Edible films containing carvacrol and cinnamaldehyde inactivate Escherichia coli O157:H7 on organic leafy greens in sealed plastic bags |
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| Authors: | Libin Zhu Carl Olsen Tara McHugh Mendel Friedman Carol E Levin Divya Jaroni Sadhana Ravishankar |
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| Affiliation: | 1. School of Animal and Comparative Biomedical Sciences, University of Arizona, Tucson, Arizona;2. USDA-ARS Western Regional Research Center, Produce Safety and Microbiology and Processed Foods Research, Albany, California;3. Department of Animal and Food Sciences, Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, Oklahoma |
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| Abstract: | The antimicrobial effects of apple-, carrot-, and hibiscus-based edible films containing carvacrol and cinnamaldehyde against Escherichia coli O157:H7 on organic leafy greens in sealed plastic bags were investigated. Fresh-cut Romaine and Iceberg lettuce, and mature and baby spinach leaves were inoculated with E. coli O157:H7 and placed into Ziploc® bags. Edible films were then added to the bags, which were stored at 4°C. The evaluation of samples taken at days 0, 3, and 7 showed that on all leafy greens, 3% carvacrol-containing films had the greatest effect against E. coli O157:H7, reducing the bacterial population by about 5 log CFU/g on day 0. All three types of 3% carvacrol-containing films reduced E. coli O157:H7 by about 5 log CFU/g at day 0. The 1.5% carvacrol-containing films reduced E. coli O157:H7 by 1–4 logs CFU/g at day 7. Films with 3% cinnamaldehyde showed reduction of 0.6–3 logs CFU/g on different leafy greens. |
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