Acidified sodium chlorite treatment for inhibition of Listeria monocytogenes growth on the surface of cooked roast beef.

The effects of acidified sodium chlorite (ASC) against Listeria monocytogenes on the surface of cooked roast beef were investigated. L. monocytogenes, strain V7, serotype 1/2a, was inoculated at numbers of 6.0 log CFU/g onto 5-g cubes of cooked regular or spicy roast beef. The samples were allowed to air dry for 1 h. The cooked roast beef samples were dipped into ASC or sprayed with ASC solutions of 250, 500, 750, or 1,000 ppm, then placed in bags with or without a vacuum and refrigerated at 4 degrees C. L. monocytogenes counts were determined after 0, 7, 14, 21, and 28 days of storage by spread plating roast beef samples onto Oxford agar plates that were incubated at 37 degrees C for 48 h. At day 28, the number of L. monocytogenes on the > or = 500 ppm ASC-treated spicy roast beef samples had count reductions that were >4.0 log CFU/g, whereas the same concentrations of ASC-treated regular roast beef samples had approximately a 2.5 log CFU/g reduction in L. monocytogenes counts when compared with the untreated samples. No significant differences (P > 0.05) were observed in L. monocytogenes counts between the vacuum- or nonvacuum-packaged ASC-treated cooked roast beef samples. Sensory evaluation showed no significant differences (P > 0.05) between ASC-treated and untreated roast beef. ASC can be used as a processing aid in the form of a dip or spray treatment to control L. monocytogenes on the surface of cooked roast beef.