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A Novel Infant Nutrition System Precisely Delivers Hygienic Reconstituted Formula
Author(s) -
Yan Jian,
Pecquet Sophie,
Wyss Heinz,
Steenhout Philippe
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
the faseb journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.709
H-Index - 277
eISSN - 1530-6860
pISSN - 0892-6638
DOI - 10.1096/fasebj.29.1_supplement.lb319
Subject(s) - infant formula , dilution , medicine , food science , chromatography , chemistry , physics , thermodynamics
Powdered infant formula is conventionally supplied in multi‐serve packaging and reconstituted following multiple manual preparation steps. An advanced infant nutrition system, combining a dedicated dispenser with single‐serve capsules of powdered formula, was designed to precisely deliver hygienic reconstituted formula in < 1 min. To test the performance (technical reliability and quality of reconstituted formula), a field study was conducted at three hospitals in Switzerland with a prototype system, where hospital staff used the system (n = 4) to reconstitute formula when needed by infants. Only 22 (0.9%) of the 2445 bottles prepared over the 4‐mo period encountered preparation difficulties. After reconstitution, 93% of the 2445 capsules showed no solid residue, and 5% had only a few small lumps, suggesting good solubility. Additional preparations were conducted in hospitals to assess the dilution precision and microbiological quality of reconstitutes. The target for reconstituted formula weight (±3g) was met by 89% of the 252 bottles tested, suggesting good technical precision of formula dilution. 100% of the reconstituted formula tested negative for Enterobacteriaceae (n=281) and Salmonella (n=262), and Aerobic Mesophilic Count was <100 cfu/ml in 83% and <1000 cfu/ml in 98% of 276 bottles, which met CODEX good quality specification after reconstitution. Interviews with hospital staff (n=74) revealed that the system was preferred over conventional formula preparation partially due to its ease of use. In sum, these data indicate that the new infant nutrition system ensures a hygienic, safe, precise and convenient preparation for each feeding. Funded by Nestec S.A.