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Review
. 2019 Oct 31;8(4):208.
doi: 10.3390/antibiotics8040208.

Food Safety through Natural Antimicrobials

Emiliano J Quinto  1 , Irma Caro  2 , Luz H Villalobos-Delgado  3 , Javier Mateo  4 , Beatriz De-Mateo-Silleras  5 , María P Redondo-Del-Río  6
Affiliations
Review

Food Safety through Natural Antimicrobials

Emiliano J Quinto et al. Antibiotics (Basel). .

Abstract

Microbial pathogens are the cause of many foodborne diseases after the ingestion of contaminated food. Several preservation methods have been developed to assure microbial food safety, as well as nutritional values and sensory characteristics of food. However, the demand for natural antimicrobial agents is increasing due to consumers' concern on health issues. Moreover, the use of antibiotics is leading to multidrug resistant microorganisms reinforcing the focus of researchers and the food industry on natural antimicrobials. Natural antimicrobial compounds from plants, animals, bacteria, viruses, algae and mushrooms are covered. Finally, new perspectives from researchers in the field and the interest of the food industry in innovations are reviewed. These new approaches should be useful for controlling foodborne bacterial pathogens; furthermore, the shelf-life of food would be extended.

Keywords: algae; bacteria; bacteriocins; bacteriophages; mushrooms; natural antimicrobials; plants; preservation; spices; viruses.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Overview of natural antimicrobials and their role in food safety.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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