These
generally are used as food additives rather than surface
treatments and are generally recognized as safe ingredients.
Most provide only a 1- to 2-log reduction of pathogens,
but they seem to be synergistic with heat and acid
treatments because they affect different aspects of cell
structure and metabolism. In addition, many of these
compounds may provide an added health benefit in the
diet (often referred to as nutricuticals or functional food
ingredients). Recent work at the Agricultural Research
Service’s Jean Mayer Human Nutrition Center on Aging
at Tufts University (Boston, MA) has suggested that foods
with a high oxygen radical absorbance capacity (ORAC)
value (Cao et al., 1995) may reduce the risk of diseases
of aging including atheroschlerosis, diabetes, and cancer.