Elimination of Pathogens of Significance in Food by Low-dose Irradiation: A Review (original) (raw)
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Role of irradiation treatment in the food industry
International Journal of Nuclear Governance, Economy and Ecology, 2011
Irradiation from radioactive elements, such as cobalt-60, or an electron beam, can be applied to raw materials to prevent the proliferation of plagues or to kill bacteria that could be present in ready-to-eat foods or industrialised ingredients. It is therefore an important tool in food safety and food security. Food contamination by some pathogenic bacteria, such as Salmonella sp. or Escherichia coli, is still a recalcitrant problem faced by the food industry, even in countries where the highest quality control measurements are applied. The present paper is intended to be an overview on the roles of irradiation treatment on different sectors of the food industry with a focus on relevant aspects such as food contamination risks, the irradiation process itself and public concern about new technologies.
Enhancing Food Safety and Stability Through Irradiation: A Review
Journal of microbiology, biotechnology and food sciences
Food irradiation is one of the non thermal food processing methods. It is the process of exposing food materials to the controlled amounts of ionizing radiations such as gamma rays, X-rays and accelerated electrons, to improve microbiological safety and stability. Irradiation disrupts the biological processes that lead to decay of food quality. It is an effective tool to reduce food-borne pathogens, spoilage microorganisms and parasites; to extend shelf-life and for insect disinfection. The safety and consumption of irradiated foods have been extensively studied at national levels and in international cooperations and have concluded that foods irradiated under appropriate technologies are both safe and nutritionally adequate. Specific applications of food irradiation have been approved by national legislations of more than 55 countries worldwide. This review aims to discuss the applications of irradiation in food processing with the emphasis on food safety and stability.
Effect of Irradiation on Food Safety and Quality
Current Trends in Natural Sciences, 2020
Numerous processing techniques have been developed to control food spoilage and raise food safety. The traditional methods of preservation include: pasteurization, canning, freezing, refrigeration and use of chemical preservatives. Food irradiation is non-thermal food preservation process. It is a treatment of food exposition on an amount of energy in the form of speed particles or rays. Depending on absorbed radiation dose, various effects can be achieved, resulting in reduced storage losses, extended shelf life, improved microbiological and parasitological safety of foods. The potential application of ionizing radiation in food processing is based mainly on the fact that ionizing radiations damage very effectively the DNA molecules. The application is very diverse, from inhibition of sprouting of tubers and bulbs, to production of commercially sterile food products. At the same time, irradiation-induced chemical changes in food are minimal. Irradiation does not cause any significant loss of macronutrients. Proteins, fats and carbohydrates undergo minimal modifications in nutritional value, which are less significant compared with traditional methods of food preservation. Irradiation offers a potential to enhance microbiological safety and quality of food through extension of its shelf life. The aim of this review paper is to give an overview of the effects of ionizing radiation on microbial contaminants and nutritional characteristics of food. In the paper, the basic concepts of food irradiation, mode of action on microbes and the effects of ionizing radiation on nutritional quality of irradiated food are summarized.
Open Access Journal of Microbiology & Biotechnology (OAJMB), 2023
There is an increasing demand to guarantee the safety of the food supply due to the public's growing concerns about food safety and foodborne illnesses. It has been demonstrated that gamma irradiation is a potential technique for safely eliminating a variety of common pathogens. The extra advantage of gamma irradiation technology is that it prolongs the shelf life of irradiated food items. The irradiation process has been demonstrated to be reliable; it is widely applied to medical supplies, spices, and other products in numerous nations across the world. Convincing the public that this technology is helpful and even essential for ensuring their safety is the major task at hand. Studies on the market have revealed that while a large number of consumers are eager to buy irradiated food, a large number are not. The aim of the current paper was to highlight the significant effect of gamma irradiation on food quality and safety, in order to correct the wrong believes about gamma irradiation by large number of consumers to comply with the right scientific evidence supported by regulations and control of the Food and Drug Authority (FDA). Well-structured research papers and official documents were reviewed thoroughly to extract official updated information about the characterization and safety with versatile applications of gamma irradiation in food sector.
and Implications Four of the bacterial pathogens that are of major concern to the meat industry, Listeria monocytogenes, Campylobacter jejuni, Salmonella enterica Typhimurium and Escherichia coli O157:H7 were studied for their susceptibility to high carbon dioxide atmospheres during irradiation and storage by utilizing high-carbon-dioxide modified atmosphere packages (MAP) compared to vacuum packaging. Frankfurters and cooked pork chops (L. monocytogenes), chicken breasts (C. jejuni and S. enterica) and ground beef (E. coli O157:H7) were inoculated with the respective pathogens, packaged in vacuum or MAP and irradiated with doses appropriate to each pathogen. Surviving bacteria were monitored during refrigerated and temperature-abused storage. While irradiation was very effective for reducing the number of pathogens on each product, the use of high carbon dioxide atmosphere in MAP did not increase the effectiveness of irradiation as an antimicrobial treatment. The MAP treatment resulted in less recovery of L. monocytogenes than vacuum for cooked pork chops during refrigerated storage, and for E. coli O157:H7 on ground beef when exposed to room temperature, but not for the other pathogens or products. Consequently, while irradiation is a very effective means of reducing or eliminating bacterial pathogens on meat products, the addition of a high-carbon dioxide MAP system during storage of the products did not greatly improve the control of these pathogens.
