Abstract
Assuring food safety is vital to cater to consumer demand for quality and safe produce and improve the market competitiveness of fruit and vegetable industries. In an attempt to develop safe antimicrobial treatment, this study was conducted to optimize the application of probiotic Lactobacillus plantarum and evaluate the physicochemical and sensory qualities of tomato and cucumber slices. Lb. plantarum at 10(9) CFU/ml was applied at 1-3% (v/w) as protective culture. Control treatments included 150 ppm chlorine and distilled water as 2-min dip. The product samples were packed in sterile resealable 50 I¼m-thick polyethylene bag and stored at 7-10°C for five days. Lb. plantarum inhibited coliform and aerobic bacteria and was consistently most effective at 3% on both tomato and cucumber. It also reduced yeast and mold population but only in tomato. In most cases, the antimicrobial activities of Lb. plantarum were either comparable to or better than that of chlorine. Lb. plantarum had no remarkable effects on the physicochemical and sensory qualities of the freshcut products after five days of cold storage.
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