Effect of salt types and concentrations on the high-pressure inactivation of Listeria monocytogenes in ground chicken

National and international health agencies have recommended a significant reduction in daily intake of sodium by reducing the amount of NaCl in foods, specifically processed meats. However, sodium reduction could increase the risk of survival and growth of spoilage and pathogenic microorganisms on these products. Therefore, alternate processing technologies to improve safety of sodium reduced foods are necessary. This study examined the effects of three different salt types and concentrations on high-pressure inactivation of Listeria monocytogenes in pre-blended ground chicken formulations. Ground chicken formulated with three salt types (NaCl, KCl, CaCl2), at three concentrations (0, 1.5, 2.5%) and inoculated with a four strain cocktail of L. monocytogenes (108CFUg−1) were subjected to four pressure treatments (0, 100, 300, 600MPa) and two durations (60, 180s) in an experiment with factorial design. Surviving cells were enumerated by plating on Oxford agar and analysed by factorial ANOVA. Pressure treatments at 100 or 300MPa did not significantly (P=0.19–050) reduce L. monocytogenes populations. Neither salt type nor concentration had a significant effect on L. monocytogenes populations at these pressure levels. At 600MPa, salt types, concentrations and duration of pressure treatment all had a significant effect on L. monocytogenes populations. Formulations with increasing concentrations of NaCl or KCl showed significantly lower reduction in L. monocytogenes, while increase in CaCl2 concentration resulted in a significantly higher L. monocytogenes reduction. For instance, increase in NaCl concentration from 0 to 1.5 or 2.5% resulted in a log reduction of 6.16, 2.49 and 1.29, respectively, when exposed to 600MPa for 60s. In the case of CaCl2, increase from 0 to 1.5 or 2.5% resulted in a log reduction of 6.16, 7.28 and 7.47, respectively. These results demonstrate that high-pressure processing is a viable process to improve microbial safety of sodium reduced poultry products. •Effect of salt types and concentrations on inactivation of L. monocytogenes by HPP•Increase in NaCl or KCl concentration induced baroprotection of L. monocytogenes.•Increase in CaCl2 concentrations decreased baroprotection of L. monocytogenes.•HPP is a viable process to improve microbial safety of Na reduced foods.