Biopreservation of ready-to-eat Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) by lactic acid bacteria: Effect on safety and quality parameters

Lactic acid bacteria (LAB) are recognised as candidates for biopreservation because of their antagonistic activities. However, the LAB strain's efficacy in and compatibility with a specific food matrix must be emphasised to develop biopreservation as an efficient hurdle for industrial applications. The aim of the present study was to investigate the biopreservative potential of four lactic acid bacteria (LAB; Carnobacterium maltaromaticum 35, C. maltaromaticum 55, C. divergens 468, and Leuconostoc gelidum 406) in vacuum-packed (VP) ready-to-eat (RTE) salmon portions stored at 4℃ for 22 days. The evaluation was based on the strain's growth properties, their effect on the microbial community structure, their ability to inhibit an artificially inoculated strain of Listeria innocua (CCUG 15531) and their effect on chemical (ATP-degradation products and biogenic amines (BA)) and physicochemical properties (pH, colour, and water-holding properties (WHP)) of the salmon portions. All LAB strains grew well, increasing their concentration from 4.2–4.6 log CFU/g to 7.2–8.6 log CFU/g. The cultures outcompeted the population of the spoilage organism Photobacterium , which predominated the microbial community of the control samples. LAB strains did not negatively affect chemical and physicochemical properties. In the absence of inoculated LAB, L. innocua increased significantly from 3.4 ± 0.1 to 5.0 ± 0.3 log CFU/g, while in the presence of C. maltaromaticum 35, no significant proliferation was observed (p = 0.19). Thus, C. maltaromaticum 35 could be an efficient hurdle to ensure safe and microbiologically stable RTE salmon products.