Develop Novel Non-Thermal Processing/Technologies to Improve the Safety and Quality of Raw/Minimally Processed Foods

<p>NON-TECHNICAL SUMMARY:<br/> In last decade, numerous outbreaks of foodborne pathogenic infections have been associated with raw/minimally-processed food products, such as seafood (Vibrio in oysters and Salmonella in raw tuna fillets), fruits and vegetables (E. coli O157:H7, Salmonella enterica, Shigella spp), and raw cookie dough (E. coli). The above mentioned pathogens are among the bacteria most responsible for foodborne diseases in the US. Lately, a special attention has been dedicated to the microbial safety of raw/minimally-processed food products. Chlorinated water is widely used to wash and decontaminate food; however, its effectiveness is limited for reducing pathogenic bacteria by less than a 2.0 log CFU reduction. Moreover, chlorine (in chlorinated water) reacts with organic materials and produces harmful toxic compounds such as chloramines and trihalomethanes.
Other aqueous sanitation treatments using hydrogen peroxide, peroxyacetic acid, trisodium phosphate, ozone, and their combinations have also been reported with very limit effectiveness on food surfaces. There are some non-thermal technologies such as chlorine dioxide gas (ClO2) has reported to have a strong anti-microbial effect against most pathogenic bacteria on produce surfaces but has also negative impact in food (leafy green vegetables). Therefore, to improve the safety of raw/minimally-processed food products , along with keeping the quality and extending the shelf life, highly effective new technologies are needed to meet consumer demands and to be suitable for industrial use. We are proposing the use of a). X-ray to maximized pathogens reduction on raw tuna fillets, raw cookie dough, and berries, and, b). Depuration/natural additives (DP/NA) to control Vibrio on live oysters.
Based on our current results, X-ray radiation has emerged as the most promising non-thermal sanitation technologies with high efficacy (>5 log reduction) for pathogen reduction on different food products. Research is needed to determine bacterial inactivation efficacy, quality effects, and shelf life studies of X-ray or DP/NA on raw tuna fillets, raw cookie dough, and berries or live oysters, respectively. To develop this technology further for industrial application, we propose to expand our research efforts to: a) evaluate microbial inactivation for important food pathogens and associated food, b) assess quality and shelf life on treated food. Our proposed outreach will facilitate technology transfer to regulatory agencies, the food industry and other interested parties.
<p>APPROACH:<br/> To include a dash in the project number only.
<p>PROGRESS:<br/> 2013/02 TO 2013/09Target Audience: The primary goal of this project is to protect public health using different processing/programs to significantly reduce the prevalence of foodborne illness and promote the introduction of higher quality and safer food to both the industry and consumers. a). Seafood Industry (fishermen, processors, etc.) b). Fresh produce industry (framers, processors, packers, etc.) c). Regulatory agents (state and federal) d). Students (internship) e). Extension agents f). Consumers g). Other stakeholders Changes/Problems: No changes so far. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided? Three students from the MGCCC were tranied in general food safety during 2013. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest? These specificresults have not been shares with others yet.
However, an abstract will be soon submitted to the annual IFT meeting 2014 in New Orleans. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals? Determine the effects of X-ray treatments on the quality (color and texture) of raw tuna fillets during storage at different temperatures (5oC, 10oC, and 25oC). Determine the effects of X-ray treatments on the shelf life of raw tuna fillets during storage at 5oC, 10oC, and 25oC