EFFICACY OF LACTIC ACID AND SODIUM BENZOATE AS WASH SOLUTIONS IN PREVENTING RECONTAMINATION OF SOME SPECIFIC MICROBES ON REFRIGERATED CHICKEN CARCASS

Abstract

An experiment was conducted on the efficacy of lactic acid and sodium benzoate as wash solutions in preventing recontamination of some specific microbes on refrigerated chicken carcass. 50g of frozen chicken wings were washed in wash solutions of 0.1 % sodium benzoate (Treatment A) and 0.1 % sodium benzoate + 0.4 % lactic acid (Treatment B). Microbial load were counted at days 0 (before refrigeration), 3, 6. and 9. Data was arranged using a 2 x 4 factorial formats and analyzed using a two way analysis of variance. All parameters measured were significantly (P<0.05) different except for fungi. Results on chicken carcass washed with both treatments A and B showed the same trend of ‘microbial load in which all the bacteria were reduced up to day 3 of refrigeration. Increase in microbial load was observed after day 3 of refrigeration up till day 6 and decreased again at day 9. Staphylococcus aureus which had an initial microbial count of 192 log, cfu/ml before washing in treatment A, increased up to 270 log,cfu/ml at day 6 of refrigeration and later reduced to 224.5 log, cfu/ml at day 9 of refrigeration. However, the combined solution (treatments B) reduced Staphylococcus aureus to 4.5 log, cfu/ml at day 3. But an increase was observed at day 6 (8 log, cfu/ml) and later decreased at day 9 of refrigeration (4.5 log gcfu/ml). Both treatments totally reduced all fungi at day 9 of refrigeration to 0 log, cfu/ml. Although both washing solutions can reduce microbial load on chicken if refrigerated, treatment B effectively reduce more microbial population of refrigerated chicken carcass than treatment A.