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PubMed1995

[Effectiveness of modified atmospheres against psychrotrophic pathogenic microorganisms in proteinaceous food].

Modified atmosphere packaging (MAP) of proteinaceous raw foods (meat, poultry and fish) extends their shelf-lives. It is well established that modified atmospheres (MA) inhibit the psychotropic aerobic Gram-negative bacteria, the main spoilage microflora of proteinaceous raw foods stored under refrigeration. Several researchers have warned about the possible growth of food poisoning microorganisms on them. Considering the minimal growth temperatures of pathogens, this review only deals with Aeromonas hydrophila, Clostridium botulinum, Listeria monocytogenes and Yersinia enterocolitica. C. botulinum produces its toxin in many different atmospheres, but it is unable to grow at temperatures below 3.3 degrees C, and its production rate of the toxin at temperatures below 4.5 degrees C is very low, to the extent that fish can be spoiled before the toxin is detected. Therefore, the control of the storage temperature of MAP fish seems to be indispensable to assure the absence of botulinal toxin. With regard to the other pathogens, vacuum is the atmosphere that may support more readily its growth; the higher the CO2 concentration in the atmosphere, the lower the growth rate is. Some investigations have shown that the growth rates of the psychotropic pathogens in MAP are lower than those of the spoilage flora. It has been shown also that A. hydrophila and L. monocytogenes growth rates are lower under MA than under aerobic storage. In relation to Y. enterocolitica, more investigations should be carried out in order to clear up its behaviour, because the available data in the literature are still confusing and sometimes even contradictory. In conclusion, there are no evidences that support the concern about MAP of proteinaceous raw foods representing a greater hazard than its conventional storage under air.

Cold Temperature↗
PubMed2003

Food and waterborne infections associated with package holidays.

The surveillance and prevention of food and waterborne infections in package holiday tourists relies more on common sense and experience rather than evidence based scientific facts. In spite of the major economic value to both sending and receiving countries it is a problem that is largely ignored by health departments at both local and national levels. Package holiday tourism is a growing industry with over 20 million holidays sold every year in the UK. Destinations are in every continent including countries with poorly developed, as well as those with an advanced, public health infrastructure. The incidence of gastrointestinal infection is not reflected in official surveillance programmes as they largely fail to capture information on travel associated infections. Outbreaks of food and waterborne infections in these resorts are largely not investigated. Major British tour operators have responded by developing a crude but effective continuous surveillance system for subjective travellers' diarrhoea. The importance of food and water hygiene is, however, not ignored and proactive preventative programmes are being developed and implemented in some resort as well as by the tourist industry and international agencies. There is a need for further cooperation and partnership between workers in different countries, different disciplines and between the public and private sectors.

Commerce↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Recent innovations in edible and/or biodegradable packaging materials.

Certain newly discovered characteristics of natural biopolymers should make them a choice material to be used for different types of wrappings and films. Edible and/or biodegradable packagings produced from agricultural origin macromolecules provide a supplementary and sometimes essential means to control physiological, microbiological, and physicochemical changes in food products. This is accomplished (i) by controlling mass transfers between food product and ambient atmosphere or between components in heterogeneous food product, and (iii) by modifying and controlling food surface conditions (pH, level of specific functional agents, slow release of flavour compounds), it should be stressed that the material characteristics (polysaccharide, protein, or lipid, plasticized or not, chemically modified or not, used alone or in combination) and the fabrication procedures (casting of a film-forming solution, thermoforming) must be adapted to each specific food product and usage condition (relative humidity, temperature). Some potential uses of these materials (e.g. wrapping of various fabricated foods; protection of fruits and vegetables by control of maturation; protection of meat and fish; control of internal moisture transfer in pizzas), which are hinged on film properties (e.g. organoleptic, mechanical, gas and solute barrier) are described with examples.

Biodegradation, Environmental↗
PubMed1998

Incorporation of food-grade antimicrobial compounds into biodegradable packaging films.

