Retort cook number (Optional)

 Time stamp (Hour and minute of filling/sealing operation)

1/ The lot number shall be expressed as a four digit Julian code. The first digit shall indicate 

the year of production and the next three digits shall indicate the day of the year (Example, 

14 February 2015 would be coded as 5045). The Julian code shall represent the day the 

product was packaged into the pouch and processed. Following the four digit Julian code, the 

other required code information shall be printed in the sequence as listed above.

(3) USDA official inspection legend for the packer’s plant 1/

1/ May be placed on the paperboard sleeve if labeled under USDA/FSIS supervision as an 

identification service.
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 B. Paperboard sleeves.

(1) The sleeves shall be clearly printed on one of the panels with permanent black ink 

as follows: 1/ 2/

Product name (7/32 to 9/32 inch block letters)

Ingredients 

Net weight

Name and address of packer

“Nutrition Facts” label in accordance with the Nutrition Labeling and 

Education Act (NLEA) and all applicable USDA regulations

1/ With contracting officer approval, this information may be printed on the pouch or on a 

separate paperboard insert card in lieu of the paperboard sleeve.

2/ If printed on the sleeve, it shall be configured to fit alongside similar information for an 

accompanying pouched product. Identity of accompanying pouched product and approval of 

label design shall be obtained from the contracting officer.

(2) The product shall be formulated and labeled in accordance with all USDA 

labeling regulations and policies. The sleeves (or pouches, or insert cards, as applicable) shall 

be labeled with the following product name:

HASH BROWN POTATOES WITH BACON, PEPPERS AND ONIONS

D-3 PACKING

 A. Packing. Not more than 40 pounds of product shall be packed in a fiberboard shipping 

box constructed in accordance with style RSC of ASTM D5118/D5118M, Standard Practice 

for Fabrication of Fiberboard Shipping Boxes. The fiberboard shall conform to type CF, class 

D, variety SW, burst grade 200 or ECT grade 32 of ASTM D4727/D4727M, Standard 

Specification for Corrugated and Solid Fiberboard Sheet Stock (Container Grade) and Cut 

Shapes. Each box shall be closed in accordance with ASTM D1974/D1974M, Standard 

Practice for Methods of Closing, Sealing, and Reinforcing Fiberboard Boxes.
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D-5 MARKING

 A. Shipping containers. Shipping containers shall be marked in accordance with DLA 

Troop Support Form 3556, Marking Instructions for Boxes, Sacks, and Unit Loads of 

Perishable and Semiperishable Subsistence.

SECTION E INSPECTION AND ACCEPTANCE

The following quality assurance criteria, utilizing ANSI/ASQ Z1.4, Sampling Procedures and 

Tables for Inspection by Attributes, are required. Unless otherwise specified, single sampling 

plans indicated in ANSI/ASQ Z1.4 will be utilized. When required, the manufacturer shall 

provide the Certificate(s) of Conformance to the appropriate inspection activity. 

Certificate(s) of Conformance not provided shall be cause for rejection of the lot.

 A. Definitions.

(1) Critical defect. A critical defect is a defect that judgment and experience indicate 

would result in hazardous or unsafe conditions for individuals using, maintaining, or 

depending on the item; or a defect that judgment and experience indicate is likely to prevent 

the performance of the major end item, i.e., the consumption of the ration.

(2) Major defect. A major defect is a defect, other than critical, that is likely to result 

in failure, or to reduce materially the usability of the unit of product for its intended purpose. 

(3) Minor defect. A minor defect is a defect that is not likely to reduce materially the 

usability of the unit of product for its intended purpose, or is a departure from established 

standards having little bearing on the effective use or operation of the unit.

 B. Classification of inspections. The inspection requirements specified herein are classified 

as follows:

(1) Product standard inspection. The first article or product demonstration model shall 

be inspected in accordance with the provisions of this document and evaluated for 

appearance, odor, flavor, and texture. Any failure to conform to the performance 

requirements or any appearance or palatability failure shall be cause for rejection of the lot. 

