A Guide for Food Producers Working with Our Laboratory

When developing or reformulating food products, understanding how your product behaves over time is essential for ensuring safety, quality, and compliance. Our laboratory offers a range of analytical services to help food producers assess product longevity and performance. This article explains the key differences between shelf life testing, stability studies, and storage trials, so you can choose the right service for your needs.

1. Shelf Life Testing

Purpose: To determine how long a product remains safe and suitable for consumption under normal storage conditions.

Shelf life testing evaluates the maximum time a product can be stored before it begins to degrade in quality, safety, or functionality. This includes changes in:

• Microbial growth
• Sensory attributes (taste, texture, aroma)
• Nutritional value
• Physical and chemical stability

Typical Conditions:
Shelf life tests are conducted under real-world conditions that simulate how the product will be stored and used by consumers or businesses.

Outcome:
A scientifically validated expiry date or best-before date that can be used for labelling and regulatory compliance.

2. Stability Studies

Purpose: To assess how a product maintains its intended characteristics over time under various environmental conditions.

Stability studies are more controlled and comprehensive than shelf life testing. They are often used for:

• Regulatory submissions
• Product development
• Quality assurance

Key Variables Tested:

• Temperature (e.g., ambient, refrigerated, accelerated)
• Humidity
• Light exposure
• Packaging interactions

Outcome:
Detailed data on how environmental factors affect product integrity, helping you optimise formulation, packaging, and storage recommendations.

3. Storage Trials

Purpose: To simulate and evaluate product performance under specific storage scenarios, including worst-case or non-standard conditions.

Storage trials are designed to answer questions like:

• How does the product behave in a warehouse over summer?
• What happens if the cold chain is broken?
• Can the product withstand transport across long distances?

Types of Storage Trials:

• Accelerated trials: High temperature/humidity to predict long-term effects quickly.
• Real-time trials: Monitoring product over its actual intended shelf life.
• Abuse condition trials: Testing under extreme or fluctuating conditions.

Outcome:
Practical insights into product robustness, helping you manage risk and ensure quality across the supply chain.

Summary Table