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ARS Home » Northeast Area » Beltsville, Maryland (BARC) » Beltsville Agricultural Research Center » Food Quality Laboratory » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #407429
Research Project: Reducing Postharvest Loss and Improving Fresh Produce Marketability and Nutritive Values through Technological Innovations and Process Optimization

Location: Food Quality Laboratory

Title: Flash heating process for efficient meat preservation

Author
item MAO, YIMIN - University Of Maryland
item MA, PEIHUA - University Of Maryland
item LI, TANGYUAN - University Of Maryland
item LIU, SHUFENG - University Of Maryland
item WANG, XIZHENG - University Of Maryland
item CHEN, GANG - University Of Maryland
item XIE, HUA - University Of Maryland
item BROZENA, ALEXANDRA - University Of Maryland
item Zhou, Bin
item Luo, Yaguang - Sunny
item Cheng, Heng-Wei
item WANG, QIN - University Of Maryland
item BRIBER, ROBERT - University Of Maryland
item HU, LIANGBING - University Of Maryland

Submitted to: Nature Communications
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 4/17/2024
Publication Date: 5/8/2024
Citation: Mao, Y., Ma, P., Li, T., Liu, S., Wang, X., Chen, G., Xie, H., Brozena, A.H., Zhou, B., Luo, Y., Cheng, H., Wang, Q., Briber, R.M., Hu, L. 2024. Flash heating process for efficient meat preservation. Nature Communications. 15. Article e3893. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-024-47967-1.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-024-47967-1

Interpretive Summary: Effective microbial inactivation is critical to maintain food quality and shelf life. However, conventional food preservation technologies often result in the changes in the overall changes in organoleptic quality of the food products. In this study, a novel technology that affects only the ultra-thin layer of the food product services is reported. Using a new ultra-high temperature flashing heating technology, microorganisms on the food surfaces were inactivated to the below the detection limit. The surface further formed a dehydrated thin layer that inhibited microbial growth and maintained quality during storage. Results will benefit food processors and consumers.

Technical Abstract: Maintaining food safety and quality are critical for public health and food security. Conventional food preservation methods such as pasteurization and dehydration often result in the changes in overall organoleptic quality of the food products. Here we demonstrate a novel concept of food preservation that affects only a thin surface layer of the foods, using beef as a food model. We applied Joule heating generated through a high electric power applied to a carbon substrate over a short time interval (< 1 s), causing a transient increase of the substrate temperature to >2,000 K. Beef surfaces in direct contact with the substrate were subjected to ultra-high temperature flash heating (UFH), leading to the formation of a microbe-inactivated, thin dehydrated layer of ~100 µm in thickness. Aerobic mesophilic bacteria, enterobacteriaceae, and yeast and mold on the UFH-treated samples were inactivated to a level below the detection limit and remained low during 5-day room temperature storage. Meanwhile, product quality including visual appearance, texture, and nutrient concentration of the beef remained largely unchanged. In contrast, microorganisms grew rapidly on the untreated control samples along with a rapid deterioration in quality. These findings suggest that UFH might have significant potential as a new food preservation method for securing food safety and quality.