In the present study, we evaluated the antimicrobial activity of neutral electrolyzed water (NEW) against
14 strains of spoilage Pseudomonas of fresh cut vegetables under cold storage. The NEW, produced from
solutions of potassium and sodium chloride, and sodium bicarbonate developed up to 4000 mg/L of free
chlorine, depending on the salt and relative concentration used. The antimicrobial effect of the NEW was
evaluated against different bacterial strains at 105 cells/ml, with different combinations of free chlorine
concentration/contact time; all concentrations above 100 mg/L, regardless of the salt used, were found to
be bactericidal already after 2 min. When catalogna chicory and lettuce leaves were dipped for 5 min in
diluted NEW, microbial loads of mesophilic bacteria and Enterobacteriaceae were reduced on average of
1.7 log cfu/g. In addition, when lettuce leaves were dipped in a cellular suspension of the spoiler Pseudomonas
chicorii I3C strain, diluted NEW was able to reduce Pseudomonas population of about 1.0 log cfu/
g. Thanks to its high antimicrobial activity against spoilage microorganisms, and low cost of operation,
the application of cycles of electrolysis to the washing water looks as an effective tool in controlling fresh
cut vegetable microbial spoilage contamination occurring during washing steps.