Commercial sterilization is a process which involves the use of heat, to sterilize and thus ensure the safety of the food products that have a limited shelf life.
It is a severe thermal process and ensures that all pathogens that are capable of growing in the product and spoiling it are killed.
If the process of commercial sterilization is not used then under normal conditions of storage and handling the food can get spoiled.
One of the organisms that commercial sterilization protects against in canned products is Clostridium botulinum.