Subchapter A. REQUIREMENTS FOR EGG BREAKOUT
OPERATIONS
Sec.
83.11. Responsibilities of Department agents.
83.12. Plant requirements.
83.13. Equipment.
83.14. Personnel requirements.
83.15. Materials.
83.16. General requirements.
83.17. Preparation of frozen and liquid eggs.
83.18. Equipment cleaning and sanitizing.
83.19. Packaging and labeling.
83.20. Suspension of plant approval.
Authority The provisions of this Subchapter A issued under act of March 11, 1909 (P. L. 13, No. 9) (31 P. S. § § 294a—299), unless otherwise noted.
Source The provisions of this Subchapter A adopted May 15, 1969, unless otherwise noted.
§ 83.11. Responsibilities of Department agents.
Department agents shall perform the following:
(1) Make an initial inspection to approve plant facilities and equipment before a license is issued to prepare frozen or liquid eggs for consumer use.
(2) Make periodic inspections of plants to insure that acceptable facilities, equipment and procedures for the preparation of frozen and liquid eggs are in operation.
(3) Take samples of frozen or liquid eggs for laboratory or other examination.
(4) Take temperatures of the facilities and products to insure that they comply with the temperature requirements stated in this subchapter.
(5) Wear hats and clean white coats while making plant and product inspections.
(6) Place under seizure or embargo any lot of eggs not meeting the requirements of this subchapter, pending a determination of their condition.
§ 83.12. Plant requirements.
(a) A specially constructed room shall be provided for egg breaking and may be used for no other operation. Walls, floor and ceilings shall be constructed of materials that may be readily washed and kept in a sanitary condition. The floors shall have adequate drainage with a trap in the drain system. The doors to the room shall be swinging or self closing. No cracks may be permitted in the walls and ceilings.
(b) The water supply shall be ample, clean and potable for protection against contamination and pollution. It is recommended that the water supply be checked at least once a year for potability.
(c) Separate facilities, equipped with hot and cold or tempered water faucets in a wash stand, odorless soap and single service towels or hand dryer shall be provided along with toilet facilities in a room convenient to, but not directly leading from, the breaking room. Personnel may not wash hands in the same facilities used to sanitize equipment. Foot levers are recommended for turning water off and on.
(d) A separate room shall be provided for the storage of cans, soap powder and other supplies, and the room shall be kept clean and sanitary.
(e) The egg breaking room shall be ventilated and maintained at a temperature not to exceed 70°F.
§ 83.13. Equipment.
(a) Tables shall be constructed of stainless steel or other water impervious materials.
(b) A three-compartmented sink or three adjacent sinks shall be provided with hot and cold running water for cleaning and sanitizing equipment and shall be large enough for complete submersion of breaking equipment and 30-pound cans.
(c) Single service paper towels, or a hot air hand dryer, shall be provided.
(d) Clarifiers and churns or other satisfactory equipment shall be provided to mix the egg material.
(e) Breaking trays, breaking knives and yolk and white separators that can be maintained in a sanitary condition shall be provided.
(f) At least two sets of breaking equipment shall be available, so as to enable the use of one while the other is being cleaned and sanitized. Equipment shall be cleaned four times a day.
(g) Adequate facilities shall be provided to effectively clean and sanitize all breaking equipment.
(h) Equipment and utensils shall be corrosion resistant, relatively nonabsorbent and nontoxic.
(i) Egg contact surfaces shall be free of breaks, chips, open seams, pits and cracks.
(j) Provision shall be made for storage of breaking equipment such as trays, knives, separators and cups in enclosed containers so as to minimize possible contamination by dust or foreign materials. The equipment should be stored in a draining position.
(k) Disposal cans for holding egg shells shall be constructed of materials which will permit proper cleaning and sanitizing and prohibit leakage of contents. Plastic liners are recommended for this purpose.
(l) Special leakproof containers with covers shall be provided for inedible eggs. The containers shall be disposable or constructed of materials that will permit proper cleaning and sanitizing; shall be painted red; and shall be located adjacent to, but not in, the egg breaking room and identified: ‘‘For inedible egg use only.’’
(m) New or approved, reusable containers, with covers, to hold liquid eggs for freezing, shall be thoroughly cleaned and sanitized before use.
(n) Stainless steel buckets or trays to hold eggs for breaking shall be used in order to permit thorough cleaning and sanitizing.
(o) Racks shall be provided for thoroughly draining equipment after cleaning, sanitizing or sterilizing.
(p) A refrigerated room shall be provided to reduce the temperature of shell eggs below 50°F before breaking and shall be kept clean and free from objectionable odors.
(q) Freezers which can provide a temperature of -10°F shall be used to continually maintain egg meat in containers to an internal temperature of 0°F. The freezers shall be capable of reducing egg meat to 0°F within 60 hours. The freezers shall be kept clean and free from objectionable odors.
