Use of essential oils in cheese conservation: review

Cheese is one of the most consumed foods in Brazil, as it shows wide acceptance in all social classes. However, it is highly susceptible to microbial contamination. Food-borne diseases, caused mainly by bacteria, are a serious public health problem and are the cause of several deaths worldwide. In view of the above, the present study aimed at a bibliographical review to discuss the conservation of cheese produced with essential oils, in order to encourage new research to be carried out aiming to discover compounds that can be used in food preservation, mainly cheeses. In this review, some varieties of more commercialized cheeses were mentioned, citing their characteristics and form of contamination, the main microorganisms associated with cheese contamination, such as Listeria monocytogenes, Salmonella spp., Escherichia coli, and Staphylococcus aureus, plants with antimicrobial potential against bacteria involved in cheese contamination, synthetic preservatives and studies reporting the inhibition of growth of some microorganisms in cheeses produced with the addition of essential oils extracted from plants.