Chapter Nine - Regulatory aspects relevant for HPTP

Abstract

The global regulatory landscape relating to food and food preservation technology is exceedingly complex. Successfully navigating this nuanced dominion with the view to commercializing novel preservation methods can be an especially daunting challenge. The regulations for many countries pertaining to the uptake of novel technologies are based on the “precautionary principle.” Other countries, including the United States, are increasingly demanding a complete assessment of risk before novel processing and preservation methods can be utilized in the production of foods intended for human consumption. Also, to be considered in this complicated morass or rules and laws are the public health implications, posed by those nations where legislation and regulations relative to novel technologies are mute or simply nonexistent. This chapter provides an overview of emerging regulatory trends and legislative developments, globally, that are likely to impact the procedures and protocols that are demanded for obtaining the necessary approvals for allowing the commercial uptake and use of high hydrostatic pressure thermal processing (HPTP) as an accepted preservation technique for use in the production of human food.