New Almond Processing Requirements

[Lisa B]

Is it true that beginning in September 2007 all almonds grown in California will be required to be pasteurized? If so, what are the health implications of this?

It's actually not only California that will be involved in the new almond processing requirements, but the entire United States. Starting on September 1, 2007, it will be illegal for 100% raw almonds to be manufactured and sold in the United States, with two exceptions (discussed below). You can read the new law and its specific provisions by going to the following website address: http://www.almondboard.com/files/Rule.pdf.

The origins of this new law date back to 2001, when an outbreak of Salmonella poisoning in Canada was traced back to an almond grower in California. At that time, the California Department of Health Services worked with that grower to increase the safety of almond production. But when a second round of Salmonella problems occurred with an entirely different grower, the federal government stepped in to consider a more comprehensive set of actions. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), together with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Centers for Disease Control (CDC), California Almond Board, and other agencies drafted legislation designed to prevent further Salmonella outbreaks based on post-harvest processing of almonds.

Specifically, these government agencies designed a mandatory pasteurization program in which handlers of almonds would be required to process the almonds in such a way that a dramatic reduction in the amount of Salmonella bacteria would take place. (In technical terms, a minimum 4-log reduction was set forth as the standard. A minimum 5-log reduction was also discussed, but not adopted.) To achieve this dramatic reduction in Salmonella bacteria, two major alternatives were envisioned: (1) exposure to steam heat sufficient to raise the surface temperature of the almond kernels to about 200°F (93°C), or (2) insertion of the kernels into a closed chamber where they could be exposed to propylene oxide gas.

Two exceptions to these processing requirements were included in the legislation. First, almond growers can receive exemption from these requirements if they can show that their ordinary manufacturing process achieves the same minimum 4-log reduction in Salmonella content. For example, their ordinary manufacturing process might include enough dry roasting or blanching to accomplish this same goal. Second, almond growers can also receive exemption if they will only be selling their almonds directly to customers at local markets, with a limit of 100 pounds per person per day in direct farmer's market sales.

What are the health implications of this new legislation that will go into effect on September 1? First, we would expect to see a certain amount of potentially problematic almonds be prevented from entering the marketplace, and that prevention would be a good thing. Second, we'd expect to see some nutrient loss in steam-heated almonds that was unwanted, and, in the case of many almonds, also unnecessary. Third, we'd expect to see propylene oxide residues in almonds that were gassed to reduce Salmonella concentrations, and this would also be a bad thing, since propylene oxide is classified by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) as a probable human carcinogen.

In the long run, we believe that the only solution to the Salmonella-and-almonds predicament would be to understand the underlying reasons why Salmonella bacteria are becoming more present in certain batches of almonds and to correct these underlying problems, which we believe have most likely evolved due to non-sustainable approaches to almond growing and inappropriate post-harvest processing. Yet, in the meantime, if you are looking for 100% raw, organically grown almonds, your only option will be to purchase from a grower at a local farmer's market, from a grower who has received exemption from the mandatory processing rules, or from a certified organic almond grower outside of the United States who exports almonds to this country.


So overall, this is not going to be good for our birds. I recommend that anyone who feeds a seed mix that contains shelled almonds, contact the maker to find out what method they're going to use to pasteurize the almonds. I will be contacting my suppliers as well.

[kathleen]

The process of pasteurization includes heating the item to kill organisms so I don't think it will pose a problem to the birds.

[nmrspindoc]

Well, in the note pasted above it says they can choose to use either heat pasteurization or the use of propylene oxide gas. Propylene oxide is very nasty stuff. If you can figure out how it was pasteurized, I'd go with the heat treated ones. Propylene oxide is carcinogenic, mutagenic, and teratogenic. I'm sure they have some way of making sure it's off the almonds after the process is complete, but whether the company makes sure that's the case...