Abstract
Food industries are facing a great challenge due to contamination of food products with different microbes such as bacteria, fungi, viruses, parasites, etc. These microbes deteriorate food items by producing different toxins during pre- and postharvest processing. Mycotoxins are one of the most potent and well-studied toxic food contaminants of fungal origin, causing a severe health hazard to humans. The application of synthetic chemicals as food preservatives poses a real scourge in the present scenario due to their bio-incompatibility, non-biodegradability, and environmental non-sustainability. Therefore, plant-based antimicrobials, including essential oils, have developed cumulative interest as a potential alternative to synthetic preservatives because of their ecofriendly nature and generally recognized as safe status. However, the practical utilization of essential oils as an efficient antimicrobial in the food industry is challenging due to their volatile nature, less solubility, and high instability. The recent application of different delivery strategies viz. nanoencapsulation, active packaging, and polymer-based coating effectively addressed these challenges and improved the bioefficacy and controlled release of essential oils. This article provides an overview of essential oils for the preservation of stored foods against bacteria, fungi, and mycotoxins, along with the specialized mechanism of action and technological advancement by using different delivery systems for their effective application in food and agricultural industries smart green preservative.
Highlights
The achievement of food security is based on food access, food stability, food utilization, and, most importantly, its preservation to avoid further contamination
This review aimed to present updated information about the application of EOs in foods as eco-friendly preservatives with emphasis on the antimicrobial mechanism of action and different modern delivery approaches for controlled volatilization of EOs with consistent long-term efficacy in the food system as a smart green preservative
After treatment with EO, the growth of A. flavus was significantly reduced, and at 8.0 μl/ml, the percent inhibition of fungal growth was recorded as 94.31%
Summary
The achievement of food security is based on food access, food stability, food utilization, and, most importantly, its preservation to avoid further contamination. These four food pillars constitute the socioeconomic background and influence the affordable food requirement. In addition to microbial contamination, some bacteria and fungi are reported to produce toxins. Many of these microbial toxins are thermostable in nature and are not destroyed by high temperatures during cooking or food processing (Rajkovic, 2014). Exotoxins are proteinaceous substances secreted by Clostridium botulinum, Staphylococcus aureus, Bacillus cereus, and Clostridium perfringens
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