Clostridium sporogenes and Bacillus cereus can be added for additional claims
(only contact times of 1, 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30, 35,
40, 45, 50, 55 and 60 min are allowed in this range)
(additional interfering substance for dairies 10,0 g / l of reconstituted milk)
The EN 13704 is a phase 2 step 1 suspension test. It is different from other suspension tests due to the test organisms which in this case are bacterial spores. The EN 13704 is for the food, domestic and industrial industry and is especially relevant in food preparation areas. This is due to the fact Bacillus subtilis which the test organism used is extremely prevalent in soil meaning food is often contaminated with it. The EN 13704 isn’t a mandatory test and is only necessary if you wish to make a sporicidal claim on your product. Although the EN 13704 and the EN 17126 are both sporicidal suspension tests the EN13704 tends to be easier to achieve due to the preparation of the organisms in the EN 17126 which makes them very hardy.
The EN 13704 is a suspension test which means it is carried out in a suspension of test organism, interfering substance and test product. The interfering substance and the organism make up 20% of this mix so even ready to use product are diluted to 80% during the testing. If the product is prediluted before the testing starts, we increase the percentage of product by 1.25 to account for the 80% dilution. Although in EN 1304 you can have temperatures up to 75oC it must be inline with yo0ur usage instructions so unless you are instructing people to heat your product to a certain temperature the standard 20oC should be used.
As with other suspension tests the EN 13704 can have additional organism tested against it. Some popular organisms that we test against the EN 13704 that aren’t stipulated in the standard are Bacillus cereus and Clostridium sporogenes.
For BPR submission the EN 1276 is essential, and 3 concentrations must be tested. These have to include the final usage concentration, a concentration that fails the test and then any other. Most commonly people opt for the end concentration, 50% of that and the 10% or 1% of that.
Although the standard has specific requirements as outlines in the table certain other establishments may have more rigorous requirements. For example, some supermarkets may insist on a shorter contact time before they will sell your product.
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