PCR-P-038 

21 October 2005

1

SECTION C

This document covers thermostabilized pork sausage links in brine packaged in an 

institutional size pouch (ISP) for use by the Department of Defense as a component of 

operational rations. 

C-1 ITEM DESCRIPTION

PCR-P-038, PORK SAUSAGE LINKS IN BRINE, PACKAGED IN AN 

INSTITUTIONAL SIZE POUCH (ISP), SHELF STABLE 

Types. 

 Type II - Institutional Size Pouch - 106 ounces (3.01 kg) 

 Type III - Institutional Size Pouch - 80 ounces (2.27 kg) 

 Type IV - Institutional Size Pouch - 64 ounces (1.81 kg) 

 Type V - Institutional Size Pouch - 48 ounces (1.36 kg) 

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 non 

comparable to the Product Standard, the contractor shall arrange for a new or alternate FA or 

PDM 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 80°F. 

 D. Appearance. 

 (1) General. The finished product shall be pork sausage links in brine. The type II 

institutional size pouch (ISP) shall contain not less than 75 intact sausage links. The 

packaged food shall be free from foreign materials. 
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 (2) Pork sausage links. The pork sausage links shall be intact, shall be uniform in 

diameter and length after cooking, and shall be practically free of bone or bone fragments, 

cartilage, coarse connective tissue, tendons or ligaments, and glandular material. The links 

shall possess a light brown to dark brown surface color. 

 E. Odor and flavor. The packaged food shall have a well blended, slightly spicy pork 

sausage odor and flavor. The packaged food shall be free from foreign odors and flavors. 

 F. Texture. The texture of the pork sausage links shall be moist and moderately firm. 

 G. Net weight. 

(1) Type II. The average net weight shall be not less than 106 ounces (3.01 

kilograms). No individual pouch shall have a net weight of less than 104 ounces (2.95 

kilograms). 

(2) Type III. The average net weight shall be not less than 80 ounces (2.27 

kilograms). No individual pouch shall have a net weight of less than 78 ounces (2.22 

kilograms). 

(3) Type IV. The average net weight shall be not less than 64 ounces (1.81 

kilograms). No individual pouch shall have a net weight of less than 63 ounces (1.79 

kilograms). 

(4) Type V. The average net weight shall be not less than 48 ounces (1.36 kilograms). 

No individual pouch shall have a net weight of less than 47 ounces (1.79 kilograms) 

 H. Drained weight. 

(1) Type II. The average drained weight shall be not less than 47.0 ounces (1.34 

kilograms). The drained weight of 75 intact sausage links in an individual pouch shall be not 

less than 45.0 ounces (1.28 kilograms). 

(2) Type III, IV, and V. The drained weights for the average and individual pouches 

for types III, IV, and V shall be not less than 44.0 percent of the net 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 content. The fat content shall be not greater than 35.0 percent. 
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 (2) Salt content. The salt content shall be not less than 1.0 percent and not greater 

than 2.5 percent. 

C-3 MISCELLANEOUS INFORMATION

THE FOLLOWING IS INFORMATION ONLY TO PROVIDE THE BENEFIT OF PAST 

GOVERNMENT EXPERIENCE. THIS IS NOT A MANDATORY REQUIREMENT. 

 A. Ingredients/formulation. Ingredients and formulation percentages for the pork sausage 

links may be as follows: 

Ingredients Percent by weight

Ground pork 1/ 93.43 

Water or ice 2.80 

Salt 2/ 1.64 

Dextrose 0.82 

Granulated white sugar 0.82 

Ground white pepper 0.23 

Ground sage 0.18 

Ground black pepper 0.06 

Ground ginger 0.02 

1/ The pork shall be chopped or ground to a moderately or slightly coarse texture. 

2/ The total amount of salt in the formula may be adjusted, as necessary, to produce a product 

that complies with the finished product salt requirements. 

SECTION D

D-1 PACKAGING 

 Product shall be filled into pouches, processed and each pouch placed into a carton in 

accordance with MIL-PRF-44073, Packaging of Food in Flexible Pouches, Type II. 

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 and filling 

equipment number shall be applied. All other marking may be applied before or after thermal 

processing. As an alternate method, a pre-printed self-adhering 0.002 inch thick clear 

polyester label with indelible contrasting color ink may be used. 
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Note: The font tested by Natick was Microsoft Helvetica. The font used shall be similarly 

clear/easy to read as Helvetica. The recommended font sizes are as follows: 22 for the 

product name, 14 for “yield” and “to heat in water.” If an additional note is required on the 

label, such as “fluff before serving,” it should also be in font size 14. All other information 

should be in font size 9. 

