Quantifying Lactic Acid Induced Inhibition and Inactivation of Yersinia Enterocolitica in Mixed Cultures

Abstract

In food technology, models describing microbial proliferation in food products are a helpful tool to predict the food safety. In general, the available models consider the micro-organisms in pure culture. As such, microbial interactions are ignored, which may lead to a discrepancy between model predictions and the actual microbial evolution. In this study, a model describing the lactic acid induced inhibition of the pathogenic Yersinia enterocolitica in mixed culture was extended to describe also the subsequent inactivation. In the development of a suitable model structure to describe the inactivation process, biological knowledge was incorporated. The extended model was able to predict the evolution of Y. enterocolitica in coculture as well as in monoculture.