Nikken Foods, a Japan based company producing natural seasonings and health-conscious foods, has based its business activities on the corporate philosophy of “contributing to global health through a food business focused on natural flavors”. Since 2011, when they obtained their ISO 22000 and FSSC 22000 certifications, they are constantly striving to achieve world-class hygiene management and safety assurance and had the conventional ATP-test in use since 2015. As part of this effort Nikken Food in 2019 decided to replace the conventional ATP test with the Kikkoman A3 test, which measures ATP, ADP and AMP. (2)
The reasons for the introduction of the Kikkoman A3-test were explained by Ruy Myashita in an interview
1. Higher Sensitivity: The new test is more sensitive, enabling more accurate cleanliness checks of surfaces. It will also detect organic residues containing only ADP and AMP which were not detected by conventional ATP tests. (3)
2. Environmental Monitoring Program (EMP): Introduction of preventive hygiene controls to ensure the cleanliness of food contact surfaces and surrounding areas asa planned with the adoption of the FSSC22000v5. (4)
3. Allergen Management: Stricter controls were needed to meet international standards on allergen management. (5)
Ruy Myashita sees the benefits of the Kikkoman A3 Test in:
- Identification of risks, even when surfaces appear visually clean, the A3 test will show non-visible organic contamination. This raises the quality of Hygiene Control to a higher level and improves quick decisions in the production process.
- Time savings using an app for data management and reporting are significant. Beside the time savings the software eliminates the need for manual notes on paper and following errors when transcribing the data into another Software.
The entire project was anticipating the higher detection values of A3 and set new thresholds and inspection Frequencies as the new targets:
- Factories: 1.000 RLU
- Cafeteria: 3.000 RLU (stricter thresholds for surfaces in contact with raw food. (6)
- Monthly inspections cover 70 areas, with weekly inspections for 50 areas. (7)
Data Management:
The Lumitester Smart App simplifies data collection, analysis and communication. Lumitester promotes hygiene awareness and improves collaboration between the different shifts in a factory. (8)
Future Plans:
Nikken Foods plans to introduce the Kikkoman A3-Test in its factories in China and Thailand to establish a globally unified hygiene management system. The goal is proactive quality assurance that prevents issues rather than addressing them after production.
The Kikkoman A3-test has helped Nikken Food in
- Improving hygiene
- Fostering employee communication
- Supporting preventive quality management
If you want to learn more about the Kikkoman A3-Test and the comprehensive, easy to use software coming free of charge with the Kikkoman Lumitester, please do not hesitate to contact us at Hyserve.
Kontaktieren Sie unser Team info@hyserve.com
References
(2) www.biochemifa.kikkoman.com/e/
(3) Bakke, M. and S. Suzuki. 2018 Development of a novel hygiene monitoring system based on the detection of total adenylate (ATP+ADP+AMP). J. Food Prot. 81:729-737. https://doi.org/10.4315/0362-28X.JFP-19-223
4) FSSC 22000 V6 Guidance Document Environmental Monitoring, FSSC 22000 Version 6, July 2023
5) Codex Alimentarius, International Food Standards, CXC 80-2020, Code of practice on Food Allergen Management for Food Business Operators
6) Casestudy | Kikkoman Biochemifa Replacement of a conventional ATP tests with Kikkoman A3 to perform more accurate hygiene inspections, Nikken Foods Co., Ltd. Quality Control Section, Quality Assurance Department
7) Casestudy | Kikkoman
Biochemifa Replacement of a conventional ATP tests with Kikkoman A3 to perform more accurate hygiene inspections, Nikken Foods Co.,
Ltd. Quality Control Section, Quality Assurance Department
8) Casestudy | Kikkoman Biochemifa Replacement of a conventional ATP tests with Kikkoman A3 to perform more accurate hygiene inspections, Nikken Foods Co., Ltd. Quality Control Section, Quality Assurance Department