(1) Product name 

(2) Ingredients 

(3) Net weight 

(4) Name and address of packer 

(5) Pouch code includes: 1/ 

 Lot Number 

 Filling equipment identification number 

 Retort identification number 

 Retort cook number 

(6) Official establishment number (for example, EST 38) 

(7) USDA official inspection legend for the packer’s plant 

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, 

21 October 2005 would be coded as 5294). The Julian code shall represent the day the 

product was packaged into the pouch and processed. Sub-lotting (when used) shall be 

represented by an alpha character immediately following the four digit Julian code. 

Following the four digit Julian code and the alpha character (when used), the other required 

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

YIELD: Serves [cite number of portions] of 3 sausage links each. 

TO HEAT IN WATER: Submerge unopened pouch in water. Bring water to a 

boil. Simmer gently [cite appropriate time] minutes. Avoid overheating (pouch 

shows evidence of bulging). 

WARNING: Do not heat pouch in oven. 

TO TRANSPORT AFTER HEATING: Insert pouch back into carton or empty pouch into an insulated food container to 

protect during transport. 

CAUTION: Use care when opening as pressure may have been generated within the pouch. 

TO OPEN: Open at tear notch or cut with a clean knife. 
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Note: The number of portions and the heating time will be different, depending on the net 

weight of the pouch. These requirements will be determined during production. 

 B. Cartons. Each carton shall be correctly and legibly labeled with the product name. 

Commonly used abbreviations may be used when authorized by the inspection agency. 

D-3 PACKING

 A. Packing for shipment to ration assembler. Four filled, sealed, processed and cartoned 

ISP pouches shall be packed in a fiberboard box conforming to style RSC-L, class domestic, 

variety SW, grade 200 of ASTM D 5118/D 5118M Standard Practice for Fabrication of 

Fiberboard Shipping Boxes. The box shall be closed in accordance with ASTM D 1974, 

Standard Practice for Methods of Closing, Sealing, and Reinforcing Fiberboard Boxes. 

D-4 MARKING

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

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/ASQC Z1.4-1993, Sampling 

Procedures and Tables for Inspection by Attributes, are required. Unless otherwise specified, 

Single Sampling Plans indicated in ANSI/ASQC Z1.4-1993 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. 
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 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 overall 

appearance and palatability. Any failure to conform to the performance requirements or any 

appearance or palatability failure, shall be cause for rejection of the lot. The approved first 

article or product demonstration model shall be used as the product standard for periodic 

review evaluations. All food 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: 

US Army Research, Development and Engineering Command 

Natick Soldier Center 

AMRSD-NSC-CF-F 

15 Kansas Street 

Natick, MA 01760-5018 

One lot shall be randomly selected during each calendar month of production. Two (2) 

sample units of each item produced shall be randomly selected from that one production lot. 

The two (2) sample units shall be shipped to Natick within five working days from the end of 

the production month and upon completion of all USDA inspection requirements. The 

sample units will be evaluated for the characteristics of appearance, odor, flavor, texture and 

overall quality. 

(2) Conformance inspection. Conformance inspection shall include the examinations 

and the methods of inspection cited in this section. 

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/ASQC Z1.4 - 

1993. 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 4.0 for major defects and 6.5 for minor defects. 

Defects and defect classifications are listed in table I below. The pouches shall be heated in 

accordance with pouch label instructions prior to conducting any portion of the product 

examination. The samples for drained weight inspection shall be selected using the same 

sampling criteria as above. 
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TABLE I. Product defects 1/ 2/ 3/ 

Category Defect 

Major Minor

Appearance

101 Product not pork sausage links in brine. 

102 Bone or bone fragment measuring more than 0.3 inch in any 

dimension. 

103 More than three sausage links per pouch not intact. 

201 Surface color not light brown to dark brown. 

202 Sausage links not of uniform diameter or not of uniform length. 

203 Total weight of cartilage, coarse connective tissue, tendons or 

ligaments, and glandular material more than 2.0 ounces. 

Odor and flavor

104 The packaged food does not have an odor or flavor of cooked, well 

blended, slightly spicy pork sausage. 

Texture

204 Sausages not moist or not moderately firm. 

Net weight

205 For type II, net weight of an individual pouch less than 104 ounces 

(2.95 kilograms). 4/ 

206 For type III, net weight of an individual pouch less than 78 ounces 

(2.22 kilograms). 4/ 

207 For type IV, net weight of an individual pouch less than 63 ounces 

(1.79 kilograms). 4/ 

208 For type V, net weight of an individual pouch less than 47 ounces 

(1.34 kilograms). 4/ 
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TABLE I. Product defects 1/ 2/ 3/ (cont’d) 

Category Defect 

Major Minor

Drained weight

209 For type II, drained weight of 75 intact pork sausage links in an 

individual pouch less than 45.0 ounces (1.28 kilograms). 5/ 

210 For types III or IV or V, drained weight in an individual pouch less 

than 44.0 percent of the net weight. 6/ 

1/ Presence of any foreign materials such as, but not limited to dirt, insect parts, hair, wood, 

glass, metal, or mold, or any foreign odors or flavors such as, but not limited to burnt, 

scorched, rancid, sour, or stale 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/ The finding of any type II individual pouch containing less than 75 intact sausage links 

shall be cause for rejection of the lot. 

