Shelf life

Food shelf life is the amount of time that the food product remains acceptable to eat. Within the shelf life the product will remain safe and retain the desired sensory, chemical, physical and microbiological characteristics. Below is a collection of articles related to shelf life. To find out more about our shelf life services get in touch – support@campdenbri.co.uk.

Man presenting with flip chart in front of an audience

‘Hot topics’ top 5 – the key focus areas and industry challenges that our members are talking about

The hottest topics that were most discussed in our 2023 Member Interest Group (MIG) meetings, why these issues are ‘hot’, what the challenges are and how we ...


Blog
Shopper selecting food from a supermarket freezer

Helping Nomad Foods explore opportunities to store frozen food at higher temperatures

We brought together various disciplines from across our expert teams to support Nomad Foods with this venture. Discover what the results show and the potenti...


Case studies
Shelf-life in the GCC region ebook mockup

Shelf-life in the GCC region: download our FREE eBook

As thought leaders in the food and drink industry, we have produced this Shelf-life eBook to provide support for food and drink manufacturers whose products ...


Service
Woman selecting fruit in a supermarket

Understanding and setting food and drink shelf-life in the GCC region

Covering what the GSO is and its role within the GCC, how food and drink shelf-life is regulated in this region, and how to overcome the challenges that this...


Blog
Chicken breast being packed on a production line

Validation trial for Blakbear Ltd’s freshness indicator

Blakbear’s mission is to expedite the transition away from fixed use-by dates, by bringing quality assurance to every package.


Case studies
Sensory panel analysing biscuit product

Leveraging sensory insights throughout the product lifecycle

Explore the benefits of applying sensory analysis to produce robust sensory data and make more informed commercial decisions, as well as the risks of not inc...


Blog
Agar plate with salmonella growth

FAQs: your shelf-life questions answered

In this Q&A, our experts detail the answers to the shelf-life questions that they are most frequently asked by clients.


Blog
Dry foods in bowls on table

Accelerated shelf-life testing of food and beverage products

Here we outline the services we offer in this area, signpost other useful tools, and unpack some of the key considerations and limitations for conducting acc...


Blog
Range of soft drinks in glassware

Understanding and maximising the shelf-life of drinks

Understanding the quality deterioration that can occur to shelf stable beverages can help developers design their product and its production process to facil...


Blog
Consumer checking products on shelf

5 reasons to review product shelf-Life

Clearly shelf-life needs to be established as part of new product development, but there are plenty of other reasons why shelf-life must be reviewed – here w...


Blog
Setting a shelf life for ambient food

Setting shelf-life for ambient food and beverage products

Exploring shelf-life limiting quality parameters and considerations for setting a ‘best before’ date for ambient goods


Blog
Shelf-life ebook mockup

Maximising shelf-life: download our FREE eBook

Want to maximise the shelf-life of a product in development or extend the shelf-life of an existing product? Discover how from our latest eBook.


Service
Shelf life

Predictive modelling to determine shelf-life – what can it tell us?

Predictive modelling is a tool used to assess the survival and/or growth of a microorganism under a range of temperatures, pH and water activities.


Blog
Modified atmosphere packaging in pilot plant

Modified atmosphere packaging - 'The carbon dioxide effect'

Modified atmosphere packaging (MAP) is used as a means of preservation and is well known in the food industry as a method to extend the shelf-life of a range...


Blog
Shoppers comparing drinks at instore fridge

‘Use by’, ‘best before’, ‘display until’ – what’s the difference and why does it matter?

We’re all aware of the various date marks that appear on food labels, such as ‘use by’, ‘best before’ and ‘display until’. But, let’s look at what they actua...


Blog
Consumer shopping with basket

What will 2023 bring for the food and drink industry?

What food and drink industry trends and threats are you preparing for as we head into the coming year? How will you and your business navigate the challenges...


Blog
Colourful sweets and chocolate

Replacement of shellac in food

Since January 2022, the Vegetarian Society of the United Kingdom (UK) no longer permits the use of their trademark logo on new products containing the food a...


Blog
Shelf life

Things you need to consider when setting a shelf-life

Understanding shelf-life is essential in assuring the safety and quality of your food and drink products, and setting the correct shelf-life can be key to th...


Blog
Drink cans being toasted

Challenge testing of canned drinks - Are yours microbiologically stable?

With product formulation, processing technologies and transport exposing canned drinks to microbiological risks, understanding if a product is microbiologica...


Blog
Sustainability globe graphic in hand

Superchilled sustainability

Lesley Galpin, Head of Technical at Lyons Seafoods, shares her key learning around the implementation of superchilling, as a method to extend the shelf-life ...


Blog
Seafood on ice

Superchilling has positive impacts on food preservation and energy consumption

With over 10 year’s experience of helping the industry to superchill their products, we are the food and drink sector’s preferred choice to support with exte...


Case studies
Fish, seafood and its preservation: How can we extend shelf-lives?

Fish, seafood and its preservation: How can we extend shelf-lives?

