Alternative disinfection techniques to extend the shelf life of minimally processed iceberg lettuce |
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Authors: | Angeline Gopal John Coventry Jason Wan Hubert Roginski Said Ajlouni |
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Affiliation: | 1. Product Design Manager, Fonterra Brands Innovation, Fonterra Australia Corporate Centre. 327 FernTree Gully Road, Mt Waverley, Victoria 3149, Australia;2. Food Science Australia, Private Bag 16, Werribee, Victoria, Australia;3. Department of Food Science and Agribusiness, Melbourne School of Land and Environment, Parkville, Vic, Australia |
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Abstract: | Chlorination continues to be widely used by the fresh-cut industry for washing and disinfecting minimally processed fruits and vegetables. However, as chlorination has been reported to produce unhealthy by-products such as, chloramines and trihalomethanes, many alternative methods have been reported in the literature. This study examined the use of silver and hydrogen peroxide as possible alternative to chlorination. The results revealed an obvious bactericidal effect of hydrogen peroxide, silver and their combination on spoilage organisms. Combination of electrochemically generated silver (5 ppm) and hydrogen peroxide (0.4 ppm) caused significant (P < 0.05) reduction in the total plate count (0.87 log), Pseudomonas (2.66 logs), Enterobactericeae (1.61 logs) and yeast and mould (1.60 logs) immediately after washing in comparison to water washed shredded lettuce. However, washing with chlorinated water (5 ppm) under same conditions revealed insignificant reduction in TPC (0.17 log), Pseudomonas (0.60 log), Enterobactericeae (0.15 log) or yeast and mould (0.81 log) counts. Results revealed also that both sources of silver (electrochemical silver and silver nitrate) have similar disinfecting effects, however, electrochemical silver maintained the quality of washed lettuce. |
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Keywords: | Silver Hydrogen peroxide Disinfection Chlorination Total plate count Pseudomonas Enterobactericeae Yeast and moulds |
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