(2) Periodic review evaluation. The approved first article or product demonstration 

model shall be used as the product standard for periodic review evaluations. All food 
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components that are inspected by the USDA shall be subject to periodic review sampling and 

evaluation. The USDA shall select sample units during production of contracts and submit 

them to the following address for evaluation:

DEPARTMENT OF THE ARMY

FCDD-SCC-EMR

COMBAT CAPABILITIES DEVELOPMENT COMMAND-SOLDIER CENTER

10 GENERAL GREENE AVENUE

NATICK, MA 01760-5056

One lot shall be randomly selected during each calendar month of production or as otherwise 

specified in the contract. Three (3) sample units shall be randomly selected from that one 

production lot. The three (3) sample units shall be shipped to Natick within five (5) working 

days from the end of the production month from which they are randomly selected and upon 

completion of all USDA inspection requirements. The sample units will be evaluated for 

overall quality against the current first article or product demonstration model.

(3) Conformance inspection. Conformance inspection shall include the 

examinations/tests and methods of inspection cited in this section and in section 4 of MILPRF-44073.

E-5 QUALITY ASSURANCE PROVISIONS (PRODUCT)

 A. Product examination. The finished product shall be examined for compliance with the 

performance requirements specified in Section C of this Performance-based Contract 

Requirements document utilizing the double sampling plans indicated in ANSI/ASQ Z1.4. 

The lot size shall be expressed in pouches. The sample unit shall be the contents of one 

pouch. The inspection level shall be S-3 and the acceptable quality level (AQL), expressed in 

terms of defects per hundred units, shall be 1.5 for major defects and 4.0 for minor defects. 

Defects and defect classifications are listed in table I. The pouches shall be immersed in not 

less than 140°F and not greater than 190°F water for 10 minutes prior to conducting the 

product examination.
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TABLE I. Product defects 1/ 2/ 3/

Category Defect

Major Minor

Appearance

101 Product not a mixture of cooked hash brown potatoes with bacon

pieces, diced green bell pepper and minced onion distributed 

throughout.

201 Cooked hash brown potatoes not discernible or not loosely formed 

potato shreds or not an off-white color.

202 Cooked bacon not pieces or not a reddish-brown color.

203 Cooked green bell pepper not dices or not a green color.

204 Cooked onion not minced or not an off-white color.

Odor and flavor

102 Product does not have a cooked hash brown potato, cooked, smoked 

bacon and green pepper odor or not a cooked hash brown potato with 

cooked, smoked bacon and mild green bell pepper and onion flavor.

Texture

205 Hash brown potatoes not moist or not tender.

206 Hash brown potatoes are mushy.

207 Bacon not firm or not tender.

208 Green bell peppers and onions not soft or not tender.

Net weight

209 Net weight of an individual pouch less than 4.5 ounces (128 grams). 4/
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1/ Presence of any foreign materials such as, but not limited to dirt, insect parts, hair, glass, 

wood, or metal, or any foreign odors or flavors such as, but not limited to burnt, scorched, 

rancid, sour, stale, musty or moldy shall be cause for rejection of the lot.

2/ Finished product not equal to or better than the approved product standard in palatability 

and overall appearance shall be cause for rejection of the lot.

3/ Percent by weight of bacon in the formula (not less than 13.0 percent) shall be verified by 

Certificate of Conformance (CoC).

4/ Sample average net weight less than 5.0 ounces (142 grams) shall be cause for rejection of 

the lot.

 B. Methods of inspection.

(1) Commercial sterility. Commercial sterility shall be verified in accordance with 

USDA/FSIS regulations.

(2) Shelf life. The contractor shall provide a Certificate of Conformance that the 

product has a 36 month shelf life when stored at 80°F. Government verification may include 

storage for 6 months at 100°F or 36 months at 80°F. Upon completion of either storage 

period, the product will be subjected to a sensory evaluation panel for appearance and 

palatability and must receive an overall score of 5 or higher based on a 9 point quality scale 

to be considered acceptable.

(3) Net weight. The net weight of the filled and sealed pouches shall be determined 

by weighing each sample on a suitable scale tared with a representative empty pouch. Results 

shall be reported to the nearest 0.1 ounce or to the nearest 1 gram.

(4) Analytical. The sample to be analyzed shall be a composite of eight filled and 

sealed pouches which have been selected at random from the lot. The composite sample shall 

be prepared and analyzed in accordance with the following methods of the Official Methods 

of Analysis (OMA) of AOAC International:

Test Method Number

Fat 991.36 or 2008.06

Salt 935.47, 971.27
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Test results shall be reported to the nearest 0.1 percent. Government verification will be 

conducted through actual testing by a Government laboratory. Any result not conforming to 

the analytical requirements shall be cause for rejection of the lot.

