Natural Antimicrobials for Biopreservation of Fish

Abstract

Antibacterial compounds from microorganisms are also receiving much importance in the recent years. Several studies were conducted treating post-harvest fish/fish products with natural antimicrobials of microbial origin (bacteriophages, nisin), aquatic animal origin (chitosan) and plant origin (essential oils, phenolics) and the results indicate that the natural antimicrobials are promising additives to reduce or eliminate foodborne bacterial pathogens and fish spoilage organisms. Prolonging the shelf life of fish and protecting food safety employing natural means or controlled microbiota and /or antimicrobial compounds (biopreservation) is the real challenge for the food microbiologists and food technologists. The demand for natural biopreservatives in food is set to increase as these organic compounds are safe to consume (GRAS) and also due to the increased consumer awareness on the deleterious effects of chemical preservatives. This chapter will give an overview of safe and effective natural antimicrobial compounds and its application in different sea food products.