Posted by Joel Leusink on July 11, 2011 under Food Industry | 
Ozone Helps Produce Last Longer by Extending Shelf Life
Common Applications for Ozone use in Food Storage
- Potato Storage Facilities
- Onion Storage Facilities
- Citrus Fruit Storage
- Vegetable Storage
- Aged Ham Storage
- Cool Meat Storage
- Preservation of Fish and Seafood
- General Cold Storage Facilities
Methods of Ozone Application
- Ozone gas can be distributed throughout a cold storage facility at low levels.
- Ozone-sterilized ice is used to pack fresh fish and seafood to prolong freshness.
- Ozone gas is used in meat coolers to inhibit microbiological growth and extend shelf life.
- Ozone is dissolved into water to wash fruits and vegetables and remove mold and bacteria.
- Low levels of ozone gas can be used in containers to prolong shelf life upon delivery.
- Dissolved ozone is used to wash meat and poultry to remove bacteria and extend refrigerated shelf life
Benefits of Ozone Use in Cold Storage
- Extend shelf-life of the produce within the cold storage facility.
- Air-borne microbiological control
- Low ozone levels (<0.3 PPM) will inhibit microbiological growth in the air.
- High ozone levels can be used for disinfection when room is empty.
- Surface sanitation can be maintained
- By inhibiting microbiological growth pathogens on the surface of produce, containers, and walls will be kept to a minimum.
- Eliminate mold growth from cold storage area.
- Odor control
- Maintain an odor-free cold storage area
- Keep odors from cross contaminating between products
- Ethylene Removal
Extension of Storage Life With Ozone
A few examples
| Food |
Extension |
Storage Conditions |
| Fish |
50-80% |
ozone sterilized ice |
| Salmon |
50% |
ozone sterilized ice |
| Jack Mackerel and Shimaaji (fish) |
1.2 – 1.6 days |
Soak in 30% NaCl cont. 0.6 mg/L O3 30-60 min. every 2 days. |
| Beef (frozen) |
30-40% |
0.4oC; 85-90% RH; 10-20 mg/m3 O3, provided original microbial count is below 103/cm2 |
| Poultry |
2.4 days |
Soak in ice water while passing in O3 (3.88 mg/L) 20 min. |
| Bananas |
substantial |
A few ppm O3 @ 12oC, if fruit is not within a few days of its period of rapid ripening. |
| Strawberries, Raspberries, Currents, Grapes |
100% |
2-3 ppm O3, continuously or several hours each day. |
| Apples |
several |
1.95 cm3 O3/m3 |
| Potatoes |
6 months |
3 mg/L O3; 6-14oC; 93-97% RH |
| Eggs |
8 months |
0.6 ppm O3; 31oF; 90% RH |
| Cheeses |
63 days |
0.2 – 0.3 ppm O3 |
* Source: Review of the Applications of Ozone for Increasing Storage Times of Perishable Foods, Ozone: Science and Engineering, Vol. 4, pp. 147-163, 1982, Pergamon Press Ltd.
More info on food storage with ozone here
Ozone effect on pathogens
Posted by Joel Leusink on April 30, 2011 under Food Industry |
New paper on the use of ozone in food processing was recently released in the Journal of Food Science.
EFFICACY OF OZONE PRODUCE WASHERS IN REDUCING NATURAL AND ARTIFICIALLY INOCULATED MICROORGANISMS ON ROMA TOMATOES AND GREEN ONIONS
- WILBERT LONG III1,2,
- STEVEN PAO1,*,
- PAULA INSERRA1,
- EDWINA WESTBROOK1,
- SOOHYOUN AHN2,3
Article first published online: 20 APR 2011
DOI: 10.1111/j.1745-4565.2011.00297.x
ABSTRACT
This study investigated the efficacy of ozone washing appliances for microbial decontamination of tomatoes and green onions. Produce were submerged for light or heavy washing in ozone Washer-A or -B (Washer-B generates higher levels of ozone and agitation) or non-ozone Washer-C. Ozone washings reduced total aerobic mesophile counts on whole tomatoes but not green onions when compared to unwashed samples. Washer-B at heavy setting reduced coliform numbers on whole tomatoes by 1.9 cfu/g. Furthermore, Washer-B yielded more than 2.0 log reductions of Escherichia coli (inoculation level at ∼6.3 log cfu/g) on the edible portions of tomatoes than Washer-A at comparable settings. A follow-up study using Washer-B showed that ozone application can significantly reduce E. coli and Salmonella in produce wash water to prevent cross-contamination. However, when compared to non-ozone washing of produce, improved reduction of natural and artificially inoculated microorganisms by ozone applications was not found. Microscopic observation corroborates microbial enumeration showing that removing inedible portions (stem scars or root bulbs) of washed tomatoes and green onions is beneficial for microbial decontamination.
PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS
Contaminated produce is a major cause of bacterial-related foodborne illnesses in the U.S.A. To meet consumer’s demand for safer produce, effective sanitizing methods need to be developed and verified. Data from this study expands our knowledge of ozone-based kitchen appliances for produce sanitization and their practical value for preventing cross-contamination during produce washing. Furthermore, the findings highlight the importance of removing stem-scar and root bulb portions of washed produce for food safety.
This paper can be purchased from the Journal of Food Science. Click here for link.
Posted by Becky on February 3, 2011 under Food Industry, Ozone Products, Uncategorized |
Did you know that the fruits and vegetables in your refrigerator have likely been treated with ozone? Ozone kills bacteria which makes your food last at least twice as long and up to four times longer than the normal shelf life. With the Fridgezone GH-2138 you can do what the Food Industry has been doing for years… in your very own fridge!
Put the Fridgezone in your fridge and let run and see the results in a few days!
To learn more about the advantages of using ozone in the food processing see the links below:
To see some of Ozone Solutions bigger systems used for Food Processing see the links below:
Posted by Joel Leusink on February 26, 2010 under Ozone Generators, Residential Ozone Usage |
Keeping food fresh and extending shelf life of fruits and vegetables is a common use of ozone in the industrial setting. Now, we are bringing this same technology to your home refrigerator.
Introducing the FridgeZone. A battery powered refrigerator sized ozone generator. Now the same advantages ozone brings to cold storage, and warehouses is available in your own refrigerator!.
FridgeZone
Turn your home or office refrigerator into a ozonated cold storage facility!
Strawberries with and without the FridgeZone
To learn more about the application of ozone and food see the links below
