Use of Natural Ingredients To Control Growth of Clostridium perfringens in Naturally Cured Frankfurters and Hams

Abstract

A major concern for processed meats marketed as natural/organic is that they do not contain nitrite in concentrations known to be most effective for inhibiting foodborne pathogens. Supplemental treatments to increase the level and consistency of antimicrobial protection in these products may be important to provide consumers with the degree of safety that they have come to expect from conventionally cured meats. Therefore, the objective of this study was to identify and test ingredients that might improve processed meat product safety without altering their natural/organic status. Eight treatments of hams and frankfurters were prepared: (A) uncured control (typical ingredients except nitrite and nitrate); (B) conventionally cured control (erythorbate, nitrite, and a lactate-diacetate blend); (C) natural nitrate cure (including starter culture containing Staphylococcus carnosus); (D) natural nitrate cure (culture and natural antimicrobial A containing a vinegar, lemon, and cherry powder blend); (E) natural nitrate cure (culture and antimicrobial B containing a cultured sugar and vinegar blend); (F) natural nitrite cure without additional antimicrobials; (G) natural nitrite cure with natural antimicrobial A; and (H) natural nitrite cure with antimicrobial B. For the hams, treatments C, D, E, and H impacted growth of Clostridium perfringens to the same extent (P < 0.05) as the conventionally cured control (approximately 2 log less growth over time than uncured control). For frankfurters, treatments D, G, and H had an effect (approximately 1 log) on growth equivalent to that of the conventionally cured control (P < 0.05). These results suggest that natural/organic cured meats have more potential for pathogen growth than conventionally cured products, but supplemental natural ingredients offer safety improvement.

Inhibition of Listeria monocytogenes Using Natural Antimicrobials in No-Nitrate-or-Nitrite-Added Ham

“…Schrader (16) found that these antimicrobials reduced L. monocytogenes growth on naturally cured frankfurters, with antimicrobial B exhibiting greater inhibitory effects and major differences in growth that were observed by day 28 (of 120 days total) of storage at 4°C. However, in comparing the same natural curing agents and antimicrobials in similar treatment combinations, Jackson and others (11) found that the natural curing method used to produce naturally cured ham and frankfurters had a greater influence than did antimicrobials on inhibiting Clostridium perfringens. These differences in pathogen inhibition between the organisms are likely explained by differences in nitrite tolerance (24).…”

Impact of Clean-Label Antimicrobials and Nitrite Derived from Natural Sources on the Outgrowth of Clostridium perfringens during Cooling of Deli-Style Turkey Breast

“…After inoculated frankfurters and ham were stored for 10 days at 20°C, results showed both the uncured (0 ppm of nitrite) treatments and the treatments cured with a natural source of nitrite (equivalent to -50 ppm ingoing) had reached nearly 7 log CFU/g C. perfringens, indicating, as in this study, that the relatively low nitrite concentration con tributes negligible antimicrobial effect as a sole ingredient inhibitor. Jackson et al (9) also evaluated two antimicro bials, a lemon-cherry-vinegar blend (1.4% in frankfurters and 0.7% in ham) and a CSV blend (unreported usage in frankfurters and 3% in ham), tested in combination with naturally generated nitrite (-50 ppm), and showed varied degrees of inhibition of C. perfringens growth. In inoculated frankfurters, for example, 1.4% vinegar-lemon-cherry blend with natural nitrite resulted in 0.49 ± 0.24 log C. perfringens across sampling days, whereas populations of 1.49 + 0.29 log were observed in frankfurters containing a CSV blend with natural nitrite.…”

Inactivation Strategies for Clostridium perfringens Spores and Vegetative Cells

“…Nitrite affects the germination and outgrowth of C. perfringens spores in different types of meat products, and it has been reported that conventionally cured meat products, which have nitrite supplements, showed inhibition of the growth of C. perfringens (29,30). However, commercially available organic meat products have the potential to support growth of C. perfringens (31,32). Although nitrite is a very good antimicrobial agent, unfortunately its use in food products is limited due to its ability to form carcinogenic derivatives (33).…”