Efficacy of pulsed light for shelf-life extension and inactivation of Listeria monocytogenes on ready-to-eat cooked meat products
2011
Hierro, Eva | Barroso, Elvira | la Hoz, Lorenzo de | Ordóñez, Juan A. | Manzano, Susana | Fernández, Manuela
Pulsed light (PL) was tested for its utility to improve the microbial quality and safety of ready-to-eat cooked meat products. Vacuum-packaged ham and bologna slices were superficially inoculated with Listeria monocytogenes and treated with 0.7, 2.1, 4.2 and 8.4J/cm². PL treatment at 8.4J/cm² reduced L. monocytogenes by 1.78cfu/cm² in cooked ham and by 1.11cfu/cm² in bologna. The effect of PL on lipid oxidation and sensory properties was also investigated. The 2-thiobarbituric acid values were very low and chromaticity parameters were within the normal values reported for cooked meat products. PL at 8.4J/cm² did not affect the sensory quality of cooked ham, while treatments above 2.1J/cm² negatively influenced the sensory properties of bologna. The combination of PL and vacuum packaging provided ham with an additional shelf-life extension of 30days compared with only vacuum packaging. The shelf-life of bologna was not extended by PL. INDUSTRIAL RELEVANCE: The efficacy of pulsed light for the decontamination of surfaces offers excellent possibilities to ensure food safety and to extend shelf-life of ready-to-eat (RTE) products. The results of this study indicate that Listeria monocytogenes can be reduced by approximately 2logcfu/cm² in RTE cooked ham and 1logcfu/cm² in bologna using a fluence of 8.4J/cm². This dose does not affect the sensory properties of ham and triples its shelf-life when compared with conventional RTE products. On the contrary, fluences above 2.1J/cm² are not suitable for the treatment of bologna since sensory quality is modified.
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