ANTONIO, Jazmine C.

BS Biology 4-2 MB
Prof. Ace Bryan S. Cabal Food Microbiology

1. Suppose you were promoted as an R and D specialist in a food industry, develop a food
product and discuss the preservation techniques that you would employ to maintain its
freshness and safety. This is different from LE2 wherein I asked that you describe the factors
for this item you discuss the food preservation technique/s or process for the processed food
you will develop.
GARLIC PRESERVES
In 1958 an ornately decorated sarcophagus was unearthed at 70 meters depth in a
local coal mine in Russian Siberia. The sarcophagus contained the body of an exquisitely
beautiful woman immersed in a crystalline pinkish-blue liquid. The woman appeared to be
just sleeping. Radiocarbon dating of the body was revealed at the astonishing age of 800
million years which is far older than the first appearance of Homo sapiens 2 million years ago!
Chemical analyses of the crystalline pinkish-blue liquid identified several of the components
as substances found in garlic and onions. Obviously, alien technology knew fully- well the
properties of garlic and onion and applied them to the preservation of the body of the alien
woman (XTV News, 2020)
Garlic (Allium sativum) was utilized as a food condiment by ancient Egyptians who
spread eventually the knowledge about the plant condiment to the western world. The
strongly spicy smell and taste of garlic rendered prepared food more palatable and tastier
which would otherwise taste bland and unappetizing.
Other than garlic’s utility as a food condiment, folk medicine discovered that garlic
has strong antiseptic properties. Garlic was used as a cheap but effective antiseptic for
external wounds, bruises, and burns. Scientific research done at USA Research Centers
showed that the components of garlic have at least 100 times the antibacterial, antifungal
and antiviral strengths of synthetic antibiotics (Omar & Al-Wabel, 2010).
The active components of garlic were identified to be sulfur-containing compounds-
Allicin, Triallyl sulfide and Ajoene, among many other compounds. These compounds
effectively halt proliferation of microorganisms by preventing the incorporation of a
nucleotide to the growing RNA chain during transcription synthesis for these compounds bind
more strongly to the growing RNA chain than incoming nucleotides (Melguizo-Rodríguez et
al., 2022).
Medical studies done on raw garlic consumption revealed several beneficial effects
on daily consumption of at least one clove of garlic. It has a beneficial effect on the circulatory
system by lowering blood pressure, preventing strokes and cardiac arrest. The digestive
system benefits by promoting the growth of beneficial bacteria in the intestines. The skin
benefits by preventing the damage done by free radicals produced by excessive exposure to
UV radiation. The nervous system benefits by the action of antioxidants on free radicals and
thereby prevents debilitating diseases such as Alzheimer’s and Dementia. The sulfur
compounds in garlic are effective antibacterial, antifungal, and antiviral compounds
discovered to be far stronger than synthetic antibiotics. These compounds also have anti-
cancer, anti-diabetes, and anti-fungal properties (Shang et al., 2019).

Honey, on the other hand, also has a multitude of benefits when consumed daily.
Honey improves skin health, lowers LDL cholesterol level, strengthen heart function,
improves memory and sleep as well as relieves stress and improves stomach function
(Samarghandian et al., 2017).
When these two substances are combined the resulting mixture has a synergistic
effect which will greatly benefit the human body if consumed daily. The honey mitigates the
strong taste of consuming raw garlic and a daily dose of combined honey-garlic early in the
morning on an empty stomach will do wonders for the body’s health.

GARLIC – HONEY PRESERVE

Procedure for Decontamination during Manufacture:

