Irradiation of Herbs, Spices and Dry Ingredients - Sterigenics

Irradiation of Herbs, Spices and Dry IngredientsTable 2 continued.Irradiation effects onmicrobial contaminationin spicesProduct Dose (kGy) Comments ReferenceSpicesBlack pepper, red chili 10 examined by six different labs; 3 of 6 labs reported Sharma et al., 1989(C. annum), turmeric (wholeno colony forming units (CFUs) after irradiationand ground)treatment while the other 3 found levels of 0-90 CFUs;in the few cases where E. coli and B. cereus werefound in untreated samples, they were completelyeliminated by doses of 10 kGyBlack pepper, nutmeg, 5 – 10 doses of 7.5-10 kGy were in sterilizing or adequately Sharma et al., 1984mace, cinnamon,reducing bacterial contamination in spice samples;cardamom, clovesfungal contamination eliminated at doses lowerthan 5 kGyGround black and 10, 10 kGy dose effective in obtaining zero plate counts for Shigemura et al., 1991white pepper 17, total bacteria, yeast mold and coliforms without affecting20 quality; no effect on volatile oil or piperine contentOnion powder 0 – 15 average minimum dose of 9 kGy resulted in a count Silberstein et al., 1979reduction to below 2.5 x 10 4 , even when initialcontamination was very high; results not dependenton spice quality or type of packaging; a dose of 15 kGyreduced aerobic plate counts to 50 per gramTurmeric, black pepper, chili 1 – 10 dose of 4-5 kGy is effective in eliminating most Singh et al., 1988microorganisms in spices, particularly the spore formersPaprika 5 – 11 dose of 5 kGy resulted in a reduction in mesophilic Szabad and Kiss, 1979aerobic cell count of 2.5 orders of magnitude(identical to that achieved with 600g m--3, 25 C,6h EO treatment; higher doses led to even greaterreductions; coliforms and E. coli I were eliminated;mold count not affected by EO treatment, but wassignificantly reduced by 5 kGy dose of irradiationWhite pepper, nutmeg 5 – 45 doses of 5 kGy effectively reduced numbers of Tjaberg et al., 1972and gingermicroorganisms in samples while 15.8 kGy sterilizedthem; actual reductions depended on initial bioburdenCinnamon, ginger (ground), 2 – 10 doses of 6 kGy for cinnamon and ginger, 6-10 kGy Toofanian and Stegeman,fennel, fenugreek for fennel and 6-8 kGy for fenugreek gave microbial 1988effects similar to those achieved with commercialEO fumigation methodsBlack pepper, paprika, doses of 7.5 kGy led to a 10 4 -10 5 reduction in viable Wetzel et al., 1985thyme, marjoram,organisms in a number of spicesmustard powder,curry powder, spice mixturesfor various meat productsSterigenics Food Safety 2015 Spring Road, Suite 650 Oak Brook, IL 60523 800.472.4508 www.sterigenics.com

Irradiation of Herbs, Spices and Dry Ingredientsof spices. J Appl Bacteriol 35:473-78, 1972.47. Toofanian F, Stegman H: Comparativeeffect of ethylene oxide and gamma irradiationon the chemical, sensory and microbial qualityof ginger, cinnamon, fennel and fenugreek.Acta Aliment 17:271-81, 1988.48. Vajdi M, Pereira RR: Comparative effectsof ethylene oxide, gamma irradiation andmicrowave treatments on selected spices.J Food Sci 38:893-95, 1973.49. Weber FE: Controlling microorganisms inspices. Cereal Foods World 25:319-21, 1980.Sterigenics Food Safety 2015 Spring Road, Suite 650 Oak Brook, IL 60523 800.472.4508 www.sterigenics.com