Irradiation as a method for decontamination of spices

An innovative process for the production of spices through immediate thermal treatment of the plant material

“…Sterilization under dry and wet conditions adversely affects the quality of the products (Dehne, Wirz, & Bögl, 1992a, b). Ionizing and UV-radiation have been shown to be highly efficient, however, apart from consumers' reservation small modifications of color and changes of organoleptic properties are major quality losses (Kiss & Farkas, 1988;NietoSandoval, Almela, Fernández-Ló pez, & Munoz, 2000).…”

Irradiation of spices and its detection

“…Chemical treatment with ethylene oxide and heat treatment are the two most widely used methods for killing insect pests in seasonings and reducing the viable cell count of spices. To a lesser extent, other fumigants like propylene oxide and methyl bromide are used, too (6). Such gas treatment of spices has been heavily criticized due to the toxicological problems.…”

“…As a consequence, losses of volatile oils of spices are very low (11). Problems with chemical residues are also excluded (6). Irradiation has been found to be a very effective and ideal process in reducing the cell count in various heat-sensitive dry ingredients, for instance, spices (14).…”

“…Some pathogens, mostly salmonellae, are being detected with increasing frequency in spices (14). Some outbreaks of salmonellosis have originated from white and black pepper (6).…”

“…Discussion is in progress on a proposal by the Commission of the European Communities that includes only irradiation of spices (3) and on an amendment (4) that includes spices and seven other food items or groups of food. spices increases during harvesting and processing (6). Unhygienic treatment (e.g., with polluted water) and poor drying (e.g., sun-drying on compacted earth or cemented yards near the fields) increase the microbial load of spices (7).…”