Testing the fudge
Mhudge, Market Harborough fudge
Growing the business isn’t just about reaching more customers, it’s about increasing the product value and therefore it’s appeal. To us, looking at improving the shelf life of our artisanal fudge increases the value to commercial customers and to individual shoppers.
We’ve been conservatively putting the best before date of Mhudge, Market Harborough fudge, at 6 weeks after production, since we started making fudge in 2020. We based this on taste testing, and our lovely sister company Hudge in Guernsey. Producing a consumable, we didn’t want to run any risks, and with both Pete and I having a background in Environmental Health, we’re both all too aware of the risks of contamination, bacterial growth and food poisoning.
So, fast forward to now. Following a market food fair event at Pitsford Quarry, we met a fellow food producer who recommended M.S. Labs in Wellingborough to us. After a discussion with the labs, we opted to put two of our fudges through the accelerated testing, to see what growth there was after both 3 weeks and 4 weeks, which is the equivalent (in some types of products - typically dry / store cupboard) of 3 and 4 months.
We were absolutely delighted to learn that both fudges showed negligeable (slim to no) growth after 4 months, in all areas. This means, we have certification for both fudges, Traditional and Biscoff showing they are both very stable products and we can be confident in putting a four month shelf life on both products.
Here’s a little Q&A about having the fudge tested and what it means for us and our fudge business.
Why have we opted to put the 4 months across the range?
We’ve not. We will be having more of our fudge flavours tested by the labs, bestsellers like Sour Cherry & Amaretto because we add a lot of liquid to the mix, and similarly with Cappuccino and Coffee & Walnut. But we now feel confident that the majority of our fudges will test similarly to the core Traditional and we want to give our customers that confidence in our products too.
Why does this mean so much to us?
We use no artificial preservatives in our fudge (or colours, or flavours), so we’re very excited to learn and announce that our all natural, artisan fudge has a naturally long shelf life. We know this is because we cook it at a very high temperature, and because of the high sugar content. It is brilliant news though, that you don’t have to add preservatives to achieve a longer shelf life. We can still produce a premium fudge, naturally, and it will last.
I eat my fudge super quickly, who cares?
The best before date means a lot to our commercial and trade customers. The fudge has a fantastic USP, containing no artificial colours, flavours or preservatives, but the shorter shelf life made the fudge a riskier commercial purchase. Now retailers can make bulk purchases of the fudge and not run the risk of it expiring and having to reduce the price of their stock. In terms of customers buying for themselves, the longer shelf life means you guys can plan better, stocking fillers can be bought in October, with Octobers pay check, it potentially eases the urgency for you too.
How does the testing work?
We wanted the results in time for the Christmas run-up, as we could then implement any changes. We were really hopeful that we would get 3 months shelf life, but obviously, the longer we achieve, means the more time we would have to get earlier prep ready for the Christmas fudge season. With this in mind, we paid for the accelerated testing. They store the product, Mhudge fudge, in the packaging as supplied, at 37℃. These ‘stress’ conditions accelerate deterioration of the product at a higher rate than normal storage conditions, allowing us to have the results faster.
What were the results?
For science and people in the know, here are the results:
Total Aerobic Colony Count cfu/g 48hrs (MTM-08) < 100
Enterobacteriaceae cfu/g (MTM10) < 10
E.coli cfu/g (MTM-18) < 10
Coagulase Positive Staphylococci cfu/g (MTM-03) < 20
Yeast cfu/g (MTM-26) < 20
Mould cfu/g (MTM-26) < 20
Bacillus cereus cfu/g (MTM-37) < 20 Cl. perfringens cfu/g (MTM-06) < 10
Salmonella in 25g (MTM-40) ND
Listeria spp in 25g (MTM-38) ND