Irradiation of ready-to-eat foods at USDA’S Eastern Regional Reasearch Center-2003 update
Radiation Physics and Chemistry, 2004
Ionizing radiation is a safe and effective method for eliminating bacterial pathogens from food products and disinfestation of fruits and vegetables. Since 1980 research has been conducted at USDA's Eastern Regional Research Center pertaining to the elimination of food-borne pathogens from meat, poultry, fruit and vegetable products. Recent work has focused on elimination of pathogens such as Escherichia coli O157:H7, Salmonella spp., and Listeria monocytogenes from ready-to-eat (RTE) food products including hot dogs, bologna, lettuce, cilantro, sprouts and seeds, and frozen vegetables. The ionizing radiation dose required to eliminate those pathogens from RTE foods has been found to be commodity, formulation and temperature dependent. The need to eliminate bacterial pathogens from RTE food products must always be balanced with the maintenance of product quality. In addition to determining the effective ionizing radiation doses required for pathogen elimination the effects of irradiation on product chemistry, nutritional value and organoleptic quality have also been determined. A review of the studies conducted at USDA's Eastern Regional Research Center in 2002 and 2003 is presented in this article.
Improvement of the Microbiological Safety of Two Chilled Semi-Prepared Meals by Gamma Irradiation
Summary Experimental batches of a stuffed pasta product, tortellini, and slightly pre-fried bread- ed reconstituted turkey steaks with cheese and ham filling, Cordon Bleu, were prepared according to commercial recipes, then inoculated with 104 CFU/g of Staphylococcus aureus (in case of tortellini) and with 106 CFU/g of Listeria monocytogenes (in case of Cordon Bleu) prior to packing in plastic bags under a gas atmosphere of 20 % CO2 and 80 % N2. The in- oculated packages were irradiated at 3 kGy (tortellini) and 2 kGy (Cordon Bleu) with a 60 Co radiation source. The applied radiation doses were sensorially acceptable for these products. The experimental batches of tortellini were stored at 15 °C, while the Cordon Bleu samples were stored at 5 and 9 °C. Unirradiated samples were kept together with the respective irradiated ones. Storage was continued for 4 weeks and microbiological tests were performed before and after the irradiation, and subsequently after every seven days. Besides...
2019
Consumers expect that the food they eat must be safe. In addition, consumers also wants the food to have high nutritional value with minimal preparation times, as evidenced by the growth in products such as convenience ready to eat and minimally processed fresh produce. In order to meet these demands, food manufacturer are looking for new method and technologies. One such technology is irradiation. Irradiation is non-thermal food preservation technique which is used to extend and enhance the shelf life of fresh or processed foods. Food irradiation is an energy-efficient, non-chemical method of food processing that can help reduce those huge losses occurring due to spoilage or contamination by harmful bacteria and other parasitic life forms. It involves exposure of foods to ionizing radiations either prepackaged or in bulk to reduce the risk of foodborne illness, delaying or eliminating sprouting or ripening. Gamma rays, electron beams, and x-rays are used for irradiation of foods. P...
Food Processing by Irradiation—–An effective technology for food safety and security
Indian journal of experimental biology, 2016
Radiation processing of food involves controlled application of energy from ionizing radiations from radioisotopes (Cobalt-60 and Caesium-137), electron beam (≤10 MeV) or X-rays (≤5 MeV) in an irradiation chamber shielded by 1.5 - 1.8 m thick concrete walls. Food, either pre-packed or in-bulk, placed in suitable containers is sent into the chamber through an automatic conveyor. Major benefits achieved by radiation processing of food are inhibition of sprouting of tubers and bulbs, delay in ripening and senescence of fruits and vegetables, disinfestations of insect pests in agricultural commodities, destruction of microbes responsible for food spoilage, and elimination of food pathogens and parasites of public health importance. Irradiation produces very little chemical changes in food, and the changes are similar to those by other preservation methods like heat. The radiolytic products and free radicals produced are identical to those present in foods subjected to treatments such as...
Food Irradiation: An effective technology for food safety and preservation
Indian Food Industry Mag, 2023
Irradiation is a non-thermal food preservation technique used to lengthen and improve the shelf life of fresh or processed foods. Food irradiation is a non-chemical, energy-efficient method of preparing food that can aid in lowering the significant losses brought on by food deterioration or contamination by dangerous bacteria and other parasite life forms. A carefully regulated amount of ionising radiation, such as gamma rays released by radionuclides (such as cobalt-60 and caesium-137), X-rays, and high energy (10 MeV) electrons produced by machine sources, is used to irradiate food. Various effects, which include decreased storage losses, increased shelf life, and enhanced microbiological and parasitological safety of foods, can be obtained depending on the dose of radiation absorbed.Irradiation doesn’t make food radioactive and is safe. Irradiated products are evaluated for food safety based on their chemical, nutritional, microbiological, and toxicological characteristics. There are three dose levels in the radiation: low, medium, and high. Depending on the unique characteristics of the materials, different radiation dosages were applied to each of these constituents. The food industry has widely used irradiation treatments to prevent sprouting and germination, postpone senescence, and stop microbiological growth. Irradiation is being utilised to lengthen the shelf life of fresh-cut food, either alone or in conjunction with other traditional preservation techniques. Food does not become radioactive with radioactive radiation when exposed to the gamma rays because it never comes into direct contact with the source. The FAO/WHO label for irradiated food uses the radura international symbol to recognise this fact.