new food product development

NEW TECHNOLOGIES REPORT - #02
Date: 5th November, 2022
COLD PLASMA PROCESSING FOR
FOOD SAFETY
A Unit of Guires © 2023 | www.foodresearchlab.com | Info@foodresearchlab.com

INTRODUCTION
• In order to destroy contaminating germs on meats, poultry, fruits, and vegetables,
cold plasma is a unique non-thermal food processing technology.
• This adaptable sanitizing technique only needs electricity and a carrier gas like air,
oxygen, nitrogen, or helium; chemical antimicrobials are not necessary.
• UV light and reactive chemical byproducts of the cold plasma ionization process are the
main mechanisms of action.
• There are numerous cold plasma systems being developed that can run in low
pressure treatment chambers or at atmospheric pressures.

• Pathogens including Salmonella, Escherichia coli O157:H7, Listeria monocytogenes,
and Staphylococcus aureus can all be reduced by more than 5 logs.
• Depending on the food being treated and the processing circumstances, effective
treatment timeframes can range from 120 seconds to as low as 3 seconds.
• The relatively early stage of technology development, the diversity and complexity of the required
equipment, and the mostly unstudied effects of cold plasma therapy on the sensory and nutritional
properties of treated foods are the main constraints of cold plasma.
• Additionally, depending on the kind of cold plasma generated, different cold plasma systems have
different antibacterial mechanisms of action.

METHODS TO GENERATE PLASMA
• Energy is added to a neutral gas to cause the production of charge carriers, which
creates plasmas. When neutral atoms and molecules in the feed gas are struck by electrons
or photons with enough energy, they form electrons and ions in the gas phase (electron-
impact ionisation or photo ionization).
• There are several ways to provide a neutral gas the energy it needs to generate plasma.
One option is to provide thermal energy, which is employed as the main energy source
in exothermic chemical reactions of molecules, such as in flames. The gas can heat up to
the point of plasma production when compressed adiabatically.

• Energy-beams that are moderated in a gas volume are yet another method of supplying energy
to a gas reservoir. An further benefit of neutral particle beams is that they are unaffected by
magnetic and electric forces. In fusion devices, neutral beams are typically utilised for plasma
heating or plasma maintenance.
• By applying an electric field to a neutral gas, a low-temperature plasma is most
frequently created and maintained for technological and technical applications. A small number
of electrons and ions are always present in any volume of a neutral gas. These particles
are created, for instance, when cosmic rays or radioactive radiation interact with the gas.

VARIOUS WAYS OF SUPPLYING THE NECESSARY ENERGY FOR PLASMA
GENERATION

BENEFITS OF COLD PLASMA OVER OTHER FOOD
SAFETY TECHNOLOGIES
• The disinfection of products with externally placed microorganisms is possible using cold plasma.
In contrast to light (such as UV light decontamination), plasma travels around items, preventing
"shadow effects" and guaranteeing that the entire product is cleaned.
• There is currently no mild surface cleaning method available for things like chopped vegetables
and fresh meat; cold plasma could be used instead. Surfaces could potentially be cleaned with cold
plasma prior to packaging or as part of the packaging procedure.

• Even with the added requirement for a carrier gas, plasma technologies' electronics and longevity
are equivalent to UV-C systems in terms of energy consumption and cost-effectiveness for treating
food. Atmospheric plasmas with high concentrations of bactericidal molecules (> 100 ppm ozone,
nitric oxides, peroxides, etc.) are produced quickly and efficiently at room temperature, with little
to no product heating.
• A few hundred watts of electricity and a source of compressed air or another gas are needed for
atmospheric plasma technology (APT); occasionally, a gas blend is utilised depending on the
reactive gas species being created. With product temperature increases of less than 5 °C, APT can
produce bactericidal molecules in situ extremely effectively using only air. The technology is
expanding into new markets and applications as a result of its adaptability and distinctive
processing capabilities.

