Baking & Snack - May 2018 - 72

Jason Likis (left) inspects
purifiers alongside Bob
Ruckman at Grain Craft's
Birmingham, AL, mill.
Grain Craft

Common "kill steps" applied during food preparation
and/or processing include boiling, baking, roasting, microwaving and frying. But with raw dough, no kill step
has been used. However, flour mills have taken steps to
establish a safe flour supply.

Easing worries about raw flour
Flour in the ready-to-eat category, most of which is
heat-treated, has been available in market for several
years. Some products include Ardent Mill's SafeGuard,
introduced by ConAgra Mills in 2011. Honeyville's
TempSure all-purpose, ready-to-eat flour also goes
through a proprietary process. Other products include
Siemer Milling Co.'s heat-treated soft wheat flours and
Bay State Milling's SimplySafe products.
"The safety of our food products, employees, customers and consumers is a core value of Ardent Mills," said
Kent Juliot, vice-president of the research, quality and
technical solutions, Ardent Mills. "From the receipt of
grain to flour production, labeling and shipping, our
food safety and engineering experts are involved in every
aspect of our operations to meet the highest standards."
In addition to following GMPs, Ardent Mills employs
operational programs, trains team members, monitors
processes and maintains pristine manufacturing facilities, he added.
To make its ready-to-eat product, Ardent Mills uses
a patented SafeGuard treatment and delivery system
that's a comprehensive, integrated solution and extends flour food safety assurance from the plant to
consumers. SafeGuard is a functional flour with up to
a 5-log validated pathogen reduction that can be customized based on specific product requirements. It is
made by a proprietary process that doesn't alter gluten functionality. Mr. Juliot said SafeGuard reduces
food-safety risk while maintaining its flavor, texture,
appearance and performance.

72 Baking & Snack May 2018 / www.bakingandsnack.com

Reuben McLean, senior director of quality and regulatory, Grain Craft, said food safety is paramount, and
millers work diligently to produce safe flour.
Grain Craft has developed and implemented HACCPbased food-safety plans and procedures at each of its
milling facilities to ensure compliance with Global
Food Safety Initiatives (GFSI) and the Food Safety
Modernization Act (FSMA).
Grain Craft also works closely with its industry partners and leads process improvement discussions to
champion the establishment of dedicated peanut transportation to abate the risk of cross-contact with wheat.
"As a leader in the industry, we have implemented procedures to mitigate the serious risk of peanut allergen
cross-contact within the transportation of bulk agricultural commodities," Mr. McLean said. "Furthermore,
we support customer and consumer education and
have adopted safe handling instructions on packaged
products to promote awareness of the control measures
that must be implemented within their processes to reduce misuse of raw flour."

Protecting more of the process
Protecting the final product and ensuring its safety for
consumption is an ongoing effort, and it begins with
the design of a milling facility. Jennifer Robinson, vicepresident of corporate quality, Bay State Milling, said
the company is undergoing expansion efforts at its new
Woodland, CA, facility to further protect its product.
"Construction plans incorporate design elements to
deliver a clean-room environment separate from the
remainder of the facility," Ms. Robinson said. "The
clean room incorporates filtered air, positive pressure,
dedicated equipment and a robust environmental
program."
Access is limited to specially trained associates who
must pass through a changing and sanitizing area pri-

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