Category Archives: Food Spoilage

Issue Date	28.8.2019
Source of Information	Food Incident Surveillance System
Food Product	Three kinds of prepackaged brownies imported from Japan
Product Name and Description	(1) Product name: Walnut Brownie Brand: Muji Country of origin: Japan JAN code: 4550002874162 (2) Product name: Earl Grey Brownie Brand: Muji Country of origin: Japan JAN code: 4550002874186 (3) Product name: Caramel Brownie Brand: Muji Country of origin: Japan JAN code: 4550002874179
Reason For Issuing Alert	The Centre for Food Safety (CFS), through its routine Food Incident Surveillance System, noted that Muji (Japan) is recalling the abovementioned products due to the possible presence of mould in the products.
Action Taken by the Centre for Food Safety	Upon learning of the incident, the CFS immediately followed up with Muji (Hong Kong) Company Limited. According to information provided by the company, it had imported the affected products which were put on sale at its outlets. The company had already removed from shelves and stopped sale of the affected products, and initiated a recall. The CFS will continue to follow up on the incident and take appropriate action. An investigation is ongoing.
Advice to the Trade	Stop using or selling the affected products immediately if they possess it.
Advice to Consumers	Not to consume the affected products if they have bought it.
Further Information	The CFS press release Members of the public may call Muji (Hong Kong) Company Limited’s hotline at 2694 9309 during office hours for enquiries about the recall.

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Research – Effect of Sodium Hypochlorite on Biofilm-Forming Ability of Histamine-Producing Bacteria Isolated from Fish

Posted on August 14, 2019 by KSW | Leave a comment

Journal of Food Protection

ABSTRACT

Histamine poisoning occurs when temperature-abused marine fish containing elevated levels of histamine are consumed. Histamine-producing bacteria found in fish can colonize processing surfaces and form biofilms. In this study, the biofilm-forming abilities of histamine-producing bacteria from Indian mackerel (Rastrelliger kanagurta) and the effect of hypochlorite treatment on biofilm formation were studied. The isolates of this study produced histamine in the range of 471 to 2,126 ppm. The histidine decarboxylase gene hdc was detected in all isolates producing histamine except in one strain each of Psychrobacter pulmonis and Proteus vulgaris. All isolates tested in this study produced moderate biofilms under control conditions, whereas exposure to 1 and 3 ppm of sodium hypochlorite significantly enhanced biofilm formation. However, exposure to 5 ppm of sodium hypochlorite showed an inhibitory effect on biofilm formation by all the isolates except Klebsiella variicola. The results of this study suggest that histamine-producing bacteria can form stable biofilms and that this activity may be enhanced by the application of low levels of sodium hypochlorite, a phenomenon that might influence the persistence of histamine-producing bacteria in fish processing areas.

HIGHLIGHTS

Bacteria isolated from Indian mackerel produced histamine in the range of 471 to 2,126 ppm.
Histamine-producing bacteria isolated from the same fish can vary in the levels of histamine produced.
The hdc gene was not detected in one strain each of Psychrobacter pulmonis and Proteus vulgaris.
All histamine-producing bacteria formed moderate biofilms under control conditions.
Exposure to 1 and 3 ppm of sodium hypochlorite increased biofilm formation by histamine-producing bacteria.

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Posted in Biofilm, Enterobacteriaceae, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Microbiology Blog, Food Spoilage, Histamine, Klebsiella, microbial contamination, Microbiology, Proteus, Uncategorized

Research – Chitosan and Oregano Oil Treatments, Individually or in Combination, Used To Increase the Shelf Life of Vacuum-Packaged, Refrigerated European Eel (Anguilla anguilla) Fillets

Posted on August 4, 2019 by KSW | Leave a comment

Journal of Food Protection

ABSTRACT

We investigated the impact of chitosan and oregano essential oil (EO) individually or in combination on the quality of eel fillets in vacuum packaging (VP) and stored under refrigeration (4°C). Treatments studied were (i) control eel fillets stored in VP (E), (ii) eel fillets treated with 0.3% (v/w) oregano EO and stored in VP (E-OR), (iii) eel fillets treated with 2.0% (w/v) chitosan and stored in VP (E-CH), and (iv) eel fillets treated with 2.0% (w/v) chitosan and 0.3% (v/w) oregano EO and stored in VP (E-CH-OR). Treatments E-CH-OR and E-CH significantly reduced counts of mesophilic bacteria, Pseudomonas, Shewanella, and yeasts and molds during storage. Use of chitosan alone or in combination with oregano EO led to a significant reduction in concentrations of trimethylamine nitrogen and total volatile basic nitrogen in fillets, which led to lower concentrations of thiobarbituric acid reactive substances compared with the control samples. The eel samples in the E-CH and E-CH-OR groups were sensorially acceptable during the entire refrigerated storage period of 18 days. Presence of chitosan in the E-CH and E-CH-OR fillets did not negatively affect the taste of the fillets. E-CH fillets received a higher taste score than did E-CH-OR fillets probably because of the distinct and “spicy” lemon taste of chitosan, which was well received by the sensory panel. Based on overall sensory data (based on mean sensory scores of odor and taste), the shelf life was 6 days for the control fillets, 10 days for the E-OR fillets, and >18 days for the E-CH and E-CH-OR fillets stored in VP at 4°C. Overall, chitosan-treated eel fillets had lower microbial loads and a longer shelf life compared with the controls. Chitosan-treated eel fillets were preferred over oregano-treated fillets. Chitosan alone or in combination with oregano could be used as a preservative treatment and shelf-life extender for other seafoods.

HIGHLIGHTS

Chitosan and oregano oil reduced microbial loads in treated eel fillets.
Eel fillets treated with chitosan and oregano oil had less lipid oxidation and longer shelf life.
Chitosan-treated fillets had higher sensory scores than did control fillets.