P3-134 Combined Treatment of Slightly Acidic Electrolyzed Water and Fumaric Acid to Improve Microbial Safety and Quality of Fresh Pork

Wednesday, August 6, 2014
Exhibit Hall D (Indiana Convention Center)
Ahmad Rois Mansur, Kangwon National University, Chuncheon, South Korea
Charles Nkufi Tango, Kangwon National University, Chuncheon, South Korea
Gwang-Hee Kim, Kangwon National University, Chuncheon, South Korea
Deog-Hwan Oh, Kangwon National University, Chuncheon, South Korea
Introduction: Pathogens contamination in fresh pork such as Salmonella Typhimurium, Escherichia coli O157:H7, Listeria monocytogenes, and Staphylococcus aureus, has mainly impacted its safety and quality. Therefore, an effective sanitizing treatment to improve the microbial safety and quality of pork during processing and storage is necessary.

Purpose: This study was conducted to compare the effectiveness of individual treatments (slightly acidic electrolyzed water [SAcEW] and fumaric acid [FA]) and their combinations on reducing S. Typhimurium, E. coli O157:H7, L. monocytogenes, and S. aureus in fresh pork, as well as to study the shelf life of pork based on microbial and sensorial quality during storage at 4 and 10°C.

Methods: Pork samples were immersed in various single treatments with or without mild heat (40°C) for 3 min. For the efficacy of combination treatments, samples were treated with the SAcEW (30 mg/l ACC) and 0.5% FA either sequentially or simultaneously, and with or without mild heat.

Results: The decontamination of fresh pork by SAcEW and 0.5% FA at 40°C for 3 min (SAcEW + 0.5% FA) significantly (P < 0.05) reduced the initial bacterial loads and retarded bacterial growth during storage at 4 and 10°C. The reductions of aforementioned pathogens (2.38 – 2.99 log CFU/g) were achieved with SAcEW + 0.5% FA and significantly different (P< 0.05) compared to those of other treatments. Based on microbiological and sensorial point of view, this combined treatment also prolonged the shelf life of pork up to 6 days when stored at 4°C, whilst 4–5 days when stored at 10°C, compared to that of control.

Significance: The combined treatment of SAcEW + 0.5% FA seems to be a very promising method to ensure microbial safety and quality of pork, which may benefit to the pork industries.