Literature review for applying peroxyacetic acid and/or hydrogen peroxide to control foodborne pathogens on food products

Abstract

As a major biological hazard, foodborne pathogens infect 48 million people annually, and are a major food safety concern in the U.S. Applying antimicrobial chemical agents is still an effective approach to control foodborne pathogens during food processing. Peroxyacetic acid (PAA) is an organic peroxide based, colorless liquid with a low pH and a strong, pungent, vinegar-like odor, which is formed from the chemical reaction of acetic acid and hydrogen peroxide (H 2 O 2 ). Commercial PAA products contain all three chemicals in an aqueous solution often with stabilizers added, which can exert antimicrobial activity against microorganisms. PAA are approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and US Department of Agriculture-Food Safety and Inspection Services (USDA-FSIS) for use as a generally recognized as safe (GRAS) antimicrobial agent on meat, poultry and egg products with the concentrations between 0.005 to 0.2%. This review provides detailed summaries of antimicrobial activities of PAA and H 2 O 2 alone or in combination on fresh produce, meat and poultry products, and eggs against foodborne pathogens. This information is useful for food processors in the development of operational procedures for applying PAA and H 2 O 2 during post-harvest food processing to control foodborne pathogens on food products. • PAA or H 2 O 2 alone indicated 1–3 log reduction of pathogens on food products. • PAA-H 2 O 2 Mixer showed better pathogen reductions than commercial antimicrobials. • No antimicrobial efficacy improvement of mixer of PAA and H 2 O 2 ≥ 0.25%.