Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item:
https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14279/22684
Title: | Expiration date of ready-to-eat salads: Effects on microbial load and biochemical attributes | Authors: | Xylia, Panayiota Botsaris, George Skandamis, Panagiotis Tzortzakis, Nikos G. |
Major Field of Science: | Agricultural Sciences | Field Category: | Agriculture Forestry and Fisheries | Keywords: | Food safety;Foodborne pathogens;Polyphenols;Processes salads;Respiration | Issue Date: | May-2021 | Source: | Foods, 2021, vol. 10 , no. 5, articl. no. 941 | Volume: | 10 | Issue: | 5 | Journal: | Foods | Abstract: | When minimally processed vegetables reach their expiration date, expose an increased microbial load. This includes mainly spoilage microorganisms but also foodborne pathogens, thus affecting the quality and safety of highly consumed ready-to-eat salads. A total of 144 ready-to-eat salads from the Cypriot market were analyzed in an attempt to determine the effects of the expiration date on the microbial load and plant metabolic variables of the salads. Possible correlations between them were also investigated for the first time. Furthermore, the impacts of the season (winter, summer), salad producing companies and type of salad and/or their interactions with the tested parameters were investigated. Results revealed that the microbial load (mainly spoilage microorganisms, such as Pseudomonas spp., yeasts and molds) increased towards the end of the shelf life. The microbial load was differentiated among the five salad producers and/or the salad types, highlighting the importance of a common and safe sanitation-processing chain in the preparation of ready-to-eat salads. Summer was the season in which Escherichia coli counts were found to be higher for plain lettuce, while Staphylococcus spp. was increased numbers for the lettuce+endive/radicchio, lettuce+rocket and lettuce+chives type of salads. Additionally, an increased Staphylococcus spp. was observed for plain rocket salads in winter. All samples examined were found negative for Salmonella enterica and Listeria monocytogenes. Moreover, carbon dioxide production and damage indexes (hydrogen peroxide and lipid peroxidation) increased on expiration date on both winter and summer seasons, indicating plant tissue stress at the end of shelf life. These findings indicate that the expiration date and relevant shelf life of processed vegetables are important parameters to be considered when postharvest management is applied to these products, ensuring safety and quality. | URI: | https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14279/22684 | ISSN: | 23048158 | DOI: | 10.3390/foods10050941 | Rights: | © by the authors | Type: | Article | Affiliation : | Cyprus University of Technology Agricultural University of Athens |
Publication Type: | Peer Reviewed |
Appears in Collections: | Άρθρα/Articles |
Files in This Item:
File | Description | Size | Format | |
---|---|---|---|---|
foods-10-00941.pdf | Fulltext | 2.42 MB | Adobe PDF | View/Open |
foods-1177997-supplementary.pdf | Supplementary Material | 2.07 MB | Adobe PDF | View/Open |
CORE Recommender
SCOPUSTM
Citations
8
checked on Nov 9, 2023
WEB OF SCIENCETM
Citations
7
Last Week
0
0
Last month
0
0
checked on Oct 29, 2023
Page view(s)
313
Last Week
0
0
Last month
2
2
checked on Dec 25, 2024
Download(s) 10
248
checked on Dec 25, 2024
Google ScholarTM
Check
Altmetric
This item is licensed under a Creative Commons License