High‐pressure pasteurization of low‐acid chilled ready‐to‐eat food

Abstract

The working population growth have created greater consumer demand for ready-to-eat (RTE) foods. Pasteurization is one of the most common preservation methods for commercial production of low-acid RTE cold-chain products. Proper selection of a pasteurization method plays an important role not only in ensuring microbial safety but also in maintaining food quality during storage. Better retention of flavor, color, appearance, and nutritional value of RTE products is one of the reasons for the food industry to adopt novel technologies such as high-pressure processing (HPP) as a substitute or complementary technology for thermal pasteurization. HPP has been used industrially for the pasteurization of high-acid RTE products. Yet, this method is not commonly used for pasteurization of low-acid RTE food products, due primarily to the need of additional heating to thermally inactivate spores, coupled with relatively long treatment times resulting in high processing costs.

Advancements in nonthermal physical field technologies for prefabricated aquatic food: A comprehensive review

“…Lactobacillus and coagulase‐positive staphylococci were found in samples of tiger prawns and rose shrimp treated at lower pressures, which may be attributed to the high tolerance of Gram‐positive bacteria to pressures. Gram‐positive bacteria have a thicker inherent peptidoglycan layer, which makes them strongly tolerance to high pressures (Inanoglu et al., 2022). The combination of HPP treatment with natural antimicrobial substances can effectively inhibit the growth of pathogenic bacteria, such as L. monocytogenes , without significantly altering the sensory properties of prefabricated aquatic dishes.…”

Comprehensive analysis of predominant pathogenic bacteria and viruses in seafood products

“…Annually, the United States reports around 53 confirmed cases of botulism across all food categories (CDC, 2023b). Managing the proliferation of C. botulinum in fish and seafood entails measures such as lowering the pH to levels below 4.6, incorporating salt or sodium nitrite, reducing moisture content, and maintaining lower temperatures (Inanoglu et al., 2022). C. botulinum exists ubiquitously in the environment, inhabiting soils, dust particles, and the sedimentary layers of both marine and freshwater ecosystems, including wetlands, rivers, and lakes (Jarosz et al., 2022).…”

Preserving Ready-to-Eat Meals Using Microwave Technologies for Future Space Programs

“…The NASA Space Food Research Program has explored two alternative technologies to improve the quality of shelf-stable ready-to-eat meals, namely, pressure-assisted thermal sterilization (PATS) and microwave-assisted thermal sterilization (MATS) [ 26 , 27 ]. A comprehensive discussion on high pressure preservation of ready-to-eat meals can be found in a recent review article [ 28 ]. The following part of the article will only focus on microwave-assisted thermal processing technologies.…”