What is the prevention of food spoilage caused by growth of microorganisms in food?

Abstract

Food deterioration during storage is a major environmental problem and is a major concern of food industry. Microorganism contamination during storage and some pathogenic fungi species are mainly responsible for this kind of spoilage. Oxidation is another major cause of degradation of materials and foods. Using natural safe botanical source preservatives like essential oils to prevent food contamination and deterioration is a main consideration of food industry. Essential oil of summer damask rose is a safe natural oil that has antioxidant, antifungal, and antibacterial activity. Therefore, it is a useful agent to use in the food industry in order to avoid food spoilage, contamination, destruction, and oxidation. In addition, this oil is usable as a flavoring agent in foodstuff as well as in perfume industries to provide a better quality to the fragrances.

Abstract

Food deterioration caused by spoilage microorganisms throughout storage and distribution has a major impact on food quality and shelf life, and pathogen microorganisms present in food can result in a variety of infections and/or intoxications. Natural antimicrobials could be an effective way to prevent or minimize food spoilage and/or foodborne outbreaks as an alternative to chemical preservatives. This chapter describes the range of natural antimicrobials potentially useful for food preservation and food safety, as well as their mechanisms of action. The different methods used for the integration of natural antimicrobials in food are also explained. Finally, the challenges and current use of natural antimicrobials in food are discussed.

Abstract:

Food spoilage may be defined as a process or change which renders a product undesirable or unacceptable for consumption. This complex ecological phenomenon is the outcome of the biochemical activity of microbial chemical processes which will eventually dominate according to the prevailing ecological determinants. To ensure the safety and quality of foods and beverages, the effective monitoring of the chill chain through production, transportation, distribution and storage in retail cabinets and home refrigerators is essential. Currently, a variety of different methodologies are used for assessing food spoilage, in which microbiological methods play a decisive role. Recently, the relationship between microbial growth and the chemical changes occurring during food storage has been recognised as a potential indicator which may be useful for monitoring freshness and safety. For this purpose, interesting analytical approaches have been developed for rapid and quantitative assessment of food spoilage. These are based on biosensors, sensor arrays and spectroscopy techniques in tandem with chemometrics. Various processes have been utilised to prevent the microbiological spoilage of foods and beverages, amongst which low temperature storage and heat treatment seem to be the most effective. The application of a rich carbon dioxide atmosphere as part of a modified atmosphere packaging system is also effective in suppressing spoilage micro-organisms.

Abstract

Food deterioration is defined as a process that renders a product unacceptable or undesirable for consumption and is the result of the biochemical activity of microbial populations that predominate in the product. The notion of food safety for produce is important because of its susceptibility to microbial attack and biofilms formation. Even though limited information is available, this activity has been attributed to quorum sensing (QS). Therefore, the potential role of bacterial communication in food spoilage and food safety should be more widely elucidated. Thus, the screening of antipathogenic agents that inhibit the QS regulation of bacterial colonization and virulence factor production might represent a great promising alternative as antiinfective agents. This chapter focuses on resistance to sanitizers and disinfectants, outbreaks related to produce, QS, biofilm formation, attachments and current and emerging strategies for fresh and minimally processed produce, providing new findings concerning about food safety.

Abstract

Food spoilage by chemical oxidation represents one of the major problems for society. Typically, an exposure of a food or beverage to oxygen would trigger a chain of chemical reactions involving proteins, pigments, fatty acids, and lipids, producing other compounds with undesirable biochemical properties including toxicity, as well as undesirable taste, smell, and color. Many of these processes occur via free radical mechanisms and involve chain reactions. This chapter reviews current progress in the use of electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectroscopy to characterize endogenous free radicals and paramagnetic metal ion complexes in liquid food and beverages, as well as reactive radical species directly involved in chemical reactions leading to food degradation. This field has experienced enormous growth over the last two decades. We also review the expanding use of EPR to characterize antioxidants present in food, and commercial applications of EPR methods to predict the shelf life of beer. The remaining problems, potential solutions, and future directions for using this powerful and informative spectroscopic method in characterizing liquid food and beverages are also discussed.

1.1 Introduction

Food spoilage results when microbiological, chemical, or physical changes occur, rendering the food product unacceptable to the consumer. Microbiological food spoilage is caused by the growth of microorganisms which produce enzymes that lead to objectionable by-products in the food. Chemical food spoilage occurs when different components in the food react with each other or with some added component which alter the food’s sensory characteristics. Examples of this include: oxidation; enzymatic browning; and nonenzymatic browning. Physical food spoilage results when moist foods are excessively dehydrated or dried foods absorb excessive moisture (Benner, 2014).

