PURE Bioscience submits FCN for produce processing aid

The creator of the patented silver dihydrogen citrate (SDC) antimicrobial made the submission to the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

It said test results demonstrate log reductions in Salmonella, Listeria and E. coli O157:H7 when the antimicrobial is applied to leafy greens.

Testing at Kansas State University, under Dr James Marsden, evaluated the efficacy of SDC against Salmonella, Listeria and E. coli O157:H7 on iceberg lettuce, spinach and cilantro.

SDC achieved average reductions up to 2.36 log¹⁰​ CFU/cm2 when applied alone as a spray and up to 3.10 log¹⁰​ CFU/cm2 when combined with chlorine wash, simulating current processing steps.

Sensory evaluations of produce treated with SDC indicated no difference in color, appearance or odor to untreated controls or had any effect on the nutritional composition of the produce.

Currently, processors target achieving a 1 log¹⁰​ CFU/cm2 reduction per intervention treatment and the firm claims by incorporating SDC, processors can improve their results 100-fold with only one step.

The firm submitted a FCN for raw poultry processing​ in July this year.