Addition of NaNO2 (50 ppm) to the ham formulation resulted in C. perfringens spore germination and outgrowth of 1.46 log CFU/g subsequent to cooling within 15 h.
Increasing the NaNO2 concentrations to 100, 150 and 200 ppm
resulted in a reduction in total C. perfringens population by 0.54,
0.03 and 1.25 log CFU/g, respectively subsequent to cooling. However,
storage of ham for 24 h prior to heat treatment and subsequent
cooling from 54.4 C to 7.2 C resulted in greater increases
(p 0.05) in C. perfringens populations compared to the ham processed
within 3 h of preparation (Figs. 1 and 2).