Gamma radiation processing for extending shelf-life and ensuring quality of minimally processed ready-to-eat onions

Khade, H.D.; Saxena, Sudhanshu; Hajare, Sachin N.; Gautam, Satyendra

doi:10.1007/s13197-023-05754-8

Cited by 2 publications

(1 citation statement)

References 24 publications

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“…In this context, we highlight the need to more deeply investigate the stress responses of contaminating bacteria after sanitizing treatments, and we point out the importance of seeking alternative decontamination processes that are able to act also during storage. Indeed, several emerging disinfection strategies, including non-thermal physical treatments, such as UV light, ionizing radiation, high hydrostatic pressure and high-intensity ultrasound, especially when used in combination, have been demonstrated to be efficacious in ensuring the high microbiological quality of RTE vegetables [ 35 , 36 , 37 ]. Furthermore, the use of these treatments can also be useful to minimize the risk of product deterioration, such as in the case of ultrasonic treatments that have been demonstrated to inhibit the activity of PPO, POD and cell-wall-degrading enzymes, thus preventing vegetable browning [ 38 ].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Implication of Sodium Hypochlorite as a Sanitizer in Ready-to-Eat Salad Processing and Advantages of the Use of Alternative Rapid Bacterial Detection Methods

Arienzo

Gallo

Tomassetti

et al. 2023

Foods

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The use of disinfection agents in the washing processing of ready-to-eat (RTE) vegetables, especially sodium hypochlorite, is a common industrial practice performed to enhance microbiological quality. However, some studies have reported a restart of bacterial growth and a substantial increase in bacterial load during early storage associated with the use of disinfection agents, which might represent a risk for consumers. We evaluated the effect of sodium hypochlorite on bacterial growth trends during the shelf-life in Lactuca sativa, simulating the industrial procedures for RTE vegetable packaging. Immediately after sodium hypochlorite treatment, an effective abatement of the bacterial load was observed, followed by a restart of growth throughout storage. After 5 days, the bacterial load was close to that reached by the control samples, indicating that the net increase in bacterial load was significantly higher in the treated samples. This might be ascribed to the reduction in competitive microflora and/or to the induction of adaptive responses by resting bacteria, which might select disinfectant-resistant bacteria. These findings elicit some concerns about the actual duration of the shelf-life; products might decrease their microbiological quality earlier during storage, pointing out the need to better clarify the impact of sodium hypochlorite as a sanitizer to closer consider its use in RTE vegetable processing. Furthermore, due to the importance of the rapid estimation of bacterial load and the early detection of foodborne pathogens throughout the food chain, the accuracy of the rapid bacteria detection method, the Micro Biological Survey (MBS), and its effectiveness for microbiological analyses of RTE vegetables were evaluated.

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