Naturally derived biological compounds and other natural products
may find use in controlling pathogens in salads, dressings, purees,
jams, jellies and juices. However, we're limited in our use of
natural preservatives because of associated flavors that can alter the
taste of food. Isothiocyanates have potent antimicrobial activity when
used in packaged foods. Improving our understanding of how such
compounds function, and how they affect the survival and growth of
microorganisms, can help us improve the quality of foods naturally while
preventing microbial contamination.
Natural compounds combined with high pressure, sonication,
high-intensity pulsed light, pulsed electric fields and irradiation
techniques offer new ways to reduce pathogens in foods. We should
overcome problems experienced using conventional sanitizing processes by
targeting the treatments to microbial attachment sites in fruits and
vegetables.
Contact: John Cherry, USDA-ARS Eastern Regional Research Center,
600 E. Mermaid Lane, Wyndmoor, PA 19038. Phone: 215-233-6595. Fax:
215-233-6777. Email: jcherry@errc.ars.usda.gov.
COPYRIGHT 2006 Food Technology Intelligence,
Inc. Reproduced with permission of the copyright holder. Further reproduction or distribution is prohibited without permission.
Copyright 2006, Gale Group. All rights
reserved. Gale Group is a Thomson Corporation Company.
NOTE: All illustrations and photos have been removed from this article.