The prime benefit of post-packaging pasteurization is food safety through re-pasteurizing the surface on products that were re-exposed after cooking.
For example, most ready-to-eat (RTE) meats and poultry that are cooked in a bag are safe if sold or distributed that way after cooking, but processors remove the products from the bags after cooking to eliminate excess liquid purge, which is aesthetically unappealing, opening up the opportunity for contamination, explains Peter Muriana, professor and food microbiologist for the Robert M. Kerr Food and Agricultural Products Center and the Department of Animal and Food Sciences at Oklahoma State University in Stillwater. Processors also expose RTE meats and poultry on trays on racks, rolled into blast chillers, contributing to additional exposure after cooking and creating the opportunity for re-contamination. In addition, after chilling, RTE meats and poultry are packaged in retail-ready packaging, creating yet another opportunity for exposure, Muriana says.