(r) Adequate cooling equipment shall be provided while liquid or frozen eggs are being delivered to consumers. See Chapter 37, Subchapter C (relating to design and construction of frozen food processing equipment).
§ 83.14. Personnel requirements.
(a) Personnel carrying out egg breaking operations shall comply with the following requirements:
(1) Wear clean outer garments and hair nets or hats which cover the entire hairline at all times.
(2) Wash and dry their hands with an approved sanitized soap or detergent after each visit to the toilet and after handling an inedible egg.
(3) Not use perfume or nail polish or other adornment which might contaminate or adulterate the eggs.
(4) Not expectorate or engage in other unsanitary practices.
(b) Those personnel with coughs, colds, skin irritations or similar afflictions may not work in egg breaking out operations while the condition exists.
§ 83.15. Materials.
(a) Acceptable denaturing materials such as kerosene or crank case oil shall be available and used in denaturing inedible eggs. The recommended strength of the denaturing material is one pint per 30 pounds of eggs.
(b) Acceptable cleaner-sanitizer materials shall be available and used for cleaning breaking area and all equipment used in breaking.
(c) Acceptable denaturing materials shall be available and used in denaturing eggs used for animal food. Materials that may be used for denaturing purposes are meat meal, fish meal and charcoal. The materials shall be used on the basis of 2% by volume.
§ 83.16. General requirements.
(a) Tobacco in any form is not permitted in the breaking room at any time. ‘‘No Smoking’’ signs shall be posted.
(b) The chewing of gum is not permitted in the breaking room.
(c) Equipment coming in contact with a contaminated egg shall be replaced or sanitized before reusing.
(d) A separate room or rooms other than the breaking room shall be used for cleaning dirty eggs.
(e) Egg cases are not permitted in the breaking room.
(f) Packaged egg products shall be stacked in the freezer in a manner that provides complete circulation of cold air for rapid freezing. The freezer may not be loaded so as to impair cooling efficiency or cause partial thawing of an already frozen product.
(g) No clothing may be hung in the breaking room.
(h) Egg shells and inedible eggs shall be removed from the premises daily.
(i) No products or materials other than those which are used in direct processing may be processed, stored or handled in the breaking room.
(j) The outside of containers shall be clean and free from liquid egg.
§ 83.17. Preparation of frozen and liquid eggs.
(a) Eggs with adhering dirt, leakers, incubator rejects and inedibles may not be used under any circumstances. Inedible eggs, including rots, eggs with diffused blood in the albumen; green whites; crusted yolks; stuck yolks; developed embryos; moldy, sour or musty eggs; and filthy or decomposed eggs may not be used.
(b) Eggs may not be broken into containers from outside the breaking room, such as from candling rooms or other rooms adjacent to the breaking room.
(c) Eggs for human consumption shall be broken prior to those broken for animal food.
(d) Shell particles, meat and blood spots more than one-eighth inch in diameter accidentally falling into breaking cups or trays shall be removed with a clean spoon or similar device.
(e) Egg products prepared by a plant shall conform at all times to the requirements of the act of March 11, 1909 (P. L. 13) (31 P. S. § § 294a—299).
(f) Liquid eggs may not exceed a temperature of 40°F at any time. Defrosted eggs may not be refrozen.
(g) Egg meat to be sold as liquid egg shall be cooled to not more than 40°F in 1 1/2 hours or less, and shall be at that temperature before leaving the plant.
(h) Eggs other than from the domestic fowl shall be segregated and, if processed, shall be processed separately with container marked and identified as such.
§ 83.18. Equipment cleaning and sanitizing.
Equipment shall be manually cleaned and thereafter sanitized by one of the following methods:
(1) Immersion for 1 minute in clean water maintained at 180°F.
(2) Immersion for 1 minute in clean sanitizing solution at twice the minimal strength recommended by the manufacturer for immersion sanitation.
(3) Immersion in clean solution containing not less than 190 and not more than 200 parts per million available chlorine at not less than 75°F for 1 minute.
§ 83.19. Packaging and labeling.
(a) Containers and lids shall be clean of nonabsorbent fiber and plastic or metal construction, and shall be designed for egg products only.
(b) No labeling except that specifying egg products may be used on containers or lids used for either animal food or consumer egg products.
(c) Prepackaged liquid and frozen eggs shall be labeled as required in the act of March 11, 1909 (P. L. 13) (31 P. S. § § 294a—299). The name and address of the processor, the name of the product and net contents shall be minimum label requirements. Products containing sugar or salt shall be labeled sugar yolks or salt yolks, as appropriate. Eggs sold under the name of a distributor shall be coded so as to identify the actual processor.
(d) Containers containing egg products shall be coded.
§ 83.20. Suspension of plant approval.
Plant approval may be suspended within a reasonable length of time by the Department for the following:
(1) Failure to maintain plant and equipment in a satisfactory state of repairs.
(2) The use of operating procedures which are not in accordance with this chapter.
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