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Atmospheric Pressure Plasma Treatment of Black Peppercorns Inoculated with Salmonella and Held Under Controlled Storage
Author(s) -
Sun Shengqian,
Anderson Nathan M.,
Keller Susanne
Publication year - 2014
Publication title -
journal of food science
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.772
H-Index - 150
eISSN - 1750-3841
pISSN - 0022-1147
DOI - 10.1111/1750-3841.12696
Subject(s) - salmonella , salmonella enterica , contamination , inoculation , food science , chemistry , salmonella enteritidis , population , outbreak , relative humidity , serotype , microorganism , human decontamination , microbiology and biotechnology , biology , bacteria , horticulture , virology , waste management , medicine , geography , ecology , genetics , environmental health , engineering , meteorology
Spices, including black pepper, are a source of microbial contamination and have been linked to outbreaks of salmonellosis when added to products that undergo no further processing. Traditional thermal processing employed to reduce microbial contamination can lead to losses of heat‐sensitive compounds. Thus, alternative processes such as atmospheric pressure plasma (APP) are desirable. The purpose of this research was to determine the efficacy of APP in the destruction of Salmonella inoculated on the surface of peppercorns. Secondarily, we examined the effect of storage on the subsequent inactivation of Salmonella on the surfaces of black peppercorns by APP. Black peppercorns inoculated with a cocktail of Salmonella enterica serotypes Oranienburg, Tennessee, Anatum, and Enteritidis were stored at 25 °C, 33% relative humidity (RH); 25 °C, 97% RH; and, 37 °C, 33% RH for 10 d and additionally at 25 °C, 33% RH for 1 and 30 d then treated with APP. Results showed that Salmonella populations decreased significantly ( P < 0.05) with respect to the treatment time, but where not related to previous storage conditions ( P > 0.05). Approximately a 4.5‐ to 5.5‐log 10 reduction in population was achieved after 60 to 80 s treatment. A combination of treatments, storage and 80 s of plasma, may achieve a total reduction on the order of 7‐log 10 CFU/g. These findings support the potential of APP to decontaminate Salmonella on the surfaces of black peppercorns and other dry foods and illustrate that a multiple hurdle approach may prove effective for achieving significant reductions of Salmonella in many low‐moisture foods.