Effectiveness of environmentally safe food additives and food supplements in an in vitro growth inhibition of significant Fusarium, Aspergillus and Penicillium species

Abstract

We tested 38 legislatively recognised substances such as food additives and supplements for antifungal efficacy, with the aim of providing an alternative to synthetic conventional fungicides. These compounds were tested against 9 significant pathogenic fungal species belonging to the significant genera Fusarium, Penicillium, and Aspergillus. Of these compounds, 6 are proposed as potential candidates to provide a complementary alternative to conventional fungicides. Natamycin provided extreme efficacy expressed as MIC50 (5–31 µg/ml), followed by BHA and then BHT, CaNa2EDTA, PABA, and chitosan expressed as MIC50 (0.7–1.9 mg/ml). Safety and antifungal activity were discussed in terms of the mode of action and molecular structure, as well as in terms of potential practical use and legislative requirements for the introduction into practice. We presume that food additives and food supplements are definitely a great source of antifungal compounds. In developed areas of the world (e.g. in the EU), they could represent legislatively recognised compounds, so-called basic substances.