192 Meat refrigeration Table 9.1 Guidelines for meat shipment Vacuum pack,0°C Vacuum pack,-15°C CO2,-1.5°C 6 weeks 10 week >12 weeks Beef 10 weeks Source: Heap, 1997. conventional vacuum packing it is difficult to achieve a shelf-life in excess of 12 weeks with beef and 8 weeks for lamb(Gill, 1984). Controlled/mod ified atmospheric packaging can extend this by many weeks. Work in Nev Zealand has shown that a she wee achieved in cuts of lamb(Gill and Penney, 1986). The cuts were individu- ally packed in evacuated bags of linear polyethylene, and then placed in a foil laminate bag that was gas flushed and filled with a volume of carbon dioxide(Co2) approximately equal to that of the meat. Similar storage lives are currently being achieved with beef primals transported from Australia and South Africa to the EU Heap(1997) stated that assuming good stan- dards of preparation and prompt cooling, the times given in Table 9.1 could be used as approximate guidelines for long distance meat shipment These times rely on the meat being at or below the storage temperatur e before loading. The two to four week advantage of transporting meat at -15'C rather than 0C is lost if the meat is loaded at a temperature above 0C. Cooling in the centre of a load of meat is very slow and the meat will be well into its journey before the desired temperature is achieved Most International Standard Organisation(ISO) containers for food transport are either 6 or 12m long, hold up to 26 tonnes of product and can be 'insulated' or 'refrigerated(Heap, 1986). The refrigerated containers incorporate insulation and have refrigeration units built into their structure The units operate electrically, either from an external power supply on board the ship, or in dock, or from a generator on a road vehicle Insulated ontainers utilise either plug-type refrigeration units or may be connected directly to an air-handling system in a ship's hold or at the docks Close temperature control is most easily achieved in containers that are placed in insulated holds and connected to the ships refrigeration system. However, suitable refrigeration facilities must be available for any overland sections of the journey. When the containers are fully loaded and the cooled air is forced uniformly through the spaces between cartons, the maximum difference between delivery and return air can be less than 0.8C. The entire product in a container can be maintained to within +1.0'C of the set Refrigerated containers are easier to transport overland th n the Insu- lated types, but often have to be carried on deck when shipped because ofconventional vacuum packing it is difficult to achieve a shelf-life in excess of 12 weeks with beef and 8 weeks for lamb (Gill, 1984). Controlled/mod￾ified atmospheric packaging can extend this by many weeks. Work in New Zealand has shown that a shelf-life of up to 23 weeks at -2 °C can be achieved in cuts of lamb (Gill and Penney, 1986). The cuts were individu￾ally packed in evacuated bags of linear polyethylene, and then placed in a foil laminate bag that was gas flushed and filled with a volume of carbon dioxide (CO2) approximately equal to that of the meat. Similar storage lives are currently being achieved with beef primals transported from Australia and South Africa to the EU. Heap (1997) stated that assuming good stan￾dards of preparation and prompt cooling, the times given in Table 9.1 could be used as approximate guidelines for long distance meat shipment. These times rely on the meat being at or below the storage temperatur e before loading. The two to four week advantage of transporting meat at -1.5 °C rather than 0 °C is lost if the meat is loaded at a temperature above 0 °C. Cooling in the centre of a load of meat is very slow and the meat will be well into its journey before the desired temperature is achieved. Most International Standard Organisation (ISO) containers for food transport are either 6 or 12m long, hold up to 26 tonnes of product and can be ‘insulated’ or ‘refrigerated’ (Heap, 1986). The refrigerated containers incorporate insulation and have refrigeration units built into their structure. The units operate electrically, either from an external power supply on board the ship, or in dock, or from a generator on a road vehicle. Insulated containers utilise either plug-type refrigeration units or may be connected directly to an air-handling system in a ship’s hold or at the docks. Close temperature control is most easily achieved in containers that are placed in insulated holds and connected to the ship’s refrigeration system. However, suitable refrigeration facilities must be available for any overland sections of the journey. When the containers are fully loaded and the cooled air is forced uniformly through the spaces between cartons, the maximum difference between delivery and return air can be less than 0.8°C. The entire product in a container can be maintained to within ±1.0 °C of the set point. Refrigerated containers are easier to transport overland than the insu￾lated types, but often have to be carried on deck when shipped because of 192 Meat refrigeration Table 9.1 Guidelines for meat shipment Vacuum pack, 0 °C Vacuum pack, -1.5 °C CO2, -1.5 °C Pork 6 weeks 8 weeks – Lamb 7 weeks 10 weeks >12 weeks Beef 10 weeks 14 weeks – Source: Heap, 1997