Exclusion of phospholipases (PLs)-producing bacteria in raw milk flushed with nitrogen gas (N2)

Prolonged cold storage of raw milks favors the growth of psychrotrophs, which produce heat-resistant exoenzymes of considerable spoilage potential; the bacterial proteases and lipases affect raw milk quality; among them phospholipases (PLs) may target the milk fat globule. More importantly, bacterial PLs are key virulence factors for numerous species. Two studies examined the use of nitrogen (N2) gas and examined its effect on psychrotrophs, proteases and lipase producers when the milk was stored in closed vessels; however, the effect on PLs producers is unknown. Here we show that by considering an open system the PLs producers were sooner or later excluded in raw milk (whereas the PLs producers in the non-treated controls culminated at 108 CFU/ml), by effective gas treatments that bring oxygen (O2) levels in milk lower than 0.1 ppm. No increase of the PLs producers among the anaerobes was noticed during the course of the experiments. In the experiments performed at 6.0 °C, the delay after which the PLs producers were no longer detectable seemed independent of the initial level of PLs producers in raw milk (lower than 103 CFU/ml). We anticipate that flushing pure N2 gas in raw milk tanks, considered as open systems, along the cold chain of raw milk storage and transportation, may be an additional technique to control psychrotrophs, and may also constitute an interesting perspective for limiting their spoilage and pathogenic potential in food materials in general. © 2008 Elsevier GmbH. All rights reserved