Post-Packaging Heat Treatment

Heating after sealing can protect a cooked ready-to-eat product from contamination introduced before packaging or can form part of a container process. It is not automatically equivalent to commercial sterilisation.

Film, tray, casing, closure and headspace must tolerate the treatment without delamination, channel leaks, excessive shrinkage or migration outside authorised conditions.

Product geometry, load pattern, medium circulation and initial temperature affect the slowest-heating location. Package-surface temperature alone does not establish product lethality.

The benefit is greatest when the sealed package remains intact after treatment. Cooling water, handling and damaged seals can reintroduce or spread contamination.

Define the target organism or process objective, supported time-temperature schedule, probe location, package integrity checks and deviation response.

Treat package, formulation, fill weight, equipment and cooling as one validated system. Hold lots when heat records or seal integrity are incomplete.