Effect of the precutting process on sanitizing treatments for reducing pathogens in vegetables

• Published in: Food science and biotechnology Vol. 26; no. 2; pp. 531 - 536
• Main Authors: Hwang, Jin-Ha, Yoon, Jae-Hyun, Bae, Young-Min, Choi, Mi-Ran, Lee, Sun-Young, Park, Ki-Hwan
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Seoul The Korean Society of Food Science and Technology 01.04.2017; Springer Nature B.V; 한국식품과학회
• Subjects: Alcohol; Alcohols; Bacteria; Brussels sprouts; Carrots; Chemistry; Chemistry and Materials Science; cherry tomatoes; Chlorine; Distilled water; E coli; Escherichia coli O157; Food Science; fresh produce; Information processing; lettuce; Listeria; Listeria monocytogenes; Nutrition; paprika; Pathogens; Salmonella; Salmonella Typhimurium; Sanitizers; sanitizing; Tomatoes; Vegetables; washing; 식품과학; effectiveness; pathogen; sanitizing treatment; fresh vegetable; pre-cutting
• ISSN: 1226-7708; 2092-6456; 2092-6456
• DOI: 10.1007/s10068-017-0073-7

The effectiveness of sanitizing treatments was investigated on reducing pathogens inoculated in whole or cut fresh vegetables, including Brussels sprouts, carrots, cherry tomatoes, paprika, and lettuce. These products were inoculated with Escherichia coli O157:H7, Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium, and Listeria monocytogenes and then treated with chlorine and alcohol sanitizers, followed by the subsequent washing procedure in sterile distilled water at 25°C for 5min. Alcohol sanitizer was the most effective in inhibiting E. coli O157:H7, S. Typhimurium, and L. monocytogenes on cut Brussels sprouts, showing bacterial reductions of 4.16, 3.60, and 3.26 log CFU/g, respectively. Interestingly, the effects of sanitizing treatments were significantly lower for fresh cut produce than those for whole products ( p <0.05), indicating that the effectiveness of sanitizers would be different, depending on fresh produce and the pre-cut process. Therefore, further information should be obtained to develop an effective sanitizing treatment for fresh produce.