Abstract
In this study, black peppercorns and cumin seeds were inoculated with a five-serotype cocktail of Salmonella or its surrogate Enterococcus faecium NRRL B-2354. The inoculated samples (ca. 107 CFU/g) were treated by ClO2 gas at different gas concentrations (5, 10, and 15 mg/L) and relative humidities (60, 70, and 80%) at room temperature (25 °C) at five gas exposure times (60, 120, 180, 240, 300 min). More than 5-log reduction of Salmonella was achieved in both spices with 300 min of ClO2 gas treatment at 15 mg/L and 80% RH. The corresponding values for E. faecium were 4.36 and 4.17 log CFU/g in black peppercorns and cumin seeds, respectively, which were significant lower than Salmonella (p < 0.05). Gas concentration, RH, and exposure time showed significantly positive linear associations with Salmonella inactivation. E. faecium appears a suitable surrogate for Salmonella and can be used for future process validations using comparable conditions.
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