Antimicrobial preservation strategies to prevent food contamination

Food spoiling and poisoning caused by microbial contamination can cause major health, social, and economic problems. The broad scope of antimicrobial approaches to kill or prevent the growth of microorganisms in foods and beverages, including a variety of natural and artificial preservative strategies, are described in a comprehensive Review article in Industrial Biotechnology.

In the Review "Ingredient Technology for Food Preservation," Zuoxing Zheng, PhD, Principle Scientist at Kraft Foods Group (Glenview, IL) discusses new and emerging antimicrobials and how they are being used to improve the safety, quality, and shelf-life of food and beverage products. He describes antimicrobial mechanisms for preventing food spoilage and the criteria used to select particular antimicrobials for specific food or beverage applications.

"As we seek to expand global food production to meet the nutritional requirements of an increasing population, we also need to develop innovative solutions to prevent food spoilage and its impact on human health," says Co-Editor-in-Chief Larry Walker, PhD, Professor, Biological & Environmental Engineering, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY. "Biotechnology solutions must be on the table as we seek to address these challenges."