Lysozyme and nisin are both antimicrobial proteins effective against gram-positive bacteria. The use of these antimicrobials in combination with chelating agents displays increased effectiveness against gram-negative bacteria. Packaging films with lysozyme or nisin incorporated into the film structure were tested separately for inhibition against Lactobacillus plantarum. Both lysozyme and nisin were used in combination with EDTA in films and were evaluated for inhibition against Escherichia coli. Two packaging film-forming methods were used to incorporate lysozyme or nisin into biodegradable protein films to determine if antimicrobial properties could be induced in the film. Heat-press and casting methods were used to produce films made from soy protein and corn zein. Circular samples were cut from the finished films, which were then placed on a bacterial lawn, incubated, and measured for any zones of inhibition. Both cast and heat-press films with added lysozyme or nisin formed excellent films and exhibited inhibition of bacterial growth. The lysozyme and nisin retained their bacteriocidal properties throughout both the heat-press and cast film-forming processes. The cast films exhibited larger inhibitory zones, as compared to the heat-press films, when the same levels of lysozyme or nisin were incorporated. L. plantarum was inhibited by films containing nisin or lysozyme. The addition of EDTA increased the inhibitory effect of films against E. coli.

Anti-Bacterial Agents↗
PubMed1997

Measurement of styrene oxide in polystyrenes, estimation of migration to foods, and reaction kinetics and products in food simulants.

The concentration of styrene-7,8-oxide has been measured in nine base resins and 16 samples of polystyrene articles intended for food contact. The epoxide was not detected in the resins (limit of detection 0.5 mg/kg) but was found in 11 of the 16 packaging samples at up to 2.9 mg/kg. Assuming that the propensity of styrene oxide to migrate is the same as styrene monomer, and using existing survey data for styrene monomer in packaging and foods, the migration levels expected for styrene oxide were calculated. Estimates were from 0.002 to 0.15 microgram/kg styrene oxide in foods. The stability of styrene oxide in the four standard EU food simulants was studied at 40, 100, 150 and 175 degrees C, to establish the transformation products to be expected following migration testing. The half-life at 40 degrees C in distilled water, 15% aqueous ethanol, 3% aqueous acetic acid and olive oil was 15, 23, < 1, > 2000 hr, respectively. The principal product was the diol from hydrolysis of the epoxide group. Ring opening in aqueous ethanol simulant gave the diol and also the glycol monoethyl ether. It is concluded that this instability of styrene oxide will reduce concentrations in foods, from an already low migration level to even lower levels with the formation of hydrolysis products that are less toxic than the parent epoxide.

Carcinogens↗
PubMed2005

Evaluation of migration models that might be used in support of regulations for food-contact plastics.

Materials and articles intended to come into contact with food must be shown to be safe because they might interact with food during processing, storage and the transportation of foodstuffs. Framework Directive 89/109/EEC and its related specific Directives provide this safety basis for the protection of the consumer against inadmissible chemical contamination from food-contact materials. Recently, the European Commission charged an international group of experts to demonstrate that migration modelling can be regarded as a valid and reliable tool to calculate 'reasonable worst-case' migration rates from the most important food-contact plastics into the European Union official food simulants. The paper summarizes the main steps followed to build up and validate a migration estimation model that can be used, for a series of plastic food-contact materials and migrants, for regulatory purposes. Analytical solutions of the diffusion equation in conjunction with an 'upper limit' equation for the migrant diffusion coefficient, D(P), and the use of 'worst case' partitioning coefficients K(P,F) were used in the migration model. The results obtained were then validated, at a confidence level of 95%, by comparison with the available experimental evidence. The successful accomplishment of the goals of this project is reflected by the fact that in Directive 2002/72/EC, the European Commission included the mathematical modelling as an alternative tool to determine migration rates for compliance purposes.

