The Dairy Products (Hygiene) Regulations 1995

PART I MICROBIOLOGICAL CRITERIA

1.  On removal from the processing establishment milk-based products shall not contain pathogenic micro-organisms and toxins from pathogenic micro-organisms in such quantity as to affect the health of the ultimate consumer.

2.  Sterilised or ultra heat-treated milk-based products which are in liquid or gel form and are intended for conservation at room temperature shall meet the following standards after incubation at 30°C for 15 days—

(a) have a plate count at 30°C ≤ 100 per ml; and

(b) be organoleptically normal.

3.  Subject to paragraph 5 below, milk-based products shall meet the standards referred to in the tables below upon removal from the processing establishment—

A.

	Product	Type of Micro-organism	Standard (ml, g)
(i)	Cheese, other than hard cheese	Listeria monocytogenes	Absence in 25g where n = 5, c = 0
(ii)	Milk-based products, other than cheese covered by (i) above	Listeria monocytogenes	Absence in 1g
(iii)	Milk powder	Salmonella spp	Absence in 25g where n = 10, c = 0
(iv)	Milk-based products, other than milk powder	Salmonella spp	Absence in 25g where n = 5, c = 0

The sample of 25g referred to in paragraph (I) of table A above shall consist of 5 specimens of 5g taken from different parts of the same product.

B.

	Product	Type of Micro-organism	Standard (ml, g)
(i)	Cheese made from raw milk or from thermised milk	Staphylococcus aureus Escherichia coli	n = 5, c = 2, m = 1,000, M = 10,000 n = 5, c = 2, m = 10,000, M = 100,000
(ii)	Soft cheese made from heat-treated milk	Staphylococcus aureus Escherichia coli	} n = 5, c = 2, M = 100, M = 1,000
(iii)	Fresh cheese Powdered milk Frozen milk-based products including ice-cream	Staphylococcus aureus ” ”	} n = 5, c = 2, m = 10, M = 100

4.  The definition of the symbols specified in paragraph 3 of Part II of Schedule 3 shall apply for the purposes of the tables in paragraph 3 above.

5.  Testing of the milk-based products referred to in table A of paragraph 3 above shall not be compulsory for sterilised milk, preserved milk-based products and milk-based products where the heat-treatment was applied after wrapping or packaging.

6.  Sampling programmes shall be drawn up by the occupier of the dairy establishment in the light of the nature of the dairy products and the principles of risk analysis.

7.  In all cases where the standards in table A of paragraph 3 above are exceeded, the dairy products shall be excluded from human consumption and withdrawn from the market.

8.  In all cases where the standards in table B of paragraph 3 above are exceeded, there shall be a review of the implementation of the methods for monitoring and checking critical points applied in the processing establishment. The occupier of the processing establishment shall inform the approving authority of the corrective procedures included in the production monitoring system to prevent any repetition of the occurrence.

9.  Wherever the standard M in table B of paragraph 3 above is exceeded in the case of cheese made from raw milk, thermised milk or soft cheese, testing shall be carried out for—

(a) the possible presence of strains of enterotoxigenic Staphylococcus aureus or Escherichia coli that are presumed to be pathogenic; and

(b) if necessary the possible presence of staphylococcal toxins in such products,

by a method determined in accordance with Article 31 of Council Directive 92/46, as specified in paragraph 2 of Chapter II of Annex C to that Directive.

10.  If the strains referred to in paragraph 9 above are identified or staphylococcus enterotoxins are found, then all the batches of the cheese involved shall be withdrawn from the market. In this case the occupier shall inform the approving authority of such findings, of the action taken to withdraw the batches in question and the corrective procedures introduced into the production monitoring system to prevent any repetition of the occurrence.