ADVANTAGES
• Novel, incredibly quick sterilization/preservation method (sterilization takes only few
minutes).
• The surface treatment method has no impact on the food's vitamins and nutrients.
• Process runs at standard temperatures (ideal for thermo labile products).
• Any kind of infection can be rendered inactive depending on the type of plasma.
• Low operating costs (cost of natural gases and electricity).
• Friendly to the environment (uses natural gases including nitrogen, argon, air,
hydrogen and oxygen).

COLD PLASMA TO KILL BACTERIA FOR
RAW CHICKEN
• Over 70% of the tested raw chicken meat contains pathogens including Salmonella
and Campylobacter. A food safety team at Drexel University in Pennsylvania recently used high-
energy, low-temperature plasma to kill undesirable microorganisms while essentially leaving the
product unaltered.
Fig: A plasma torch applied to uncooked chicken

MODIFICATION OF FOOD PACKAGING
POLYMERS
POLYETHYLENE [PE]
• One of the simplest polymers utilised in food packaging in terms of structure is PE. Commercially
available PE comes in a range of densities and is distinguished by various WVTR (water vapour transfer
rate), GTR (gas transmission rate), tensile strength, heat sealing, and other qualities.
• This gives food producers the opportunity to select the best package form for their products.
• However, the majority of cold plasma research has focused on PE surface changes because to PE's low
surface energy.
• It has been reported to characterise PE's surface using CO2, H2O, and CO2/H2O plasma.

POLYMERS
Polyethylene terphthalate [PET]
• PET is a material of choice for food packaging because of its many advantageous qualities, including
good strength, stiffness, high strength-to-weight ratio, transparency, thermal stability, gas barrier
property, chemical resistance, and formability.
• The reduced surface energy of PET, like other synthetic polymers, calls for surface modification to
achieve acceptable adhesion, printing, and dyeing qualities.
• The PET film's crystalline structure has a significant role in determining how the surface energy
changes after CP treatments.
• Oxygen, carbon dioxide, nitrogen, and helium plasma surface characterisation studies for plasma-
treated PET film have been published.

POLYMERS
• Food Packaging Surface Sterilization
• In many circumstances, the packaging process is a key critical control point in a hazard analysis critical
control point (HACCP) system, and the majority of regulatory rules include microbiological requirements
for food packaging materials. Food packaging materials are designed to protect food from deterioration,
damage, and outside contamination while maintaining food quality along the chain of distribution and
storage. Using PET foil substrates and typical treatment periods of 5 s, Schneider et al. (2005) evaluated
the scalability of a plasma array system (Duo-Plasmaline®) for industrial applications and compared the
performance to a laboratory size system (Plasmodul®). The spore reduction kinetics for both systems point
to the method's scalability.

DISADVANTAGES
• There are certain drawbacks to plasma processing, including a rise in lipid oxidation, a drop in colour, a loss
of fruit firmness, and an increase in acidity, among others.
• The most significant issue is the walnuts' 20% increase in peroxide value at increased power and treatment
times. In the case of samples of peanuts treated with plasma, similar outcomes were seen. This may be
because radicals can oxidise lipid molecules, which increased the peroxide value.
• After being exposed to atmospheric non equilibrium plasma for 5 minutes, the spinach leaves' discoloration
and wilting effects were noticed.
• Because the plasma effect is a surface phenomena, it is not viable to employ this technique to inactivate
endogenous enzymes that are present in whole fruits in their natural state. Another drawback of direct
plasma application is that it makes fruits less solid.
• According to Kim et al., after 10 minutes of treatment, milk's pH decreased when plasma was applied.

References
• https://www.researchgate.net/publication/343532073_Cold_Plasma_Emerging_As_the_New_Standa
rd_in_Food_Safety
• https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/22149075/#:~:text=Abstract,poultry%2C%20fruits%2C%20and%
20vegetables.
• https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11483-014-9382-
z#:~:text=There%20are%20some%20limitations%20of,and%20increase%20in%20acidity%20etc.

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