Products with a short shelf life, or whose shelf life is extended by cold storage or in-pack heat treatments, do not have to conform to such strict microbiological requirements as aseptically packaged foods (Doc 3 discusses aseptic packing).

This paper discusses the packing of food products that do not need aseptic packing but which nevertheless need to be protected against unacceptable microbial contamination.

It describes guidelines for the hygienic design of packing machines, the handling of packing materials and the environment of the packing machines. See also Doc 21.