Department of Employment, Economic Development and Innovation
Australian Prawn Farmers AssociationR&D meeting – 27th May 2011
Carl PauloInnovative Food Technologies
2© The State of Queensland, Department of Employment, Economic Development and Innovation, 2010
Project No. 2010/707
Loss minimisation in farmed prawns through improvements in storage life and colour
3© The State of Queensland, Department of Employment, Economic Development and Innovation, 2010
Overview
• Last update presented on 30th November 2010
• Milestone report submitted 8th February 2011
• Project objectives– Shelf life extension of chilled cooked prawns– Colour retention of cooked prawns during frozen storage
4© The State of Queensland, Department of Employment, Economic Development and Innovation, 2010
Chilled shelf life extension• Previously identifying spoilage organisms on frozen prawns
• Currently identifying SSO’s of chilled prawns• 2 batches of prawns sourced from each farm
– 2x farms near Gold Coast– 2x farms near Townsville– 2x farm near Bundaberg
• Crystal Bays
5© The State of Queensland, Department of Employment, Economic Development and Innovation, 2010
Identification of SSO• Pyschrobacter cibus
maritimus
nivimaris• Carnobacterium funditum• Brochothrix thermosphacta• Pseudomonas sp. ???• Shewanella sp. ???
• Flavobacterium• Micrococcus
Knockout Screening
Did not pursue further
6© The State of Queensland, Department of Employment, Economic Development and Innovation, 2010
Commercial antimicrobial products screenedProduct Company Ingredient
Herbal-Active™ Vic Cherikoff Australian herb extracts
PuraQ®Verdad NV55 Purac Cultured sugars and organic acids
PuraQ®FCC88 L(+) Purac Lactic acid
PuraQ®AROME NA4 Purac Fermented by-products
MicroGARD®730 Danisco Cultured dextrose and Maltodextrin
Aussan-W4 Environmental Services
Bioflavonoids
Citrofresh GDM Technologies
Bioflavonoids
Zydox Zychem Technologies
Cl02 with citric acid activator
Alphasan Eko solutions Cl02
7© The State of Queensland, Department of Employment, Economic Development and Innovation, 2010
SSO knockout screening• 96 well plate screening
– Commercial products– In-house formulations (Kakadu plum, citric acid, lactic acid)
• High kill rates against majority SSOs– Citrofresh – Purac FCC88– Zydox– Aussan– Kakadu plum– Lactic acid– Citric acid
8© The State of Queensland, Department of Employment, Economic Development and Innovation, 2010
Packaging trial• Will products inhibit SSO growth on prawn?
• Prawns dipped in solutions• Sealed in polyethylene bags• Kept on ice in cold room (4°C)• Micro tested
9© The State of Queensland, Department of Employment, Economic Development and Innovation, 2010
Micro results - Total plate count
1.E+02
1.E+03
1.E+04
1.E+05
1.E+06
1.E+07
1.E+08
0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14
Days
CF
U / g
ram
Control (rep1)
Control (rep2)
Citrofresh (rep1)
Citrofresh (rep2)
Zydox (rep1)
Zydox (rep2)
Aussan (rep1)
Aussan (rep2)
Purac FCC88 (rep1)
Purac FCC88 (rep2)
Kakadu plum + Citric (rep1)
Kakadu plum + Citric (rep2)
Kakadu plum + Lactic (rep1)
Kakadu plum + Lactic (rep2)
10© The State of Queensland, Department of Employment, Economic Development and Innovation, 2010
Micro results - H2S Anaerobes
1.E+02
1.E+03
1.E+04
1.E+05
1.E+06
1.E+07
1.E+08
0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14
Days
CF
U /
gra
m
Control (rep1)
Control (rep2)
Citrofresh (rep1)
Citrofresh (rep2)
Zydox (rep1)
Zydox (rep2)
Aussan (rep1)
Aussan (rep2)
Purac FCC88 (rep1)
Purac FCC88 (rep2)
Kakadu plum + Citric (rep1)
Kakadu plum + Citric (rep2)
Kakadu plum + Lactic (rep1)
Kakadu plum + Lactic (rep2)
11© The State of Queensland, Department of Employment, Economic Development and Innovation, 2010
Where to from here?• Confirm chilled prawns SSO are identical to frozen prawns• Address quality issues• Identify synergistic solutions to address H2S anaerobes
• Packaging options– Bulk packs (storage and distribution) – Convenience packs (retail or food service)
– Understanding time lines from packaging at farm, distribution centres and retail outlets for chilled storage
12© The State of Queensland, Department of Employment, Economic Development and Innovation, 2010
Colour retention during frozen storage• Time in storage• Storage temperatures: -20°C vs -30°C• Temperature abuse• Presence of Oxygen• Blast vs IQF freezing• Rate of freezing: Slow vs Quick
• Glazing:– Thickness– Freezing method– Solutions and additives
13© The State of Queensland, Department of Employment, Economic Development and Innovation, 2010
Temperature variation
-30
-28
-26
-24
-22
-20
-18
-16
12:0
0:00
AM
12:0
0:00
AM
12:0
0:00
AM
12:0
0:00
AM
12:0
0:00
AM
12:0
0:00
AM
12:0
0:00
AM
12:0
0:00
AM
12:0
0:00
AM
Time
Te
mp
era
ture
°C
A.1TK
A.2TK
A.3TK
A.4TK
A.5TK
A.6TK
A.7TK
A.8TK
A.9TK
av
14© The State of Queensland, Department of Employment, Economic Development and Innovation, 2010
Rate of slow freezing
-20
-15
-10
-5
0
5
10
15
20
25
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
Time (days)
Te
me
ratu
re °
C
A.1TK
A.2TK
A.3TK
A.4TK
A.5TK