Antimicrobial Tomato Films
Research chemist Mendel Friedman, a member of the Agricultural Research Service of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, has been testing natural antimicrobials for years. He has found that oil extracts of various spices such as oregano, thyme, cinnamon and cloves have the ability to fight foodborne microbes such as E. coli O157:H7, Salmonella, Listeria and Campylobacter. One of the leading compounds that was able to fight E. coli is carvacrol, a compound extracted from oregano.
Now, Friedman and fellow researchers are developing an edible antimicrobial biofilm made from tomatoes, apples and spinach and these antimicrobial oils. Tomatoes and spinach both are very beneficial and have many vitamins and nutrients so they are the perfect medium with which to make a film. Consumption of tomatoes is reported to be associated with lowered risk of cancer, heart disease, diabetes and hypertension.
More testing needs to be done, but edible antimicrobial films have a promising future if cost isn’t prohibitively expensive. Simply coating food with one of these films could prevent or greatly reduce the chance of bacterial contamination.
Sources
Wood, Marcia. 2008. Spice-Rack Favorites Battle E. coli and Other Foodborne Pathogens. Agricultural Research Service USDA. Available online at http://www.ars.usda.gov/is/pr/2008/080714.htm.
Friedman et. al. 2002. Antimicrobial activities of phenolic benzaldehydes and benzoic acids agains Campylobacter jejuni, Escherichia coli, Listeria monocytogenes, and Salmonella enterica. Journal of Food Protection, 65:1545-1560.
Du, W., Olsen, C.W., Avena-Bustillos, R.D., Mc Hugh, T.H., Levin, C.E., Friedman, M. 2008. Storage Stability and Antibacterial Activity against Echerichia coli O157:H7 of Carvacrol in Edible Apple Films made by Two Different Casting Methods. Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry. 56:3082-2088.
