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Reduction of Selected Spoilage Bacteria by Trans ‐2‐Hexenal, Lactic Acid and Hydrogen Peroxide on Minimally Processed Cabbage and Carrots
Author(s) -
Gradvol Vedran,
Nedić Tiban Nela,
Pavlović Hrvoje
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
journal of food processing and preservation
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.511
H-Index - 48
eISSN - 1745-4549
pISSN - 0145-8892
DOI - 10.1111/jfpp.12543
Subject(s) - lactic acid , food spoilage , food science , bacteria , hydrogen peroxide , shelf life , chemistry , aeromonas hydrophila , microbiology and biotechnology , biology , biochemistry , genetics
This study was carried out to improve the microbiological safety and shelf life of minimally processed cabbage and carrots at 16C. Salad vegetables can be a source of opportunistic pathogens and spoilage bacteria – namely, A eromonas hydrophila , A . sobria and P seudomonas syringae . The inhibitory potential of trans ‐2‐hexenal, lactic acid and hydrogen peroxide ( H 2 O 2 ) against the selected bacteria was assessed in vitro and in situ conditions using their respective minimum inhibitory concentration ( MIC ). Application of trans ‐2‐hexenal and lactic acid caused significant decrease ( P < 0.05) in bacterial counts in in situ conditions during 6‐day testing. Lactic acid and trans ‐2‐hexenal showed the highest inhibitory potential for concentrations 3/4 MIC and 2 MIC , respectively, depending on the tested bacteria and substrate. H 2 O 2 showed the lowest inhibitory potential regardless of the testing conditions. Practical Applications Minimally processed fruit and vegetables can be infected with certain pathogens if proper procedures like washing, cutting and packaging are not performed with highest standards. The present work was carried out with an aim to ensure the microbiological safety and quality of minimally processed carrots and cabbage by reducing the number of pathogens and phytopathogens like A . hydrophila , A . sobria and P . syringae using trans ‐2‐hexenal, H 2 O 2 and lactic acid as a washing treatment before packaging. The optimized washing solutions were found to produce a satisfactory effect on the reduction of the aforementioned bacteria ensuring the microbiological quality of minimally processed cabbage and carrots for human consumption.