New Publication by Prof. dr. ir. F. Devlieghere: Phages prove effective in reducing Listeria in modern cooked meat processing facilities

New Publication by Prof. dr. ir. F. Devlieghere: Phages prove effective in reducing Listeria in modern cooked meat processing facilities.

PhageGuard Listex is a highly concentrated solution containing phage P100. The phage P100 is selected from nature for its specific killing ability against Listeria monocytogenes.  PhageGuard Listex is also effective against all Listeria strains and can be used directly on product, Food Contact Surfaces (FCS) or cleaning. PhageGuard Listex can be used to protect these areas and kill Listeria.

In this study Prof. dr. ir. F. Devlieghere investigated the effect of an anti-Listeria phage product on outgrowth of Listeria monocytogenes in vacuum packaged cooked ham free from vegetative background flora. Cooked ham was made without organic acids such as lactate or acetate and aseptically sliced and packaged. The inoculation level was low (~17 CFU/g). Phage treatment was performed between slicing and packaging at two levels (1×107 and 5×107 PFU/cm2). Phage treatment kept Listeria monocytogenes below or at the detection level of 1 CFU/g after 28 (low treatment level) and after 42 days (high treatment level) whereas in the control levels exceeded 1×102 CFU/g already after 14 days. In the treated group first outgrowth occurred after 8 weeks with high variation in contamination levels as some samples reached levels of ~107 CFU/g after 120 days. The research shows however that phages can be an effective food safety tool for
cooked meat products.

VIEW THE NEW PUBLICATION