Thermal processing of heat preserved foods, live online tutor-led training course

This course is available as a tailored option for those who have a number of staff who would benefit from the training. If you would like more information please complete the enquiry form

Delegate feedback (2022 & 2023):

The tutors were very knowledgable and delivered the content at the right level
Lots of helpful practical information from all tutors.
Tutors were very knowledgeable. Great course.
Tutors were really clear in their explanations.

Benefits of attending

The heat-preserved foods (or canned food) sector has been around a long time and represents high retail value due to the obvious benefits of long shelf life at ambient conditions. We now see heat preserved foods taking many packaging forms such as cans, pouches and film-sealed plastic trays or pots, with many popular products including sauces, ready-meals, meat, vegetables, fruit, pet-food, and baby food to name a few.

This one-day online course is inspired by our prestigious 4-day ‘canning’ course and aims to provide a clear overview of the essentials of thermal processing with a focus on food-safety. The sessions offer a technical overview and practical advice for those involved with the development, monitoring and validation of an ‘in-pack’ thermal process using a retort. If you are new to the sector or require some refresher training, then this concise course would be ideal.

The course will be delivered live online over the course of one day (0900 = 1630 hours), participants will be sent log in details for a Microsoft Teams session.

Training Course content

Principles of ‘In-pack’ thermal processing, using retorts to produce commercially sterile products

The focus is on the critical aspects for the safe thermal processing of food and beverages, where products are heated ‘in-pack’, i.e. in their final packaging. Therefore, fundamentals such as thermal microbiology, retort operations and process validation are covered.

Thermal microbiology overview
Calculating lethality for sterilisation processes (F₀)
Thermal process validation including worse case conditions, practical considerations and data analysis
Principles of retort operations
Process deviations & troubleshooting

For a more in-depth heat preserved foods course, including detail on topics such as packaging, pre & post process consideration, heat transfer & process establishment, with practical actives such as seam assessments and retort operation, see the 4-day Safe productiont of heat preserved foods course.

Event Director - David Whittaker