Non-thermal plasma as a new food preservation method, Its present and future prospect

Atmospheric pressure plasma (APP) is an emerging non thermal technology for the improvement of food safety. Non-thermal plasma (NTP) is a neutral ionized gas that comprises highly reactive spices including, positive ions, negative ions, free radicals, electrons, excited or non excited molecules and photons at or near room temperature. NTP can be generated at atmospheric pressure that makes it more applicable. Moreover, it could be employed in inactivation of microorganisms on the surface of fresh and processed foods. However, for the reason that there are few studies on the application of this technology in real food systems, the effects of non-thermal plasma on nutritional and chemical properties of food is not known well. Furthermore, the studies which explore the safety and cost aspects of this technology could help it become widespread in food industry. This paper will attempt to provide a review of atmospheric pressure cold plasma, its application in microbial inactivation,food preservation and future prospect of this new technology.