Food or edible material: processes – compositions – and products – Inhibiting chemical or physical change of food by contact... – Including step of packaging
Reexamination Certificate
2000-07-14
2002-09-17
Hendricks, Keith (Department: 1761)
Food or edible material: processes, compositions, and products
Inhibiting chemical or physical change of food by contact...
Including step of packaging
C426S335000, C426S532000, C424S094610, C424S195110
Reexamination Certificate
active
06451365
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention discloses a process for inhibiting or retarding the outgrowth of bacteria on food products by treatment with a composition which includes one or more hops acid extracts or modified hops acid extracts plus one or more safe and suitable gram positive bacteristatic or bactericidal preparations from the lantibiotics, pediocin, lacticin class bacteriocin and/or lytic enzyme categories. More specifically, the process comprises using as an ingredient or applying to a food surface a composition including nisin, and/or lysozyme and beta hops acids in order to reduce or eliminate gram positive spoilage or pathogenic bacteria, and, most especially, all strains of the harmful pathogen
Listeria monocytogenes.
An important public health concern is the ability of pathogenic listerial species, especially
Listeria monocytogenes,
to grow at commercial refrigeration temperatures at which processed foods are normally stored for long periods of time. This ability to grow under standard conditions of distribution makes
Listeria monocytogenes
one of the top public health risks associated with raw and processed foods today. Any new antimicrobial system must be effective in commercial food systems, with formulation and temperature conditions reflecting actual practices. The new compositions of this patent are effective in a variety of foods, especially at the refrigerated storage and handling temperatures typical of foods at risk for listerial contamination.
2. Technology Description
The extent of food borne infections and intoxications in the United States was quantitatively documented in the CAST report of 1994 (Foodborne Pathogens: Risks and Consequences. Task Force Report No. 122, Council for Agricultural Science and Technology, Washington D.C.), as well as being extensively characterized in the past few years due to better reporting systems and programs (CDC. 1988c. 1997 Final FoodNet Surveillance report. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, October, 1998). In order to reduce the prevalence of listeriosis and other food borne infections, a wide variety of research has been conducted to develop compositions which function as food grade anti-bacterial ingredients. Individual compounds have been disclosed in this research, with little if any commercial benefit or use, primarily because single compounds typically lack the efficacy or are too costly to use in food processing and formulations. At this time, there is still a need for better control of gram positive pathogens such as
Listeria monocytogenes, Staphylococcus aureus, Bacillus cereus, Clostridium botulinum, C. perfringens,
and the like, which pose significant health risks to consumers. In addition, other gram positive spoilage bacteria such as
lactobacilli, streptococci, bacilli, enterococci,
and
micrococci
species are known to cause spoilage, though not normally illness, and are often the principal agents in reducing the shelf life and freshness of selected foods.
Both pathogenic and spoilage bacteria can occur in raw food materials, but heat processing tends to reduce bacterial loads dramatically. After processing, most foods are at risk for recontamination prior to packaging, distribution, and final consumption, when they may be exposed to pathogens in the food handling environment. Even in the cleanest processing facilities, selected pathogens may contaminate the already processed foods, usually at very low levels. In the case of cold tolerant pathogens, primarily various listerial species, they may then grow unchecked on the food during distribution and storage until final consumption. The more such pathogens grow in a food product, the higher the risk of infection among consumers of that food product. This is a special concern for ready to eat meats and dairy products, as such foods are not heated or processed again by the user prior to consumption. In such cases, the most likely risk is from Listeria species that grow well under refrigeration. Consumption of elevated levels of any pathogen is recognized to increase the risk of infection, especially among infants, the elderly, pregnant women, and any immune compromised individuals. In 1998, it is estimated that there were approximately 500 deaths in the U.S. caused by listeriosis presumably contracted from foods. Among major food pathogens, listeriosis has the highest mortality, exceeding 20% according to Meade, et al. (Food-related illness and death in the United States, CDC 5:5, September-October 1999). In light of the risk and the large social cost, an urgent need for systems to prevent listerial growth in foods is recognized by U.S public health agencies, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). The subject of this invention is a novel, food grade (Generally Recognized as Safe), flavor neutral composition that targets Listeria in actual food systems, especially in processed, ready to eat meat products. The desired effect of such a composition is to kill or reduce the levels of Listeria bacteria in foods that are at risk for post processing survival or contamination by such species. In addition, risks associated with other gram positive bacteria, including the above mentioned spoilage types, as well as less common strains of the Corynebacteria, Diplococci, Mycobacteria, Streptococci, and Streptomyces genuses have also been noted as problems in food products and may benefit from such a process or composition.
In 1992 and 1993, U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,096,718 and 5,260,061 disclosed the use of metabolites of propionic acid bacteria in certain foods to increase the shelf life of treated food products. These metabolites demonstrate enhanced efficacy against gram negative bacteria but, unfortunately, are not effective against gram positive bacteria.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,217,950 suggested the use of nisin compositions as bactericides. Nisin is a lantibiotic, more specifically, a polypeptide with antimicrobial properties which is produced in nature by various strains of the bacterium
Lactococcus lactis.
Nisin is indeed primarily effective against gram positive bacteria; however, the common gram positive pathogen
Listeria monocytogenes
is more resistant to nisin than most other species of gram positive bacteria. The need to enhance the activity of nisin against
Listeria monocytogenes
is well recognized and accounts for the fact that nisin by itself is not used as an antilisterial agent commercially. The U.S. Pat. No. 5,217,950 patent therefore suggests the combination of a chelating agent, such as disodium ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA) or other acetate salts or citrate salts with nisin to effect a broader range of activity against both Listeria species as well as selected gram negative bacteria.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,573,797; 5,593,800 and 5,573,801 disclose antibacterial compositions which include a combination of a Streptococcus or Pediococcus derived bacteriocin or synthetic equivalent antibacterial agent in combination with a chelating agent. The composition is applied to the surface of the food to be treated either by direct application or by incorporating the composition onto a flexible film casing which is placed into intimate contact with the food surface. The chelating agent binds free divalent cations in the outer membrane of gram negative cells, improving permeability to the antibacterial agents. In the case of the U.S. Pat. No. 5,573,801, the application of nisin alone to the surface of cooked meats is disclosed, but the efficacy of this single ingredient is so limited that it has not been employed commercially.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,458,876 suggests the combination of a antibiotic (such as nisin) with lysozyme as an antibacterial. In this case, lysozyme breaks down the cell wall and weakens the structural integrity of the target cell so that the antibacterial agent becomes more effective in damaging or killing the bacterial cell. In particular, this combination proves to be effective in improving the antibacterial efficacy of nisin agai
King William
Ming Xintian
Dilworth & Barrese
Hendricks Keith
Rhodia Inc.
Solomon Andrew M.
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