Diffusion↗
PubMed1996

The application of a predictive migration model for evaluating the compliance of plastic materials with European food regulations.

A model for estimating the migration of organic substances from plastic materials into foodstuffs has been previously developed. The use of this model allows a shift away from expensive and time consuming migration analysis in foods to much simpler and more economic compositional analysis in the material. Starting with toxicologically-based specific migration values, like the over 400 specific migration limit values for organic substances listed in the European Union's Synoptic Document No. 7, the corresponding allowable maximum quantity limits of these substances in the plastic were calculated. The amount of migration that can occur depends on many different factors such as the natures of the plastic, substance and food, contact time and temperature conditions, material thickness and number of uses. These factors can result in a variety of situations which must be taken into account in the estimation of migration. The handling of the migration estimation model is demonstrated for several practical migration scenarios using a series of case studies.

Diffusion↗
PubMed1999

A study on the equivalence of olive oil and the EU official substitute test media for migration testing at high temperatures.

As a consequence of an increasing awareness and findings about the technical and analytical difficulties related to the employment of triglycerides as fatty food simulants in migration testing, EU Directive 82/711/EEC on the basic rules of migration has been amended for the second time and adapted with the recent Commission Directive 97/48/EC. The major merit of this important amendment is to authorize alternative tests such as extraction tests and to allow substitute tests for the fat test with concrete indication of corresponding test conditions to be applied. As a novelty in food law compliance testing it authorizes a modified polyphenylene oxide (MPPO), well-known as Tenax, a thermostable and highly adsorptive porous polymer, as a 'solid' matrix to substitute fat simulant D at temperatures equal to or higher than 100 degrees C. In the study presented here, comparative migration testing--overall and specific--was carried out between fat simulants olive oil and 14C-labelled HB 307 and the substitute test media iso-octane, 95% ethanol and MPPO using polypropylene materials as examples at test temperatures of 100 degrees C to 120 degrees C and prescribed corresponding substitute test conditions. As a consequence, a number of conclusions were drawn which are relevant for overall and/or specific migration testing under the investigated test conditions. One of the major findings was that MPPO was generally more equivalent to the fat test than the other two substitute test media. The presence of volatile hydrocarbons in the test samples was found to play a crucial role with respect to the equivalence of the iso-octane-based substitute test. At high volatile concentrations in the test sample the iso-octane test underestimated the olive oil benchmark whereas low volatile concentrations led to satisfying equivalence. It is therefore recommended that the procedure is modified and GC-FID screening of the isooctane extract is carried out. As a logical consequence, the possibility of quantitative determination of the overall extract by GC-FID is recommendable and should be investigated in more depth. Concerning the overall migration test procedure in olive oil, the vacuum pre-conditioning at 60 degrees C should be given re-consideration to avoid the possibility of loss of volatile migrants whose determination should be within the scope of the overall migration test method itself. Finally, the specific migration related equivalence between olive oil, MPPO and iso-octane needs further investigations to clarify the net effect of strongly increased diffusion rates at the regular high temperature versus the substitute test solvent accelerated extraction effect at 60 degrees C. Stability aspects of migrants at the different test temperatures deserve further consideration.

Chromatography, Gas↗
PubMed2006

Inhibition of Listeria innocua and Brochothrix thermosphacta in vacuum-packaged meat by addition of bacteriocinogenic Lactobacillus curvatus CRL705 and its bacteriocins.

