In the last few decades, fresh-cut fruit products have gained popularity with consumers. They require little to no further processing prior to consumption. Fresh-cut products also make fruits and vegetables more conveniently available to consumers year-round. There are limitations, however, to fresh-cut fruit and vegetables in the marketplace. These products are very perishable and could become contaminated with foodborne pathogens. Most fresh-cut fruits and vegetables will only last a short period of time at refrigerator temperatures. There are many possible routes of bacterial contamination in the fresh-cut produce industry. There is a need for antimicrobial compounds that can be applied to fruits and vegetables to help maintain the shelf-life of these products without greatly altering their sensory qualities. Cetylpyridinium chloride (CPC) and acidified sodium chlorite (ASC) have both been shown to have antimicrobial effects.
This study was conducted to determine if cetylpyridinium chloride and acidified sodium chlorite would be effective in reducing E. coli 0157:H7, Salmonella Montevideo, and Shigella sonnei on the surface of inoculated and stored fresh-cut cantaloupe cubes. The effect of these compounds on the physiological quality of fresh-cut cantaloupe cubes was also investigated. Results obtained from this study show that both compounds were effective in significantly reducing the three pathogens. Significant reductions were achieved during both a preliminary 24 hour storage study and a 12 day shelf life study for all three pathogens. The 1.00% CPC and 1000 ppm ASC concentrations were most effective at reducing the three pathogens. It was also determined that CPC and ASC did not greatly affect the physiological quality (°Brix, firmness, color) of fresh-cut cubes stored at refrigerator temperatures for up to fourteen days. Treatment of fresh-cut cantaloupe cubes with CPC caused significant interaction effects between treatment levels and sampling day on the recovery of several characteristic impact flavor and aroma compounds (CIFAC). Concentrations of ASC caused significantly higher levels of certain volatiles to be recovered over the 14 day study.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:LSU/oai:etd.lsu.edu:etd-11152006-090410 |
| Date | 16 November 2006 |
| Creators | Dumas, Allison Marie |
| Contributors | Marlene E. Janes, J. Samuel Godber, John C. Beaulieu |
| Publisher | LSU |
| Source Sets | Louisiana State University |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | text |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Source | http://etd.lsu.edu/docs/available/etd-11152006-090410/ |
| Rights | unrestricted, I hereby certify that, if appropriate, I have obtained and attached herein a written permission statement from the owner(s) of each third party copyrighted matter to be included in my thesis, dissertation, or project report, allowing distribution as specified below. I certify that the version I submitted is the same as that approved by my advisory committee. I hereby grant to LSU or its agents the non-exclusive license to archive and make accessible, under the conditions specified below and in appropriate University policies, my thesis, dissertation, or project report in whole or in part in all forms of media, now or hereafter known. I retain all other ownership rights to the copyright of the thesis, dissertation or project report. I also retain the right to use in future works (such as articles or books) all or part of this thesis, dissertation, or project report. |
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