UV Light in Food Preservation

Contents
1. INTRODUCTION
Some information about milkand dairy products
Dairy products, especially milk, are easily spoiled because they contain many
nutrients such as lactose, lipid, protein, etc and high moisture creates good
conditions for the growth of spoilage microorganism. Therefore, milk
production is very strict and is always a great concern of the food industry.
Thermal processing treatments have been around for a long time and have
always been the processing treatments of choice for food processing,
common treatment include blanching, pasteurization, sterilization,
dehydration, or another.
+Definition about the thermal processing
Thermal processing is defined as the combination of temperature and
time required to eliminate a desired number of microorganisms from a food
product.
However, after processing, the main challenges with thermal processing
methods are that they damage some nutritional components while
inactivating microorganism, which leads to undersirable flavor changes.
 To improve those problems, research on non-thermal processing methods
was born.
Definition about the non-thermal processing  Show some informations to
proof the benefits of non-thermal processing UV light
These are emerging technologies that aim to improve the problems faced by
heat treatments, making them more environmentally friendly.
Methods include HPP, cold plasma, Ultrasound, PEF, MF and Ultraviolet light.
 UV light is considered a method with great potential in preserving dairy
products.

Definition of UV light, dairy products (short sentences)

Ultraviolet light (UV) (Abida et al., 2014; Falguera et al., 2011; Gayán et al.,
2014; Koutchma, 2009) produces a non-ionizing radiation, which is consisted
of 3 spectrums:
 UV-A spectrum from 315 to 400 nm,
 UV-B from 280 to 315 nm
 UV-C which ranges from 200 to 280 nm
 Ultraviolet radiation is a non-ionizing source of invisible light that exists
between visible light and X-rays in the electromagnetic spectrum (EM).
In UV disinfection systems, mercury lamps are the main source of
radiation that emits UV-C rays. They have a special wavelength capable
of breaking DNA of microorganisms. These ultraviolet light waves are
also known as “germicidal frequency”. UV-C lamps are used in air
disinfection, surface disinfection, prevent microorganisms accumulating
on food surfaces, ...
*Explain why using UV-C in preservating dairy products in particular
and food industry in general:
UV-A is the longest wavelength and most existing in the light from
the sun, unable to synthesize vitamin D, which is the cause of
sunburn and tanning. UV-B rays have a shorter wavelength range
than UV-A rays, although that, UV-B has the ability to synthesize
vitamin D but if exposed is still harmful to the skin. The two types of
UV rays are all in the sun and are in contact with the earth's surface.
Meanwhile, UV-C rays are also found in the sun but not in contact
with the Earth's surface due to the absorption of ozone layer. This is
the shortest wavelength, and the most toxic to humans but is used in
disinfection of drinking water or surface contact with food. UV-C is
within a good and non-toxic range of products (with germicidal
properties. It can be used for surface treatment and as a non-thermal
alternative for fluid foods and ingredients).
Principle of UV light method
UV-C radiation in the range of 250–260 nm has the highest germicidal effect
and ultraviolet energy at a wavelength of 253.7 nm shows the maximum effect, at which
the absorption of DNA is stronger (Koca et al., 2018). The mechanism of operation of UV-
C rays in killing bacteria by lighting on the product surface, UV protons are created to
absorb DNA of microorganisms because of cross-linking between the bases of adjacent
pyrimidine dimers in the same DNA strand. It then leads to inhibition of transcription
and replication of nucleic acids. The metabolism may repair the DNA damage by
photoreactivation or darkreactivation. However, at high UV doses, the repair cannot be
done due to the wider damage.(Koca et al., 2018)
+Factor affecting the efficacy of UV light in food industry:
 UV light source and UV dose
 UV light source must be selected appropriately to increase the
effectiveness of microorganisms by increasing the penetration of UV
rays. There are 2 types of lights: medium pressure mercury UV lamp
(MPM) and low-pressure mercury (LPM) are lamps applied in food at a
relatively low cost. It produces continuous monochromatic light at
253.7nm wavelength with the best bactericidal range.
The bactericidal effect of ultraviolet radiation mainly depends on
ultraviolet doses. With a particularly short wavelength, exposure time
