The efficacy and safety of high‐pressure processing of food

Abstract

High‐pressure processing (HPP) is a non‐thermal treatment in which, for microbial inactivation, foods are subjected to isostatic pressures (P) of 400–600 MPa with common holding times (t) from 1.5 to 6 min. The main factors that influence the efficacy (log10 reduction of vegetative microorganisms) of HPP when applied to foodstuffs are intrinsic (e.g. water activity and pH), extrinsic (P and t) and microorganism‐related (type, taxonomic unit, strain and physiological state). It was concluded that HPP of food will not present any additional microbial or chemical food safety concerns when compared to other routinely applied treatments (e.g. pasteurisation). Pathogen reductions in milk/colostrum caused by the current HPP conditions applied by the industry are lower than those achieved by the legal requirements for thermal pasteurisation. However, HPP minimum requirements (P/t combinations) could be identified to achieve specific log10 reductions of relevant hazards based on performance criteria (PC) proposed by international standard agencies (5–8 log10 reductions). The most stringent HPP conditions used industrially (600 MPa, 6 min) would achieve the above‐mentioned PC, except for Staphylococcus aureus. Alkaline phosphatase (ALP), the endogenous milk enzyme that is widely used to verify adequate thermal pasteurisation of cows’ milk, is relatively pressure resistant and its use would be limited to that of an overprocessing indicator. Current data are not robust enough to support the proposal of an appropriate indicator to verify the efficacy of HPP under the current HPP conditions applied by the industry. Minimum HPP requirements to reduce Listeria monocytogenes levels by specific log10 reductions could be identified when HPP is applied to ready‐to‐eat (RTE) cooked meat products, but not for other types of RTE foods. These identified minimum requirements would result in the inactivation of other relevant pathogens (Salmonella and Escherichia coli) in these RTE foods to a similar or higher extent.

Effect of Hydrostatic Pressure and Temperature on Extractability and Bioaccessibility of Lipophilic Micronutrients in Kale

“…Despite a recognized impact of high hydrostatic pressure on extending shelf life and ensuring food safety worldwide, , benefits of low-pressure applications for food quality have been less investigated. To study the effect of low-pressure regimes (10–100 MPa) on relevant lipophilic micronutrients, contents of vitamin E and total carotenoids were investigated in kale samples obtained with LP-LT (low pressure-low temperature) processing and were compared to contents in samples obtained at higher pressures (200–600 MPa).…”

Physical Treatments to Control Clostridium botulinum Hazards in Food

“…High-pressure processing (HPP) or high hydrostatic pressure (HHP) is a nonthermal method used to inactivate food spoilage and pathogenic microbes in food and to modify the physicochemical nature of the food matrix [ 111 ]. In this method, high pressure (100 to 1000 MPa) is applied to packaged food (with sufficient water content and no air voids) at a specific temperature (0 and 120 °C) for a few seconds to several minutes [ 112 , 113 ]. This technique uniformly applies pressure on an isostatic food matrix, therefore, the effects are the same in the product irrespective of the shape, mass, volume, and physical state of the food [ 114 ].…”

Hazard control through processing and preservation technologies for enhancing the food safety management of infant food chains

“…Several guidance documents published by public health authorities recognise HPP as a technology contributing to the control of this pathogen in ready-to-eat food. 26 , 27 , 28 , 29 HPP is also recognised as a suitable technology to design a control measure to inactivate the pertinent pathogens (e.g. E. coli O157:H7, Salmonella spp.)…”

“…Cronobacter sakazaki, Listeria monocytogenes) are of relevance for different type of infant foods. The microbial resistance to heat and other processing technologies depends on several factors, 46,47 including:…”