Why are fish and seafood products so perishable? Here we explore that and how our new research project is attempting to increase the shelf-life of these prod...


Blog
Coleslaw in bowl

Reducing food waste – what impact does ingredient age have on shelf-life?

Food manufacturers tolerate roughly 5% waste within their food processes under normal production, but often look for ways to reduce it.


Case studies
Food delivery is on the rise – but is it always safe?

Food delivery is on the rise – but is it always safe?

COVID-19 has obviously been devastating for almost every aspect of the food industry, but perhaps a calling for food delivery.


Blog
Can we assume consumers’ fridges are at a safe temperature?

Can we assume consumers’ fridges are at a safe temperature?

Current UK Food Standards Agency guidance is that chilled foods should be stored at 5°C throughout life even though the legal maximum temperature for chill i...


Blog
Preservatives

Novel natural preservative systems for use in drinks, sauces and other high aw foods

This project will practically assess potential novel preservatives to understand efficacy and whether other processing steps are needed to ensure their effec...


Research project
Shelf-life for chilled products

New way of assessing shelf-life for chilled products

E. coli, Salmonella, Listeria – we’re all aware of the ‘buzzword’ bacteria, but we pay less attention to all the other countless species that naturally occur...


Blog
Shelf life

Microbiological shelf life testing – new approaches

This project aims to reconsider the methods and procedures used to define microbiological shelf life.


Research project
Are fridge temperature assumptions correct?

Are fridge temperature assumptions correct?

New research indicates that assumptions about fridge temperatures may not be accurate. Linda Everis, principal research officer at Campden BRI explains its i...


Blog
Superchilling

Extension of product shelf-life through superchilling

This recording looks at how a member-funded project has investigated a range of products showing strong potential for shelf-life extension during storage.


Webinar
AMP

Improving food quality using advanced microbial profiling

How DNA profiling can reveal so much more about the microbiological quality of food.


Video
Ready meal

Considerations for determining shelf-life

Assigning the correct shelf-life requires a great deal of thought. Obviously, if it is too long there is the potential for food spoilage or growth of food pa...


Blog
AMP

Understanding the safe shelf life of foods using advanced microbial profiling

This project will revaluate microbial specifications for a range of chilled products and analyse the effect that naturally occurring microflora has on the gr...


Research project
Shelf life

Microbiological shelf-life: how to set a safe shelf-life

In this whiteboard presentation, Linda Everis talks us through how to set a shelf-life and some ways of measuring microbiological shelf-life.


Video
Advanced Microbial Profiling webinar

Enhanced shelf life evaluation using Advanced Microbial Profiling

This recording outlines the principles and applications of Advanced Microbial Profiling and how it can be used to determine a more meaningfu...


Webinar
AMP video

Advanced microbial profiling (AMP)

Greg Jones discusses the applications of AMP to the food and drink industry, such a factory hygiene, traceability, authenticity and shelf life. (Greg Jones)


Video
Lycored Logo

Colour stability during shelf life

Lycored approached us to help with shelf life trials. We developed a method to compare ten different colour blends for manufactured surimi seafood sticks.


Case studies
Blast freezer

Blast chiller-freezer

Our Armfield blast chiller-freezer can blast chill, blast freeze or individually quick freeze products on a fluidised bed.


Video
Super chilling webinar

Extension of product shelf-life through super chilling

This session outlines member funded project work on investigating food products showing strong potential for shelf life extension through su...


Webinar
Shelf-stable cocktails

Producing shelf-stable cocktails

The consumption of cocktails is on the rise, and drinks companies are keen to capitalise on the increase in demand. (Geoff Taylor)


Video
Pasteurised food shelf life

Pasteurised chilled food shelf life

Linda Everis discusses the effects of spoilage organisms and heat processing on product shelf life.


Podcast
Superchiling

Superchilling to improve quality and shelf-life

Members have voted for a new project on superchilling for improved product shelf-life and quality. (Greg Jones)


Video
Innocent Logo

High pressure processing of Innocent vegetable juices

Innocent Drinks partnered with us for support in investigating how high pressure processing (HPP) could be applied to their vegetable juices to improve quali...


Case studies
Challenge testing

Challenge testing

A challenge test is the deliberate addition of specific microorganisms to monitor their growth in a product.


Video
Heartwarmer Logo

The potential of high–pressure processing

Shelf life and vitamin retention after HP processing.


Case studies
Shelf life

How to determine product microbiological shelf–life

In determining the shelf-life of a particular food, the first pre-requisite is to know what particular characteristic of the food is going to be the limiting...


White paper
Challenge testing

Challenge testing

Food safety is a major concern for everyone involved in the food industry from producers to policy makers and retailers to consumers, and it is imperative th...


Blog
Determining the shelf-life of food products

Determining the shelf-life of food products

Roy Betts, Head of Microbiology, explains predictive microbiology and challenge testing, and how the two complement each other in determining the ...


Podcast

Contact an expert