chapter 6 food micro Flashcards
(117 cards)
number and types of MO present in a product are influenced by:
a. The general environment from which the food was originally obtained
b. The microbiological quality of the food in its raw or unprocessed state
c. The sanitary conditions under which the product is handled and processed
d. The adequacy of subsequent packaging, handling and storage conditions in maintaining the flora @ low level
Why is it important to keep MO at a low level in foods?
Aesthetic
Public health
Product shelf life
Primary Sources of microorganisms found in food:
- Food Utensils
- Food Handlers
- Water, Soil, Air
- Plants and Plant Products
- Animal Feeds and Animal Hides
I-Intrinsic Parameters
- Composition, Nutrient content
- pH
- Presence and availability of water (moisture content)
- Oxidation-reduction potential
- Altered by cooking
- Biological & Physical structure
- Presence of antimicrobial substances
pH affects at least 2 aspects of a microbial cell:
functioning of its enzyme + transport of nutrients
Most MOs grow best @ pH around 7.0 (6.6-7.5),while few grow below 4.0
Bacteria tend to be more fastidious (picky) in their relationships to pH (especially pathogenic bacteria) than molds and yeasts.
pH (2)
- fruits, soft drinks, vinegar and wines fall below the point @ which bacteria normally grow and the excellent keeping quality of these products is due in great part to pH
- Fruits generally undergo mold and yeast spoilage and this is due to the capacity of these MO to grow at pH values below 3.5 which is a pH below the minimum for most food spoilage and all food poisoning bacteria
pH (3)
most of the meats and sea foods have a final ultimate pH of about 5.6 above which their products become susceptible to bacterial as well as to mold and yeast spoilage.
Most vegetables have higher pH values than fruits, consequently they should be subject to bacterial more than fungal spoilage.
Molds have a wider pH range. Therefore they can cause spoilage of soft drinks, fruits, etc.
Meat from fatigued animals spoils faster than that from rested animals and this is a direct consequenceof final pHattained upon completion of mortis
Why?
Upon the death of a well rested meat animal, the 1 % glycogen is converted into lactic acid that decreases the pH value from 7.4 to 5.6 depending on the type of animal.
Water activity (aw)
amount of water available for microbial (bacteria, yeast and mold) growth.
In general, lower water activity inhibits microbial growth
Water activity lowered by
Drying, Freezing
Addition of salt or sugar
The preservation of foods by drying or desiccation is a direct result of removal or binding of moisture without which MO do not grow.
The water requirements of MO is defined in terms of water activity aw
Water activity is based on a scale of 0 to 1.0 with pure water having a water activity of 1.00. Exp: Pure water has aw of 1.00 22 % NaCl solution-aw = 0.86 Saturated solution of NaCl –aw = 0.75 The aw of most fresh foods is above 0.99
moisture content (1)
Lowering the aw below the optimum of MO is to increase the length of the lag phase of growth and to decrease the growth rate and size of final population; this effect is a result of lowering available water for metabolic activities.
Shelf life is extended as more water is reduced
moisture content(2)
aw is also influenced by other environmental parameters such as pH, temperature of growth, and Eh (oxido-reduction potential)
*Most spoilage bacteria do not grow below aw 0.91 while spoilage molds can grow as low as 0.60-0.80. Molds play an important role in spoilage of bread and dried food.
Oxido-reduction potential (1)
It’s represented by Eh, it is a measure of potential difference in a food
In the oxidized range, the redox potential is + mV
In the reduced range, the redox potential is –mV
Among the substances in foods that help to maintain reducing conditions are
–SH groups in meats and ascorbic acid and reducing sugars in fruits and vegetables.
The O/R potential of food is influenced by:
The chemical composition of a food :Redox couple present, Ratio of oxidant to reductant
Specific processing treatment
Storage conditions (vacuum packed, liquid N2, CO2, etc..)
pH: if pH decreases the Eh increases
Availability of oxygen: if the food is stored in presence of air, high positive potential will result, thus increasing the access to air by mincing, cutting, chopping, grinding of food will increase the Eh
Aerobic MO require
positive Eh values (oxidized) for growth like Bacillus spp
Anaerobes require
negative Eh values (reduced) like Clostridium spp
microbial growth in the food reduces
the Eh due to oxygen depletion
Fresh Foods of plant and animal origin are in a reduced state due to
presence of reducing substances such as sugars, ascorbic acids and –SH groups
-Plant foods and especially plant juices tend to have Eh values from +300 mV to +400 mV that’s why these products are commonly spoiled by aerobic bacteria and molds
Processing food such as heating can also alter
the Eh. Food stored in air can have a wider Eh range than when stored under vacuum.
-Cheeses have been reported to have negative Eh values
Solid meats have Eh values around -200 mV but in minced meats Eh values are around +200 mV
D-Nutrient content:
1-Water 2-Source of energy 3-Source of carbon 4-Source of nitrogen 5-Vitamins and related growth factors 6-Minerals
food microorganisms source of energy
- sugars, alcohols, amino acids
- Some microorganisms can use fats as source of energy, but their number is quite small
few MO use ………… as sources of energy
complex carbohydrates like starches and cellulose