NCEES PE Agricultural and Biological Engineering Food Quality, Safety & Process Plant Design: practice questions

1 · HACCP · medium

Which preliminary HACCP step is completed by walking the line during operation, at all hours it runs?

1. Verification by review of monitoring records
2. Validation of the critical limits for each CCP
3. Description of the product and its intended use
4. On-site confirmation of the flow diagram

2 · HACCP · hard

During a shift the chart recorder shows the pasteuriser holding temperature fell below the critical limit for 20 minutes without flow diversion. The correct corrective action includes

1. Restoring control, holding product made in that period and deciding its disposition
2. Raising the temperature for the next batch and releasing the affected product as normal
3. Recording the event and waiting for routine weekly verification to assess its significance
4. Adjusting the recorder chart so that the record matches the validated critical limit

3 · GMP and hygiene · medium

An ATP bioluminescence swab of a slicer after cleaning gives a high reading. The correct interpretation is

1. Organic residue remains and the surface needs re-cleaning
2. The swab measured total viable count in colony units
3. The sanitiser concentration was too high and must be cut
4. The surface carries a pathogen and the line must be closed

4 · GMP and hygiene · hard

A worker in a salad plant reports diarrhoea and vomiting. Under GMP, the supervisor should

1. Allow work in high-care if gloves and a mask are worn
2. Exclude the worker from food handling until medically cleared
3. Allow work after the worker washes hands with a sanitiser
4. Move the worker to the raw-vegetable washing area for the shift

5 · Food law: FSSAI, FDA and Codex · easy

In the United States, which agency regulates meat, poultry and processed egg products?

1. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
2. Environmental Protection Agency
3. USDA Food Safety and Inspection Service
4. Food and Drug Administration

6 · Food law: FSSAI, FDA and Codex · hard

A processor plans to sell one sauce in India, the United States and the European Union. The engineer's correct regulatory approach is to

1. Check the current additive, labelling and hygiene rules of each market separately
2. Follow Codex only, because every member country must accept Codex-compliant food
3. Follow the strictest country's rules and assume the others are then satisfied
4. Follow the home-country licence, since exports are judged by the exporter's law

7 · Process flow sheets · medium

A line needs 3000 kg/h of sorting. Each sorter is rated 450 kg/h and achieves 85 % efficiency in practice. How many sorters are required?

1. 10
2. 6
3. 7
4. 8

8 · Feasibility reports · hard

A feasibility study shows positive NPV only when capacity utilisation exceeds 90 % every year. The sound conclusion is that

1. The project is robust because NPV is positive at full capacity
2. The project is fragile and its raw-material supply needs testing
3. The discount rate should be lowered until NPV becomes positive
4. Sensitivity analysis is unnecessary once NPV is positive

9 · Equipment sizing · medium

2000 kg/h of juice (cp = 3.9 kJ/kg·K) is cooled from 30 °C to 4 °C. Ignoring other loads, the refrigeration capacity needed is

1. 4.6 TR
2. 16.0 TR
3. 56.3 TR
4. 198.1 TR

10 · Equipment sizing · medium

Why is steam, rather than hot water, the usual heating medium in food plants?

1. It has a much higher specific heat than water in the liquid state at all pressures
2. It delivers large latent heat at a temperature fixed by its pressure
3. It cannot scald operators if a line ruptures
4. It needs no condensate removal from heat exchangers