Technical Testing Parameters
The following parameters describe product-specific testing considerations. Test availability, method suitability and accredited coverage are confirmed against the sample and specification before quotation.
- Physicochemical: moisture; protein; fat; ash; pH; sodium chloride; nitrite/nitrate for cured products; species identity by a suitable validated method where agreed.
- Microbiology: aerobic colony count; Escherichia coli; Salmonella spp.; coagulase-positive Staphylococcus aureus; Listeria monocytogenes in relevant ready-to-eat products; Campylobacter spp. for appropriate poultry/buyer programmes.
- Residues: relevant veterinary-drug panel, including tetracyclines, sulfonamides and fluoroquinolones; separately address prohibited substances such as chloramphenicol and nitrofuran metabolites where applicable.
- Contaminants: lead; cadmium and other specified metals; organochlorine residues where relevant; toxin investigations selected for the raw-material or incident risk rather than a generic cereal-mycotoxin panel.
Select the applicable subset; these are not universal mandatory tests or a statement that every listed test is within the laboratory’s accredited scope.
Regulatory Standards & Compliance
Product mapping: 2.5; applicable meat tables in Appendix B; Appendix A group 08 for additives.
Read the Food Safety and Standards (Food Products Standards and Food Additives) Regulations, 2011 as amended, together with the product-specific criteria. Apply the current Contaminants, Toxins and Residues Regulations, 2011 and Labelling and Display Regulations, 2020 where relevant.
For microbiology, identify the applicable Appendix B table, sampling plan and test portion. For additives, confirm the correct Appendix A classification and any product-specific restrictions. FoSCoS licensing identifiers are not equivalent to product-standard clauses.
Export limits depend on the destination, commodity and residue definition. Confirm the applicable MRL, reporting limit and effective date. BIS product standards, export certification and laboratory recognition require separate verification; a test report does not itself confer regulatory approval.
Sample Requirements & TAT
Transport chilled at 2–8°C or frozen as marketed; maintain hygienic segregation and a temperature record.
Confirm the required quantity, number of unopened units, containers and transport conditions with the laboratory before dispatch. Chemistry portions and sterile microbiology portions may need separate containers; a composite cannot automatically replace an n-unit sampling plan.
Provide the product designation, ingredient list, processing state, batch identity, storage instructions, target market and required specification. Turnaround is confirmed in the quotation after the scope is agreed. Shelf-life, challenge and specialist investigations require a separate study schedule.
Technical FAQs
Is raw meat assessed against ready-to-eat meat criteria?
No. Heat treatment, intended consumption and product form determine the applicable microbiological table.
Does freezing remove Salmonella?
No. Freezing is not evidence of pathogen elimination; testing and validated processing controls remain necessary.
Can one antibiotic panel meet every export requirement?
No. Align the analytes, marker residues, matrix and detection capability with the destination specification.
Discuss your testing specification
Share the product, market and required parameters so the laboratory can confirm the scope.

