Antimicrobial effect of cetylpyridinium chloride against Listeria monocytogenes growth on the surface of raw and cooked shrimp

Listeria monocytogenes has emerged as a major foodborne pathogen for the seafood industry due to its psychrotrophic nature and its ubiquitous presence. It has been isolated from soil, sewage, dead vegetative matter, aquatic environments, fecal material, fish, crustaceans, and domesticated animals. As a result, L. monocytogenes has been responsible for several shrimp recalls and has been epidemiologically linked to human listeriosis. Fresh seafood products are highly perishable and their shelf-life is limited by microbiological spoilage. Therefore, when pathogenic microorganisms are involved, it poses a health threat to the general public. The situation is further complicated because seafood processing plants are ideal environments for this organism to proliferate. As a result, this creates an ever growing potential for food safety issues. Cetylpyridinium chloride (CPC) has been shown to have antimicrobial effects in decontaminating raw produce and poultry. Therefore, the objective of this study was to determine the effectiveness of cetylpyridinium chloride as a washing solution to inhibit L. monocytogenes growth on the surface of shrimp. Our studies have successfully shown the potential of cetylpyridinium chloride as a washing solution to reduce L. monocytogenes counts on the surface of raw and cooked shrimp stored at 4°C and -20°C. However, further investigations are necessary to determine its impact on sensory properties of shrimp as well as determining CPC residuals on the surface of raw and cooked shrimp. To date, the use of CPC has only been approved by the FDA at a level not to exceed 0.3 grams of CPC and should also contain propylene glycol at a concentration of 1.5 times that of the CPC per pound of raw poultry carcass