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The growth of Listeria monocytogenes in cheese packed under a modified atmosphere
Author(s) -
Whitley E.,
Muir D.,
Waites W. M.
Publication year - 2000
Publication title -
journal of applied microbiology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.889
H-Index - 156
eISSN - 1365-2672
pISSN - 1364-5072
DOI - 10.1046/j.1365-2672.2000.00859.x
Subject(s) - listeria monocytogenes , modified atmosphere , food science , bacterial growth , lag time , incubation , incubation period , listeria , lag , zoology , biology , chemistry , shelf life , bacteria , biochemistry , computer network , genetics , computer science , biological system
E. WHITLEY, D. MUIR and W.M. WAITES.2000. The effect of Modified Atmosphere Packaging (MAP) on the growth of Listeria monocytogenes in mould ripened cheeses was studied at refrigeration temperatures (2–8·3 °C) over a storage period of 6 weeks. Control experiments in cling film with no atmospheric modification produced a lag time before growth of up to 1 week and rapid subsequent growth. MAP with a CO 2 concentration of less than 20% allowed growth to occur but when O 2 was incorporated; the lag time was reduced from 3 to 2 weeks and subsequent growth was also faster, producing an increase in cell numbers of 1·4 log cycles over the incubation period. N 2 –MAP in the absence of O 2 increased the lag time to 3 weeks and slowed growth, while the inclusion of CO 2 extended the lag to 3 weeks and slowed subsequent growth even more. In MAP with 80:10:10 (v/v/v) N 2 :CO 2 :O 2 , there was a lag period of 2–3 weeks before growth of L. monocytogenes occurred, while the total viable aerobic count (TVAC) decreased by 2–3 log cycles and the total Lactobacillus count showed little change. It was concluded that MAP was not suitable for preventing the growth of L. monocytogenes in such cheeses.