Edible films containing carvacrol and cinnamaldehyde inactivate Escherichia coli O157:H7 on organic leafy greens in sealed plastic bags

Libin Zhu, Carl Olsen, Tara McHugh, Mendel Friedman, Carol E. Levin, Divya Jaroni, Sadhana Ravishankar

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

13 Scopus citations

Abstract

The antimicrobial effects of apple-, carrot-, and hibiscus-based edible films containing carvacrol and cinnamaldehyde against Escherichia coli O157:H7 on organic leafy greens in sealed plastic bags were investigated. Fresh-cut Romaine and Iceberg lettuce, and mature and baby spinach leaves were inoculated with E. coli O157:H7 and placed into Ziploc® bags. Edible films were then added to the bags, which were stored at 4°C. The evaluation of samples taken at days 0, 3, and 7 showed that on all leafy greens, 3% carvacrol-containing films had the greatest effect against E. coli O157:H7, reducing the bacterial population by about 5 log CFU/g on day 0. All three types of 3% carvacrol-containing films reduced E. coli O157:H7 by about 5 log CFU/g at day 0. The 1.5% carvacrol-containing films reduced E. coli O157:H7 by 1–4 logs CFU/g at day 7. Films with 3% cinnamaldehyde showed reduction of 0.6–3 logs CFU/g on different leafy greens.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Article numbere12758
JournalJournal of Food Safety
Volume40
Issue number2
DOIs
StatePublished - Apr 1 2020

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Parasitology
  • Food Science
  • Microbiology

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