and UV intensity increases and the distance from the light source to the
target is reduced Cell inhibition speed is increased and the
inactivated microbiological time will also be shortened without using
more chemicals and environmentally friendly.
 UV sensitivity of microorganisms
The sensitivity of bacteria with ultraviolet rays depends on the
structures, different characteristics of microorganisms. Gram -negative
bacteria with thin cell walls are more vulnerable to ultraviolet radiation
than gram -positive bacteria. For example, E. coli, Salmonella, very
sensitive and easily destroyed. Mold spores have thicker cell walls, so
the dosage of ultraviolet wages will be higher to destroy them.
 The composition of target
In the dairy industry, the formation of biological membranes occurs
with the mute of microorganisms that will prevent light transmission,
reducing the effectiveness of ultraviolet handling.
 Physical properties of target (turbidity, opaque, color, etc.), surface
properties of target (roughness, dirt, etc.)
Physical properties can change the effectiveness of the process. For
example, UV rays have the ability to penetrate. Transparent liquids such
as water are effectively disinfected, while opaque liquids such as milk
are difficult for UV rays to kill microorganisms. Handling efficiency
depends on the characteristics of the surface exposed to ultraviolet
light.
Applications of UV light method
•Disinfection of air in the milk production area
- Clean and fresh air is required in the production area.
- UV technology can be used for preventing the spread of airborne diseases by
inhibition of airborne pathogenic microorganisms.
 •Disinfection of water in milk processing
- UV-C light has been ulilized to disinfect water for a long time. and is a successful
process which eliminates types of microorganisms
- UV systems can be utilized for the disinfection of drinking water, process water,
waste water and brine.
•Surface applications of packaging materials and equipment
- The number of microorganisms on the surfaces of packaging materials can be
reduced or eliminated by applying the appropriate UV light doses.
- The effectiveness of UV treatment is better on smooth surfaces.
•Disinfection of the food contact surfaces
- UV light can be used to provide disinfection of surfaces of conveyor and other
equipment in preparation, production and storage areas.
- Microorganisms must be exposed to UV light. There should be no obstacles
between the UV source and the surface.
- Therefore, UV light must be applied after cleaning processes of the dairy
equipment.
Advantages & Disadvantages of UV Light method
 Advantages:
Low maintenance, installation and operational costs
Maintains food texture and nutritional aspects without undesirable
sensory changes.
Inactivation of pathogenic and spoilage microorganism.
No detrimental effects on the environment (without chemical residue or
toxins).
No generation of heat (economical aspects).
 Disadvantages:
Poor penetration to highly opage, turbid liquids and solid products
Lipid oxidation might occur.
Prolonged exposure can damage humans (eyes, burns and skin cancer).
The most significant challenge for the commercial
use of UV-C technology is that microorganisms must be directly exposed to
UV-C light to be inactivated due to the limited penetration
 power of UV light. Therefore, ensuring that all food surfaces are exposed
to UV-C light is still problematic (Delorme et al., 2020).
2. CONCLUSION
UV treatments are thought to have great potential in preserving milk
disinfection and alternative dairy products for heat treatment methods.
Although the potential brings good sensory quality and other benefits for milk
storage, this method still has certain limitations. Therefore, it is necessary to
study more on this topic, contributing to the development of the dairy
industry in particular and the food industry in general.

REFERENCES
Delorme, M. M., Guimarães, J. T., Coutinho, N. M., Balthazar, C. F., Rocha, R. S., Silva, R.,

Margalho, L. P., Pimentel, T. C., Silva, M. C., Freitas, M. Q., Granato, D., Sant’Ana,

A. S., Duart, M. C. K. H., & Cruz, A. G. (2020). Ultraviolet radiation: An interesting

technology to preserve quality and safety of milk and dairy foods. Trends in Food

Science & Technology, 102, 146–154. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tifs.2020.06.001

Koca, N., Urgu, M., & Saatli, T. E. (2018). Ultraviolet Light Applications in Dairy

Processing. In N. Koca (Ed.), Technological Approaches for Novel Applications in

Dairy Processing. InTech. https://doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.74291

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