Browsing by Author "Lima, Ana Isabel G."
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- Assessment of the Microbiological Quality and Safety in Takeaway Sushi Meals in PortugalPublication . Alegria, Sandy J.C.; Santos, Maria Isabel S.; Furtado, Rosália M.S.; Correia, Cristina Belo; Lima, Ana Isabel G.; Pedroso, Laurentina R.; Ramos, Sónia Catarina da SilvaBeing a food product that contains perishable ingredients and involves a significant degree of manual handling during preparation, sushi is regarded as a potentially hazardous food, which may lead to foodborne disease outbreaks. In Portugal, consumption of takeaway sushi meals has strongly increased throughout the past few years; however, there is limited information regarding its compliance with food quality standards. Under this context, the present study aimed to evaluate the microbiological quality and safety of take-away ready-to-eat sushi meals in Lisbon, Portugal. Sixty- two samples were collected from different origins (restaurant and hypermarket), and each sample was tested for aerobic mesophilic microorganisms, Enterobacteriaceae, Escherichia coli, positive coagulase Staphylococci, presumptive Bacillus cereus count, as for detection of pathogenic microorganisms, such as Salmonella spp., Listeria monocytogenes and Vibrio parahaemolyticus, V. cholerae and V. vulnificus. Results revealed that 48.4% (30/62) were deemed unsatisfactory, 35.5% (22/62) were classified as borderline and only 16.1% (10/62) were considered satisfactory. Even though we did not detect the incidence of potentially pathogenic microorganisms in sushi, the presence of B. cereus and coagulase- positive Staphylococci was detected at unsatisfactory levels. Furthermore, significant differences between the place of origin (restaurant vs. hypermarket) and type of fish were also observed. Overall, the high number of samples classified with a level of microbiological quality “unsatisfactory” and “borderline” highlights the need to review good hygiene practices, as well as the quality of the raw materials used, to obtain a final product with a satisfactory quality and safety level
- Industrial waste whey as a low-cost, efficient and environmentally safe disinfectant, with potential applications for minimally processed foodstuffPublication . Santos, Maria Isabel S.; Lima, Ana Isabel G.; Pedroso, Laurentina; Sousa, IsabelBeing a fast and reliable way to access healthy products, fresh-cut fruit and vegetables are becoming a rapidly rising sector of the horticultural industry with a concomitant high consumer demand. Fresh-cut processing usually involves sanitizing steps, with chlorine washing being the general choice. Due to the health harming effects of chlorine, there has been an increasing demand for alternative disinfecting agents. Under this context, fermented cheese whey has shown potential as a natural sanitizing agent but has been poorly tested in fresh-cut produce. Furthermore, it also continues to pose an environmental problem because it still contains a high organic load. Here we aimed at developing a low-cost, scalable fermentation protocol to produce a disinfectant from dairy waste that has very little organic content and high levels of lactic acid. Fermentation was achieved with industrial whey from ewe, goat, and cow´s milk, using a specific mesophilic-lactic acid bacteria starter mix over a more prolonged fermentation of 120 h, which yielded the highest lactic acid production and the lowest lactose content. Antibacterial activity was observed against Listeria monocytogenes, Salmonella enterica, and Escherichia coli O157:H7, plus a total of thirteen other food pathogenic and spoilage strains, and antibacterial activities were determined to be highest after 120 h. We further validated this whey’s application as a disinfectant in shredded lettuce and compared its efficacy to that of chlorine, evaluating microbial quality, texture, color, and sensory perception, pH, and O2 and CO2 determinations. Results showed that not only was microbial quality better when using our whey solution (p < 0.05), but also the quality indicators for whey were statistically similar to those treated with chlorine. Hence, our work validates the use of an industrial waste whey as a low-cost, efficient, and environmentally safe disinfectant, with potential applications for minimally processed foodstuffs as an alternative to chlorine
- A novel way for whey: cheese whey fermentation produces an effective and environmentally-safe alternative to chlorinePublication . Santos, Maria Isabel S.; Fradinho, Patrícia; Martins, Sandro; Lima, Ana Isabel G.; Boavida Ferreira, Ricardo; Pedroso, Laurentina; Ferreira, Maria Adélia S.S.; Sousa, IsabelCheese whey has been described as an environmental hazard due to its high organic content. Although it has been suggested that whey can be used as food disinfectant, it continues to pose an environmental problem because it still contains a high organic load. Here, we aimed to develop a low-cost, scalable fermentation protocol to produce a disinfectant from dairy waste that has very little organic content and high levels of lactic acid. Fermentation was achieved with industrial whey from ewe, goat, and cow’s milk, using a specific mesophilic-lactic acid bacteria starter mix over 120 h, which yielded the highest lactic acid production and the lowest lactose content. Antibacterial activity was observed against Listeria monocytogenes, Salmonella enterica, and Escherichia coli O157:H7, plus a total of thirteen other food pathogenic and spoilage strains, and antibacterial activities were determined to be highest after 120 h. We further validated this whey’s application as a disinfectant in shredded lettuce and compared its e cacy to that of chlorine, evaluating microbial quality, texture, color, and sensory perception, pH, and O2 and CO2 determinations. Results showed that not only was microbial quality better when using our whey solution (p < 0.05), but also the quality indicators for whey were statistically similar to those treated with chlorine. Hence, our work validates the use of an industrial waste whey as a low-cost, e cient, and environmentally safe disinfectant, with potential applications for minimally processed foodstu s as an alternative to chlorine