E-6 QUALITY ASSURANCE PROVISIONS (PACKAGING AND PACKING 

MATERIALS)

 A. Packaging.

(1) Pouch material testing. The pouch material shall be examined for the 

characteristics listed in table I of MIL-PRF-44073 for Type I. The lot size, sample unit, and 

inspection level criteria for each of the test characteristics are listed below. Any test failure 

shall be classified as a major defect and shall be cause for rejection of the lot.

Characteristic Lot size expressed in Sample unit Inspection level

Oxygen transmission rate yards 1/2 yard S-1

Water vapor transmission rate yards 1/2 yard S-1

Camouflage yards 1/2 yard S-1

Thermal processing pouches 1 pouch S-2

Low temperature pouches 1 pouch S-2

High temperature pouches 1 pouch S-2

Directional tear pouches 1 pouch S-3

(2) Filled and sealed pouch testing. The filled and sealed thermoprocessed or hot-fill 

processed pouches shall be examined for the characteristics listed in table I of MIL-PRF44073 for Type I. The lot size, sample unit, and inspection level criteria for each of the test 

characteristics are listed below. Any test failure shall be classified as a major defect and shall 

be cause for rejection of the lot.

Characteristic Lot size expressed in Sample unit Inspection level

Residual gas volume pouches 1 pouch S-2

Internal pressure pouches 1 pouch S-2 1/

1/ When a three-seal tester is used, a separate set of samples is required for testing of the 

closure seal.

(3) Pouch examination. The pouches shall be examined for the defects listed in table 

II of MIL-PRF-44073 for Type I. The lot size shall be expressed in pouches. The sample unit 
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shall be one thermal processed pouch. The inspection level shall be I and the AQL, expressed 

in terms of defects per hundred units, shall be 0.65 for major A defects, 2.5 for major B 

defects, and 4.0 for minor defects. Two hundred sample units shall be examined for critical 

defects. The finding of any critical defect shall be cause for rejection of the lot.

(4) Sleeve examination 1/. The sleeves shall be examined for the defects listed in 

table III of MIL-PRF-44073 for Type I. The lot size shall be expressed in units of sleeves. 

The sample unit shall be one sleeve. The inspection level shall be S-3 and the AQL, 

expressed in terms of defects per hundred units, shall be 0.65 for major defects and 2.5 for 

minor defects.

1/ Or separate paperboard insert card when used in lieu of the paperboard sleeve.

 B. Packing.

(1) Shipping container and marking examination. The filled and sealed shipping 

containers shall be examined for the defects listed in table II. The lot size shall be expressed 

in shipping containers. The sample unit shall be one shipping container fully packed. The 

inspection level shall be S-3 and the AQL, expressed in terms of defects per hundred units, 

shall be 4.0 for major defects and 10.0 for total defects.

TABLE II. Shipping container and marking defects

Category Defect

Major Minor

101 Marking missing or incorrect or illegible. 

102 Inadequate workmanship. 1/

201 More than 40 pounds of product.

1/ Inadequate workmanship is defined as, but not limited to, incomplete closure of container 

flaps, loose strapping, inadequate stapling, improper taping, or bulged or distorted container.
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SECTION J REFERENCE DOCUMENTS

Unless otherwise specified, the applicable version of these documents is that which is active 

on the date of the solicitation or contract.

DLA Troop Support Form

Form 3556 Marking Instructions for Boxes, Sacks, and Unit 

Loads of Perishable and Semiperishable Subsistence

MILITARY SPECIFICATION

MIL-PRF-44073 Packaging of Food in Flexible Pouches

NON-GOVERNMENTAL STANDARDS

AMERICAN SOCIETY FOR QUALITY (ASQ) www.asq.org

ANSI/ASQ Z1.4 Sampling Procedures and Tables for Inspection by 

Attributes

ASTM INTERNATIONAL www.astm.org

D1974/D1974M Standard Practice for Methods of Closing, 

Sealing, and Reinforcing Fiberboard Boxes

D4727/D4727M Standard Specification for Corrugated and Solid 

Fiberboard Sheet Stock (Container Grade) and 

Cut Shapes 

D5118/D5118M Standard Practice for Fabrication of Fiberboard 

Shipping Boxes

AOAC INTERNATIONAL www.aoac.org

Official Methods of Analysis (OMA) of the AOAC International