Food Protection Trends - July/August 2021 - 386

TABLE 2. Percentage of injured cells of three pathogenic bacteria in fresh chicken meat
after treatment with different concentrations of peroxyacetic acid (PAA) and
near-neutral electrolyzed water (NEW) during 4 days of storage at 4°C
Injured cells (%)
Storage Time Treatment
Control
10 min
PAA200
PAA400
NEW100
NEW200
2 days
NEW100 + PAA200
Control
PAA200
PAA400
NEW100
NEW200
4 days
NEW100 + PAA200
Control
PAA200
PAA400
NEW100
NEW200
NEW100 + PAA200
E. coli
23.5a
23.0a
18.8a
38.3b
35.9b
41.0b
31.8ab
52.4c
53.9c
50.3bc
22.2a
22.3a
44.0bc
60.7c
61.0c
37.8ab
38.8ab
25.3a
Salmonella Typhimurium
34.66a
52.85b
52.71b
54.83b
72.54c
64.72bc
26.58a
61.46bc
37.75a
75d
68cd
51.73b
22.2a
67.83c
42.14b
80d
65.24c
38.55b
L. monocytogenes
47.0a
52.0ab
57.6bc
59.4d
51.0a
61.7d
54.8ab
49.8a
62.2cd
60.1bc
68.8d
65.2cd
33.7a
47.6b
62.2c
52.5b
71.6d
64.5cd
PAA200 and PAA400, PAA at 200 and 400 μg/mL; NEW100 and NEW200, NEW at 100 and 200 μg/mL); NEW100 + PAA200,
NEW at 100 μg/mL + PAA at 200 μg/mL. Different letters indicate a significant difference between treatment groups within each
storage day (P < 0.05).
Chlorine and PAA residues
Measurement of the residual chlorine on the meat samples
revealed that the 100 μg/mL NEW, combined treatment, and
control groups had no residues, although NEW at 200 μg/mL
left 0.3 μg/mL residual chlorine on meat samples, which was
acceptable and considered safe for consumption. A maximum
residue limit of 0.7 mg/L was stipulated by the European
Food Safety Authority (EFSA) (14) in the European Union
for all foodstuffs and drinking water.
In this study, the residual PAA was not evaluated because
previous research has indicated that PAA is highly reactive
and, when used in the presence of organic compounds,
dissociates very rapidly and breaks down to acetic acid
and water. According to the EFSA (13), the residues of
peroxyacids and hydrogen peroxide in chicken carcasses
after dipping for 60 min in PAA solution (200 mg/L) were
below the detection limit of 1 mg/L; thus, it is not necessary
386 Food Protection Trends July/August
to subsequently remove the PAA solution from the poultry
carcasses or poultry meat.
CONCLUSION
The results of the present study revealed that treating
fresh chicken meat with NEW and PAA effectively reduced
populations of Salmonella Typhimurium, E. coli, and L.
monocytogenes immediately after the treatment and during
storage at 4°C. Combined treatment with NEW and PAA
significantly reduced populations of inoculated foodborne
pathogens compared with NEW and PAA treatments alone.
This combined treatment is a beneficial decontamination
method and can improve the microbiological safety of
chicken meat. The effectiveness of combined NEW plus
PAA on the microbiological shelf life and some meat quality
variables such as pH, lipid oxidation, and color is being
evaluated. Further study is needed to evaluate the efficacy

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