AIMS: To evaluate the inhibition effectiveness of Lactobacillus curvatus CRL705 used as a bioprotective culture and of its bacteriocins, lactocin 705 and lactocin AL705, against Listeria innocua, Brochothrix thermosphacta and indigenous lactic acid bacteria (LAB) in vacuum-packaged meat stored at 2 degrees C. METHODS AND RESULTS: The live culture of Lact. curvatus CRL705 as well as synthetic lactocin 705 and purified lactocin AL705 were shown to be similarly effective in preventing the growth of B. thermosphacta and L. innocua in meat discs in contrast to control samples in which these micro-organisms grew rapidly, their numbers increasing by 3.0- and 2.1-log cycles respectively. In addition, indigenous LAB population showed a lower growth rate in the presence of lactocin 705. Bacteriocin activity was detected in the meat discs during 36 days at 2 degrees C irrespective of the biopreservation strategy applied. Changes in pH were not significantly different in meat discs treated with the protective culture when compared with control samples. CONCLUSIONS: Lactobacillus curvatus CRL705 and the produced bacteriocins, lactocin 705 and lactocin AL 705, were effective in inhibiting L. innocua and B. thermosphacta. The use of the bioprotective culture in refrigerated vacuum-packaged fresh meat would be more feasible from an economic and legal point of view. SIGNIFICANCE AND IMPACT OF THE STUDY: Establishment of biopreservation as a method to ensure the microbiological safety of vacuum-packaged fresh meat at 2 degrees C.

Anti-Bacterial Agents↗
PubMed1998

Effectiveness of cleaning and disinfection procedures on the removal of enterotoxigenic bacillus cereus from infant feeding bottles.

Reconstituted infant milk formulas are considered a food class of high risk because of the susceptibility of the infant population to enteric bacterial pathogens, severe response to enterotoxins, and increased mortality. Twenty infant feeding bottles, contaminated with different levels of enterotoxigenic Bacillus cereus, were subjected in triplicate to a variety of commonly used cleaning and disinfection procedures Although thorough cleaning reduced microbial numbers, it did not remove all B. cereus present. Three commercially available disinfection procedures (i.e., one chemical and two thermal) successfully eliminated this organism when the level of contamination was <10(5) organisms ml(-1). However, the chemical disinfection method failed to eliminate enterotoxigenic B. cereus totally at potentially hazardous contamination levels (i.e., greater than or equal to 10(5) organisms ml(-1)) that may be encountered under storage abuse conditions in the home.

Animals↗
PubMed2006

Impact of the population of spoilage microflora on the growth of Listeria monocytogenes on frankfurters.

Approximately 100 CFU/cm2 of a five-strain mixture of Listeria monocytogenes was coinoculated onto frankfurters with three different concentrations (10(2), 10(4), and 106 CFU/cm2) of an undefined spoilage microflora derived from commercial frankfurters. The frankfurters were vacuum packaged and stored at 10 degrees C for up to 48 days. The populations of L. monocytogenes, aerobic mesophilic bacteria, lactic acid bacteria, and Enterobacteriaceae were determined at various time intervals during storage. After 14 days, the population of L. monocytogenes was highest when grown with a spoilage microflora population of 10(2) CFU/cm2, and this trend continued until 48 days. Throughout the entire storage period, the populations of L. monocytogenes at any concentration of inoculated spoilage microflora rarely differed by more than 0.5 log CFU/cm2, and the maximum observed difference as 1.1 log CFU/cm2 at 40 days. The growth rate of L. monocytogenes was approximately the same at all concentrations of the inoculated spoilage microflora. These results suggest that the concentration of spoilage microflora present on the original processed meat may have a slight impact on the growth of L. monocytogenes in the package.

Animals↗
PubMed2002

Growth and survival of Escherichia coli O157:H7 on fresh-cut apples in modified atmospheres at abusive temperatures.

