Comparing the effects of high hydrostatic pressure and thermal pasteurization combined with nisin on the quality of cucumber juice drinks

• DOI: 10.1016/j.ifset.2012.10.004
• Publication Date: 2012-10-23T09:07:21Z
• Authors: Liang Zhao; Siyuan Wang; Fengxia Liu; Peng Dong; Wenshu Huang; Ling Xiong; Xiaojun Liao
• Keywords: Pasteurization; Hydrostatic pressure; Food Preservation

Abstract The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of high hydrostatic pressure (HHP) at 400 MPa/4 min and 500 MPa/2 min and thermal pasteurization at 85 °C/15 s with 100 IU/mL nisin on natural microbial flora, chlorophyll a and b, color, lipoxygenase activity and four C9 key odorants of (E,Z)-2,6-nonadienal, (E,Z)-3,6-nonadien-1-ol, (E)-2-nonenal and (Z)-6-nonenal in cucumber juice drinks over 50 days of storage at 4 °C. Yeast and molds (Y&M) were completely inactivated by all treatments, and their levels were below the detection limit during storage. Nisin with HHP or thermal pasteurization had a synergistic effect on the inactivation of total aerobic bacteria (TAB). For all the quality attributes studied in this article, their retention was significantly better in the HHP-treated samples than in the thermally pasteurized samples during storage. The samples treated by 500 MPa/2 min with 100 IU/mL nisin exhibited a longer shelf life as compared with other treated samples. Industrial relevance This research paper presents a fair comparison of cucumber juice drinks treated by HHP and thermal pasteurization which is quite scarce. The available data are provided for the evaluation and application of HHP and thermal pasteurization in the beverage industry and could be used to establish safety criteria for the commercial production of high quality cucumber juice beverages.