ARS | Publication request: DELAYED CLOSTRIDIUM PERFRINGENS GROWTH FROM A SPORE INOCULA BY SODIUM LACTATE IN SOUS-VIDE CHICKEN PRODUCTS

Submitted to: Meeting Abstract
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: March 15, 2005
Publication Date: May 14, 2005
Citation: Juneja, V.K. 2006. Delayed clostridium perfringens growth from a spore inocula by sodium lactate in sous-vide chicken products. {Abstract}. Food Microbiology 23:105-111.

Technical Abstract: Clostridium perfringens growth from a spore inoculum was investigated in vacuum packaged, cook-in-bag marinated chicken breast that included 0, 1.5, 3, or 4.8% sodium lactate (NaL; w/w). The packages were processed to an internal temperature of 71.1 deg C, ice chilled and stored at 4, 19 and 25 deg C. The total C.perfringens population was determined by plating diluted samples on tryptose-sulfite-cycloserine agar followed by anaerobic incubation for 48 h at 37 deg C. At 25 deg C, addition of 1.5% NaL was effective in delaying growth for 29 h. Increasing the NaL level to 4.8%, C. perfringens growth from a spore inoculum during storage at 25 deg C for 480 h was not observed. At 19 deg C, the growth was >6 log10 cfu/g by 288 h in control samples. In samples with 3.0 or 4.8% NaL, the growth of C. perfringens from spores was dramatically restricted with little or no growth in 648 h at 19 deg C. C. perfringens growth was not observed at 4 deg C regardless of NaL concentration. The D-values at 55 deg C ranged from 47.40 (no NaL) to 57.58 min (1.5% NaL). Cyclic and static temperature abuse of refrigerated products for less than 20 h did not permit C. perfringens growth. However, temperature abuse of products for periods 24 h or longer in the absence of NaL led to growth of C. perfringens from a spore inoculum. An extra degree of safety may be assured in such products by supplementation with NaL at 1.5-4.8% NaL level.