food regulations the agri-food and veterinary authority of singapore ava has completed a review of the food regulations and proposes the following amendments a to delete the existing regulation 35 of the food regulations and substitute with the following new regulation 35 which provides a definition for ready-to-eat food 35 1 ready-to-eat food shall comply with the microbiological standard specified in parts i ii and iii of the eleventh schedule. 2 in these regulations ready-to-eat food means food intended by the producer or the manufacturer for direct human consumption without the need for cooking or other forms of processing effective to eliminate or reduce to an acceptable level the micro-organisms of concern. b to delete the existing eleventh schedule of the food regulations and substitute with a new eleventh schedule which specifies the revised microbiological standard for ready-to-eat food eleventh schedule microbiological standard for food part i total plate count type of food colony forming unit gram cfu g category 1 shelf-stable canned retort and ultra-high temperature processed foods subjected to sterilisation or equivalent processing 10 liquid foods and 102 solid foods category 2 a sweetened condensed milk a 103 b ready-to-eat foods not in categories 1 4 in which most components are cooked without intention for further processing or heating before consumption this may include pasteurised food which are shelf stable or may require refrigeration or non-fermented dairy products and dairy-based desserts or sauces or bakery and confectionery products or powdered foods b 105 category 3 ready-to-eat foods not in categories 1 2 and 4 that are consumed raw or that contain a significant amount of raw ingredients in the final food product106 category 4 fresh fruits and vegetables fruits and vegetables juices which have not been subjected to pasteurisation or equivalent processing fermented food products preserved food products including salted or pickled food products dried foods yoghurts ripened cheeses foods containing probiotics foods containing a significant portion of these ingredients in the final food product not applicable category 5 all other ready-to-eat foods not specified above 105 part ii coliforms and escherichia coli type of food coliform count escherichia coli count colony forming unit gram cfu g colony forming unit gram cfu g milk powder including full-cream half cream skimmed milk and infant formula buttermilk powder pasteurised milk and ice cream 5.0 x 102 102 all other ready-to-eat food not applicable 102 part iii pathogens pathogens colony forming unit gram cfu g coagulase-positive staphylococcus aureus 102 bacillus cereus 2.0 x 102 clostridium perfringens 102 vibrio parahaemolyticus not detected in 25g except for raw ready-to-eat seafood where limit is 102 vibrio vulnificus vibrio cholerae not detected in 25g salmonella spp. not detected in 25g shigella spp. not detected in 25g listeria monocytogenes not detected in 25g campylobacter spp. not detected in 25g escherichia coli o157 h7 not detected in 25g all other pathogens not stated above includingstreptococcus agalactiae serotype iii not detected singapore notes that the revised microbiological standard for ready-to-eat food would be trade facilitative for most products compared to the existing standard. hence we plan to implement the measure one month after the close of the comment period in november 2017. however we are ready to provide a longer transition period if such a need is identified during the comment period.