Product stability: long shelf life

Product stability: long shelf life

In traditional probiotic products, a large number of viable cells die during exposure to environmental conditions. Megaflora 9 evo matrix protects the bacteria against unfavourable conditions and allows to store the product at room temperature. The matrix significantly improves the stability giving a long shelf life.

The effectiveness of a probiotic product depends on the total viable bacterial count in the product. For this reason, the half-life of a probiotic products is based on the total of viable cells during storage time. The best method to measure the half-life of the product is by a real time stability test (RTS), where the bacterial count is expressed as colonies forming units (cfu) per gram, meaning cfu as living and viable bacteria.

The recent development of Megaflora 9 evo makes not possible to have a real shelf life under RTS test. However, it was carried out an accelerated stability test at 37° C ± 2° C for 4 weeks. This study considered the maximum temperature at which no bacterial damage occurs, but allows to check the stability in a short period that can be extrapolated to a situation of 25ºC stability.

Megaflora 9 evo samples were tested at T0 to T2, T3 and T4 times. The result shows that the concentration of bacteria was stable during all the time with a concentration that exceeded one billion per gram, which is the guaranteed concentration at the end of the shelf life of the product.

Megaflora 9 evo has the same stable behaviour than its probiotic and prebiotic predecessor, which has a stability of 48 months in RTS test.

The accelerated stability study has demonstrated that Megaflora 9 evo has a comparable stability than its predecessor and, therefore, at room temperature the same behaviour is expected. To prove this, a RTS test on Megaflora 9 evo is on going.

Accelerated stability test at 36 ° C for 4 weeks, of Megaflora 9 evo.

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Founded in 1994, SOLCHEM is today a reference supplier of ingredients for the nutraceutical, cosmetic, pharmaceutical and functional food sectors. Its main interest is to provide solutions to our customers, offering an impeccable service, with customer satisfaction as our greatest commitment. For more information visit our website www.solchem.es