For years, safety (i.e., the exclusion or elimination of pathogens from food) has been studied separately from the prevention of spoilage. In most countries the legislation has tended to reinforce this concept. However, from a microbiological-ecological point of view the two areas cannot be distinguished. In spite of considerable efforts, microbiological safety assurance seems as remote as ever, even in advanced countries. Death, suffering, economic losses, and civil claims on behalf of victims of foodborne diseases are matched by the economic losses caused by food spoilage (Di Renzo et al., 2015).

Although exact figures of the total economic losses due to food spoilage are unknown, it is clear that it constitutes an enormous financial burden (Blackburn, 2006) estimated at 1.3 billion tons per year by FAO (Cichello, 2015). According to the USDA Economic Research Service estimates, about 96 billion pounds of food, or more than a quarter of the 356 billion pounds of edible food available for human consumption in the United States, were lost to human use at three marketing stages: retail, foodservice, and consumers. Fresh fruits and vegetables (19.6%), fluid milk (18.1%), grain products (15.2%), and sweeteners (12.4%), mostly sugar and high-fructose corn syrup, accounted for two-thirds of these losses (Nguyen Van Long et al., 2016).

A significant proportion of the loss is due to spoilage by microorganisms, resulting in final products with an inadequate shape or appearance (Dousset et al., 2016). It has been estimated that about 25% of all foods produced globally are lost due to microbial spoilage (Bondi et al., 2014).

The food industry is continually creating new microbial habitats, either by developing new products and reformulating traditional ones, or by chance, as a result of the composition of raw materials or in production (Argyri et al., 2014). Also, the modern consumers’ preference for fresh foods with extended shelf life and products that are free of chemical pesticides leave foods more vulnerable to spoilage, as well as increasing the diversity of spoilage species (Blackburn, 2006; Brandelli, 2015).

Understanding how different properties of a food, its environment and “history,” can influence the microbiota that develops in products, is an important first step toward control quality and safety (Argyri et al., 2014).

The present chapter discusses the characteristics of microbial spoilage of foods with a focus on the major spoilage microorganisms and how they can be detected and monitored.

Conclusion

Food spoilage may pose economic consequences if certain precautionary and preventive measures are not performed. The food industry has adopted methods to minimize spoilage with the use of natural preservatives, novel processing systems, refrigeration, packaging material and, more recently, management systems. These techniques, however, are incapable of controlling spoilage if incoming material is not of the highest quality and handled under good sanitary conditions. In all cases, the shelf life of many foods can be extended if foods are prepared to minimize the level of bacterial contamination before final processing.

Abstract

Food spoilage and food microbial safety are important and complex subject areas involving disparate factors. One of the challenges for managers of microbial food safety risks is to put in place effective controls, without increasing costs or reducing food quality.

The use of antimicrobials for growth promotion in livestock and the corresponding increase of antibiotic resistance in food-borne bacteria caused a spread of antibiotic resistant bacterial species in the environment and food. Over the last decades, the rapid emergence of multidrug-resistant pathogens has become a global concern, suggesting a new trend in tackling the complex problem of food safety and prompting the search for alternative antibacterial agents.

6.3 Spoilage hazards

Food spoilage is the process leading to a product becoming either undesirable or unacceptable for human consumption (with associated changes involving alterations in taste, smell, appearance or texture). Interestingly, in the definition by Singleton and Sainsbury (1993) mention is made of the food also sometimes becoming toxic.

Food spoilage may be caused by a variety of mechanisms, including microbial, chemical and physical reactions, and in many cases spoilage can be clearly defined in these distinct terms (Fig. 6.2). Microbial spoilage is often due to the growth and/or metabolism of spoilage bacteria, yeasts or moulds. Chemical spoilage may be via nonmicrobial enzymic action, oxidation or non-enzymic browning. Examples of physical spoilage include water loss; increase in moisture of dry foods; freezer burn; and recrystallisation of frozen foods. However, there are occasions when the cause and/or manifestation of spoilage is a combination of these different types of hazards, e.g. physical changes to the product or its container caused by chemical reactions or microbial growth and metabolism (Fig. 6.2).

Therefore, microbiological spoilage needs to be considered in the context that it is just one mechanism, albeit extremely important, that contributes to defining when a food is undesirable or unfit for human consumption.

Abstract

Food spoilage is a complex ecological phenomenon, caused mainly by the biochemical activity of specific groups of microorganisms. The present chapter provides information pertinent to microbiological spoilage of foods and beverages, the main cause of quality deterioration in these commodities. Microorganisms (ie, molds, yeasts, and bacteria) associated with spoilage as well as factors (intrinsic, extrinsic, implicit, and processing) affecting their growth and determining their eventual dominance in foods and beverages are presented. Additional aspects covered include a review of the existing knowledge and the recent advances in the assessment and prediction of microbiological spoilage. Potential control interventions aiming at its effective management within the food and beverage industries also are discussed.