The effects of reduced-O2 and elevated-CO2 modified atmospheres (MAs) and abusive temperatures on the growth and survival of E. coli O157:H7, yeast, and molds and on changes in the visual quality of fresh-cut apples were evaluated. High-CO1 and low-O2 (> or = 15% and < 1%, respectively) atmospheres inhibited the growth of the pathogen on apple slices at 15 and 20 degrees C. However, the population of the pathogen increased by 1 log cycle after 2 weeks of storage in air. The high-CO2 MA resulted in the inhibition of yeast and mold growth, less browning, and better visual quality than did air and ambient-CO2 atmospheres. The results of this study confirm that E. coli O157:H7 can grow on apple slices in air. These results also show that these organisms survive but are inhibited in MAs with high CO2 levels at abusive temperatures. An MA can increase the shelf life of fresh-cut apples by improving retention of visual quality and inhibiting yeast and molds. Thus, contamination of minimally processed apples with E. coli O157:H7 can be a safety issue for both air- and MA-packaged cut apples.

Carbon Dioxide↗
PubMed2002

Shelf life extension of pre-baked buns by an ACTIVE PACKAGING ethanol emitter.

The paper reports the influence of an ethanol emitter (Ethicap) on the microbiological condition and the shelf life extension of a bakery product. Pre-baked buns, with a water activity of 0.95, were packaged with different amounts of Ethicap and stored at room temperature. Yeasts and moulds remained largely absent from the core of the pre-baked bun (< 10(2) cfu g(-1)) during storage, independent of the presence of ethanol. The total mesophilic count was low at the beginning of the storage experiment (< 10(2) cfu g(-1)), but increased without ethanol within 1 week to an unacceptable level. In the presence of ethanol, the total mesophilic count stabilizes at a consumable level of 10(5)-10(6) cfu g(-1). The increase of total mesophilic count was caused by growth of a Bacillus spp., probably B. subtilis. Mould growth on the outer surface is limiting for shelf life extension. On the pre-baked buns, the following moulds were present: Penicillium solitum, P. commune, P. corylophilum, Cladosporium sphaerospermum and C. herbarum. These started to grow within 4-6 days. Mould growth can be delayed for 13 days by adding Ethicap. The ethanol probably has to be absorbed by the pre-baked bun to be effective in growth suppression of the Bacillus spp. the moulds. The pre-baked buns absorb most of the ethanol from the package headspace, and the ethanol content of the products is approximately 0.8 weight% after 21 days. This largely exceeds the overall migration limit of 60 mg kg(-1) food (0.006 weight%).

Bacillus↗
PubMed2002

Effects of some groundnut packaging methods and protection with Ocimum and syzygium powders on kernel infection by fungi.

Powders from the leaves of Ocimum gratissimum and cloves of Syzygium aromaticum were used as protectants at 3% (w/w) in combination with various packaging methods to store 3.5 kg groundnut kernel samples (9.3% moisture) artificially inoculated with Aspergillus parasiticus. Phostoxin-protected and unprotected samples were the controls. Packaging was accomplished with (i) Jute bags; JB (ii) Interlaced polypropylene bags; IPPB (iii) Polyethylene bags; PB (iv) PB inserted into IPPB and (v) PB inserted into JB. Selected treatments were repeated concurrently with naturally infected kernels (6.6% moisture). With 9.3% moisture kernels, there was a highly significant protectant, packaging method, and protectant X packaging method effect on protection of kernels from fungal infection at 2, 4, and 6 months. Packaging with JB and IPPB with or without plant powders gave 100% protection against fungi but insect infestation was prevented only when the Syzygium powder was used. When PB was used either singly or in combination with JB and IPPB, 100% protection from fungi was achieved up to 2 months with the Ocimum and up to 4 months with the Syzygium powder. The phostoxin treatment also gave 100% protection with JB and IPPB packaging but was ineffective with PB packaging. Kernels packaged with PB without the powders were extensively mouldy. Kernels with natural mycoflora (6.6% moisture) were free from fungi at 6 months regardless of the protectant and packaging used. In further tests, the Syzygium powder, at 3% and in combination with JB-packaging, effectively suppressed cross infection of healthy kernels (12% moisture) by fungi from diseased kernels when both kernel types occurred in the same lot. At 18.5% kernel moisture and with identical packaging, the Syzygium powder at 3%, was not as effective.

Aflatoxins↗