What are Food Antimicrobial Additives?

They help extend the shelf life of foods by preventing or slowing the deterioration caused by microbes. Common classes of antimicrobial additives used in foods include organic acids, enzymes, bacteriocins and their complexes, essential oils and their components, fatty acids and their derivatives.

Organic Acids as Food Antimicrobial Additives

Organic acids are widely used as natural Food Antimicrobial Additives in various foods. Short-chain organic acids like acetic acid, lactic acid, citric acid along with their salts are very effective antimicrobial agents. They mimic the bactericidal activity of hydrochloric acid in the stomach and disrupt the integrity of the cytoplasmic membrane of microbes by reducing the pH of their cytoplasm. Organic acids also inhibit the biosynthesis of proteins, fatty acids and nucleic acids in microbes. Sorbic acid and benzoic acid are also commonly used antimicrobial organic acids approved for food applications by regulatory agencies.

Bacteriocins in Food Preservation

Bacteriocins are proteinaceous antimicrobial compounds produced by certain strains of bacteria that have bactericidal activity against closely related microbial strains. Nisin is a well-known bacteriocin produced by Lactococcus lactis subsp. lactis that is approved for use in several processed foods like canned foods, refrigerated dairy products, meat products etc. It binds to lipid II in the bacterial cell membrane and forms pores that cause ion leakage leading to cell death. Other bacteriocins with food applications are pediocin, sakacin and plantaricin. They help control undesirable bacteria in minimally processed foods while allowing favorable bacteria to grow.

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