4/ For type II, sample average net weight less than 106 ounces (3.01 kilograms) shall be 

cause for rejection of the lot. For type III, sample average net weight less than 80 ounces 

(2.27 kilograms) shall be cause for rejection of the lot. For type IV, sample average net 

weight less than 64 ounces (1.81 kilograms) shall be cause for rejection of the lot. For type 

V, sample average net weight less than 48 ounces (1.36 kilograms) shall be cause for 

rejection of the lot. 

5/ For type II, sample average drained weight less than 47.0 ounces (1.34 kilograms) shall be 

cause for rejection of the lot. 

6/ For types III or IV or V, sample average drained weight less than 44.0 percent of the net 

weight 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 
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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 pouch shall be determined by 

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

Results shall be reported to the nearest 1 ounce (0.03 kilograms) 

(4) Drained weight. The pouch contents shall be poured into a flat-bottom container. 

A minimum of three times the pouch’s volume of not less than 140°F water shall be added to 

the container so as to cover the contents. The contents and water shall be gently agitated so as 

to liquefy rendered fat without breaking the sausage links. The contents shall then be poured 

into a U.S. Standard 1/4 inch sieve in a manner that will distribute the product over the sieve 

without breaking the sausage links. The sieve area shall be such that the distributed product 

does not completely cover all the openings of the sieve. The sieve shall be tilted at such an 

angle so as to assure complete drainage of all liquid from the product. The product shall be 

drained for 2 minutes before determining the drained weight. Determine the drained weight 

by subtracting the sieve tare weight from the gross weight. The drained weight shall be 

reported to the nearest 0.5 ounce (0.01 kilograms). 

(5) Analytical. The sample to be analyzed shall be a one-pound composite of pork 

sausage links from three thoroughly drained filled and sealed pouches that have been selected 

at random from one production lot. The composite sample shall be prepared and analyzed in 

accordance with the following Official Methods of Analysis (OMA) of AOAC International. 

Test Method Number

Fat 985.15 

Salt 935.47, 971.27 

Test results shall be reported to the nearest 0.1 percent. 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 and labeling. 

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

in table I of MIL-PRF-44073. The lot size, sample unit, and inspection level criteria for each 
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test characteristic 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 

Prior to processing 

Oxygen transmission rate Yards 1/2 yard S-1 

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

After processing 

Thermal processing Pouches 1 pouch S-2 

Standard temperature Pouches 1 pouch S-2 

Frozen temperature Pouches 1 pouch S-2 

Residual gas Pouches 1 pouch S-2 

Internal pressure Pouches 1 pouch S-2 

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

II of MIL-PRF-44073. The lot size shall be expressed in pouches. The sample unit 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. 

(3) Examination of pouch and carton assembly. The completed pouch and carton 

assemblies shall be examined for the defects listed in table III of MIL-PRF-44073. The lot 

size shall be expressed in units of completed assemblies. The sample unit shall be one pouch 

and carton assembly. 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. Fifty 

sample pouch and carton assemblies shall be examined for critical defects. The finding of 

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

 B. Packing. 

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

containers shall be examined for the defects listed in table II below. 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. 
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TABLE II. Shipping container and marking defects

Category Defect 

Major Minor

101 Marking missing or incorrect or illegible. 

102 Inadequate workmanship. 1/ 

201 Number of pouches not as specified. 

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. 

SECTION J REFERENCE DOCUMENTS

DSCP FORMS 

DSCP FORM 3556 Marking Instructions for Boxes, Sacks and Unit Loads of 

Perishable and Semiperishable Subsistence 

MILITARY SPECIFICATIONS 

MIL-PRF-44073 Packaging of Food in Flexible Pouches 

NON-GOVERNMENTAL STANDARDS 

AMERICAN SOCIETY FOR QUALITY (ASQ) 

ANSI/ASQCZ1.4-1993 Sampling Procedures and Tables for Inspection by Attributes 

ASTM INTERNATIONAL 

D 1974-98 (2003) Standard Practice for Methods of Closing, Sealing, and 

Reinforcing Fiberboard Boxes 

D 5118/D 5118M-05 Standard Practice for Fabrication of Fiberboard 

Shipping Boxes 

AOAC INTERNATIONAL 

Official Methods of Analysis (OMA) of the AOAC International