Sakacin‐A antimicrobial packaging for decreasing Listeria contamination in thin‐cut meat: preliminary assessment

BACKGROUND: Minimally processed ready‐to‐eat products are considered a high‐risk food because of the possibility of contamination with pathogenic bacteria, including Listeria monocytogenes from the animal reservoir, and the minimal processing they undergo. In this study, a sakacin‐A anti‐Listeria active package was developed and tested on thin‐cut veal meat slices (carpaccio). RESULTS: Enriched food‐grade sakacin‐A was obtained from a cell‐free supernatant of a Lactobacillus sakei culture and applied (0.63 mg cm(−2)) onto the surface of polyethylene‐coated paper sheets to obtain an active antimicrobial package. The coating retained antimicrobial features, indicating that the process did not affect sakacin‐A functionality, as evidenced in tests carried out in vitro. Thin‐cut veal meat slices inoculated with Listeria innocua (a surrogate of pathogenic L. monocytogenes) were laid on active paper sheets. After 48 h incubation at 4 °C, the Listeria population was found to be 1.5 log units lower with respect to controls (3.05 vs 4.46 log colony‐forming units (CFU) g(−1)). CONCLUSION: This study demonstrates the possibility of using an antimicrobial coating containing sakacin‐A to inhibit or decrease the Listeria population in ready‐to‐eat products, thus lowering the risk of food‐related diseases. © 2016 The Authors. Journal of The Science of Food and Agriculture published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Society of Chemical Industry.