MICROBIAL DECONTAMINATION BY DIPPING LACTIC ACID SOLUTION ON PORK STORED AT ROOM TEMPERATURE

摘要

IntroductionIn the past decade, there has been a growing concern over the safety and quality of red meat products (Eisel et al., 1997). In Thailand, animals are slaughtered at night during 11 pm-3 am. After that the meat is transported to the market and sold from early morning till afternoon. Meat is sold at open-air markets. Shops display meat on the counters, and some hang the meat. Therefore, meat is exposed to the environment, especially to the ambient temperature (30-38 0(2). This condition encourages microbial contamination which leads to health problems (Ockerman et al., 2001; Pilasombut et al., 2007). Concerning the contamination, there have been investigations on reducing the number of bacteria during the storage of meat. Lactic acid is often used for surface decontamination (Pipek et al., 2004; Podolak et al., 1996). Concentration of acid in the range of 1-2% is generally accepted (Pipek et al., 2004). Therefore, the objective of this study is the reduction of microbial population by dipping lactic acid solution onto the surface of pork during storage at room temperature.