Food scientists have found that a combination of lactic acid with food grade sodium hypochlorite is an effective sanitizer to process fresh organic vegetables.
Organic foods like vegetable sprouts are getting more popular as people become more aware of the potential benefits to their health and well being. However, food borne pathogen infection caused by contaminated vegetables during each stage of cultivation and the post-harvest process is a major issue, particularly for fresh organic vegetables.
A research team led by Yang Hongshun from the Food Science and Technology Programme at the chemistry department at the National University of Singapore has found that a combination of organic acid (lactic acid, 2 percent v/v) and food grade sodium hypochlorite (4 mg/L) is an effective sanitizer for organic food products. The team tested the sanitization ability of different combinations of electrolyzed water, sodium hypochlorite, and organic acids on organic broccoli sprouts containing a type of bacteria, Listeria innocua.
FoodWorld 