The antibacterial, antifungal, and antiviral components of garlic prevent the growth
and proliferation of a microorganism which inadvertently contaminates the preserve. Since
garlic is suspended in honey any microorganism touching the mixture will also be dehydrated
by the high sugar concentration of honey by the process of osmosis.
The major sources of microbial contaminants will be during the initial processing of
the garlic when the naked cloves are reduced further to small pieces by manual procedures
or by machine chopping. All equipment in contact with the garlic cloves must be sterilized
prior to the reduction of the garlic cloves to small pieces. Also, personnel involved in the
manual or mechanical size -reduction must be suitably covered with sterile gloves, masks,
and clothing.
The raw honey must initially be sterilized by pasteurization for a suitable length of
time to destroy any microbial contaminants. Sterilization is not done on the garlic cloves as
the active ingredients of garlic are destroyed by heat.
The glass container of the garlic-honey preserve must be sterilized prior to the bottling
operation. Since the process of making honey-garlic is a very simple procedure then the
chance of microbial contamination is minimized.
To increase further the protection from microbial contamination a film of Paraffin wax
is placed on top of the bottled Honey Garlic preserve prior to sealing of the lid cap.
Bottled Garlic-Honey Preserve is best stored at low temperatures of 5 degrees
Centigrade to discourage further the fermentation of any microorganism which are resistant
to the high sugar concentration, or the compounds present in garlic. Instructions to the
consumer must be clearly indicated on the container label to maintain the efficacy of the
preserve during consumption (Thurber & Mead, 1976).
2. Discuss the different microbiological analyses that you would recommend assuring the safety
of the food from spoilage and pathogenic microorganisms. You may use a flow diagram. This
will test your familiarity with the microbiological parameters that must be tested to assure
the freshness and safety of the food you will develop.
Safeguards to prevent inadvertent contamination must be done during the pre-
manufacturing stage, actual manufacturing stage and post-manufacturing stage to ensure the
integrity of the Honey-Garlic preserve. Since the microbial contaminant is still unknown no
specific test for a particular microbial contaminant can be done initially.
Since the Honey may come from different sources there is a variation in its quality.
Honeybees may have obtained the nectar from different flowers depending upon the locality.
This variation will affect the chemical content of the honey such as sugar content, moisture
content, pH, vitamins, and minerals content. Quality control analyses of the honey with
regards to these chemicals must be performed initially to determine its quality.
Also, the incoming raw honey must be subjected to microbial analysis to determine
what microorganisms are present. This also applies to the incoming garlic and based on these
microbial tests more specific tests on microbial contaminants can be done during the
manufacturing as well as post-manufacturing stages.
Below is a flow chart of the different chemical and microbial tests done at different
stages of the manufacture of Honey Garlic preserve.
Figure 1. Flowchart of Honey-Garlic Preserve Production
Conclusion
Honey-Garlic preserve has recently been touted as strongly beneficial to human health
when consumed daily. A tablespoonful of Honey-Garlic preserves taken in the morning on an
empty stomach will do wonders to health. The strongly antibacterial, antifungal, and antiviral
properties of the active components of garlic act as a natural preservative which prevented
fermentation and spoilage by microorganisms. Coupled with the high sugar concentration of
Honey which dehydrates microorganisms via the process of Osmosis the preservation of Honey-
Garlic preserve for a long time is assured. This is further enhanced by refrigeration of the preserve
at 5 degrees centigrade during storage prior to distribution and marketing. The preservation of
the body of the alien woman found in Russian Siberia is a testament to the power and strength
of the components found in Garlic (Allium sativum) to ward off the ravages of microbial
contamination and time.

References
Melguizo-Rodríguez, L., García-Recio, E., Ruiz, C., De Luna-Bertos, E., Illescas-Montes, R., &
Costela-Ruiz, V. J. (2022). Biological properties and therapeutic applications of garlic and
its components. Food & Function, 13(5), 2415–2426.
https://doi.org/10.1039/d1fo03180e
Omar, S. H., & Al-Wabel, N. A. (2010). Organosulfur compounds and possible mechanism of garlic
in cancer. Saudi Pharmaceutical Journal : SPJ, 18(1), 51–58.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsps.2009.12.007
Samarghandian, S., Farkhondeh, T., & Samini, F. (2017). Honey and Health: A Review of Recent
Clinical Research. Pharmacognosy Research, 9(2), 121–127.
https://doi.org/10.4103/0974-8490.204647
Shang, A., Cao, S.-Y., Xu, X.-Y., Gan, R.-Y., Tang, G.-Y., Corke, H., Mavumengwana, V., & Li, H.-B.
(2019). Bioactive Compounds and Biological Functions of Garlic (Allium sativum L.). Foods,
8(7), 246. https://doi.org/10.3390/foods8070246
Thurber, N., & Mead, G. (1976). Chapter 6: Jams and Jellies. In Keeping the Harvest, Home Storage
of Fruits and Vegetables (pp. 129–145). Garden Way Publisher.
XTV News (Director). (2020, December 17). 800 Million-Years-Old Woman Found In A Perfect
Marble Casket By Russian Scientists. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zhy-HMltFjk