Inactivation of Escherichia coli O157:H7 and Salmonella Typhimurium in black and red pepper by vacuumed hydrogen peroxide vapour

Abstract

Aims: In this study, the efficacy of using vacuumed hydrogen peroxide vapour (VHPV) to inactivate foodborne pathogens in whole dried black pepper (Piper nigrum) and powdered dried red pepper (Capsicum annuum) was evaluated.Methods and Results: Black and red pepper inoculated with Escherichia coli O157:H7 and Salmonella Typhimurium were subjected to 3.81, 7.93, 12.33, 17.04 and 21.67 mg l −1 VHPV for 1 min, and the change in pepper colour was evaluated after treatment. Pathogen quantities decreased with increasing hydrogen peroxide concentration. For black pepper, the 21.67 mg l −1 VHPV treatment decreased E. coli O157:H7 and S. Typhimurium quantities by >6.12 and 4.52 log CFU per gram, respectively, without causing colour change. In addition, the 21.67 mg l −1 VHPV treatment caused 4.35 and 2.36 log CFU per gram reductions in these two pathogen quantities in red pepper, respectively. During the VHPV treatment, colour values of peppers did not significantly change. Conclusions: VHPV effectively reduced the levels of foodborne pathogens in black and red pepper while inducing minimal colour changes. How to cite this article: Song, W.-J. & Kang, D.-H. (2022) Inactivation of Escherichia coli O157:H7 and Salmonella Typhimurium in black and red pepper by vacuumed hydrogen peroxide vapour.

Inactivation of Salmonella enterica in black peppercorn by fluidization with hydrogen peroxide vapor

“…The level of reduction is similar to results reported for Escherichia coli on apples (<2 log), Salmonella, E. coli, and Listeria on lettuce (≤3 log), and Salmonella on red pepper (<2.5 log) using HPV (Sapers et al, 2003;Back et al, 2014;Song and Kang, 2021). In contrast, a recent study with vacuumed HPV treatment resulted in a 4.52 log CFU/g reduction of S. Typhimurium in whole black peppercorn without significant color change (Song and Kang, 2021). In this study, 0.5 mL of 50% aqueous hydrogen peroxide was used to generate HPV and inactivate Salmonella inoculated in whole black pepper exposing it to the gas at 55 °C for 1 min.…”

“…This study resulted in a ≤3 log reduction of Salmonella in black peppercorn using fluidized HPV treatment. The level of reduction is similar to results reported for Escherichia coli on apples (<2 log), Salmonella, E. coli, and Listeria on lettuce (≤3 log), and Salmonella on red pepper (<2.5 log) using HPV (Sapers et al, 2003;Back et al, 2014;Song and Kang, 2021). In contrast, a recent study with vacuumed HPV treatment resulted in a 4.52 log CFU/g reduction of S. Typhimurium in whole black peppercorn without significant color change (Song and Kang, 2021).…”

Inactivation of Salmonella Typhimurium, Escherichia coli O157:H7 and Listeria monocytogenes on alfalfa seeds by the combination treatment of vacuumed hydrogen peroxide vapour and vacuumed dry heat

“…(2014) used HPV to pasteurize lettuce. We have recently reported that VHPV effectively reduced pathogens in red pepper powder (Song and Kang 2022). Since there was no increase in water content, it could also be applied to powdered food as well.…”

“…VHPV treatment was performed employing the same apparatus previously used by the authors (Song and Kang 2022). Alfalfa seed samples added to Petri dishes were placed on a 2-cm high plastic rack to avoid heating of the chamber surface.…”

“…To date, no studies have documented the inactivation of pathogen that is present on seeds using a combination treatment of HPV and VH. Recently, we found that VH or vacuumed hydrogen peroxide vapour (VHPV) treatment effectively reduced pathogens in food with low water activity such as almonds and dried peppers (Song and Kang 2021, 2022). Therefore, the purpose of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of a combination treatment using VHPV and VH to inactivate three food‐borne pathogens present on alfalfa seeds and document its effect on the rate of seed germination.…”