Degradation, Contamination, Cross-contamination & Mixing !

                  

Degradation, Contamination, Cross-contamination & Mixing!

“Degradation”

Biodegradation is the chemical breakdown of materials by a physiological environment. The term is often used in relation to ecology, waste management and environmental remediation (bioremediation). Organic material can be degraded aerobically with oxygen, or anaerobically, without oxygen. A term related to biodegradation is biomineralisation, in which organic matter is converted into minerals. Biosurfactant, an extracellular surfactant secreted by microorganisms, enhances the biodegradation process.

Biodegradable matter is generally organic material such as plant and animal matter and other substances originating from living organisms, or artificial materials that are similar enough to plant and animal matter to be put to use by microorganisms. Some microorganisms have a naturally occurring, microbial catabolic diversity to degrade, transform or accumulate a huge range of compounds including hydrocarbons (e.g. oil), polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), polyaromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), pharmaceutical substances, radionuclides and metals. Major methodological breakthroughs in microbial biodegradation have enabled detailed genomic, metagenomic, proteomic, bioinformatic and other high-throughput analyses of environmentally relevant microorganisms providing unprecedented insights into key biodegradative pathways and the ability of microorganisms to adapt to changing environmental conditions.

“Contamination”

The undesired introduction of impurities of a chemical or microbiological nature, or of foreign matter, into or onto a raw material, intermediate, or API during production, sampling, packaging or repackaging, storage or transport.

“Cross-Contamination”

Contamination of a material or product with another material or product.

 “Mixing”

Mixing is a process of combining or blending of components into one mass or mixture. In other words it is a process to add (an ingredient or element) to another:

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Food Grade Plastic

                             FOOD GRADE MATERIAL

 

"Food grade material" basically means any material which when it comes in contact with food or is the area near food is unlikely to contaminate food with harmful materials above the FDA allowed limit (in PPM or parts per million).

 

For instance, propylene glycol can be used as a lubricant under certain circumstances, and is even used as a food additive within limits. It has very low toxicity, therefore a high PPM is allowable, but you wouldn't want to actually drink the stuff. If you're going to use it in a manufacturing process for food you have to be able to show that using it will not result in a concentration above the allowable PPM. 

 

Some but not all plastics are allowed in food handling and manufacturing. The determination whether they are allowable includes several variables, including how toxic that material is, under what circumstances (besides just concentration) it is more (or less) toxic, and how much of the material is likely to end up in the food. Some materials outgas -- that is they emit gases as a result of how they are created or how they break down after being created or how they are affected by the environment in which you place them (a hot environment, for example, or one with a specific chemical in it that is not especially compatible with another material) -- and other materials slough off molecules as they meet abrasion or other materials. The method of use may have something to do with it ... if an abrasive environment is employed then materials which might slough high amounts of molecules have to be considered carefully for their effect (the level of toxicity).

 

 

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