Tropical plant products as biopreservatives and their application in food safety

Abstract

Pathogenic bacteria in food cause a considerable number of diseases of global concern with a serious impact on the human health and the economy of a country. In order to ensure microbial food safety, several preservatives are used in foods. The undesirable side effects of these chemical preservatives on human well-being have increased the consumers demand for employing compounds from natural sources as biopreservatives. As plant-based antimicrobials are generally considered to be safe several food companies have focused on the utilization of these compounds in foods to meet consumer demands. Several researchers are tirelessly working to isolate and identify plant compounds with antibacterial activity against foodborne bacteria which can be effectively used in food matrices. Moreover, the use of plant antimicrobials in foods is challenging due to their interaction with the food constituents that can decrease their activity. To tackle this problem, various new approaches and technologies have come up wherein plant antimicrobials could be used in foods. This review highlights the potential antibacterials from plants used against foodborne pathogens and the effect of various food processing techniques on the activity of plant antimicrobials. Further, it discusses several methods adopted to incorporate plant biopreservatives into the food system. Although a number of studies have demonstrated the potential of using plant derived antimicrobials as preservatives in foods, more investigations are required to optimize the quantities to be used in food matrices to be effectively used as antimicrobials without influencing the organoleptic properties of foods.