Effect of Chitosan Edible Coating on the Microbial Quality of Ribbonfish, Lepturacanthus savala (Cuvier, 1929) Steaks

Abstract

The demand for healthy food products without any
added chemical preservative is increasing globally.
Chitosan can find application in food products due to
its bio-preservation effects. The present study was
aimed to assess the effectiveness of chitosan edible
coating on the microbial quality of ribbon fish,
Lepturacanthus savala. Ribbonfish steaks treated with
(1%) and without chitosan were packed in multilayered
films and stored under refrigerated conditions
(3±1oC). The fish used in the study is medium
fatty fish with good quantity of crude protein. The
initial total plate count of 4.5 log cfu g-1 indicates the
good quality of fish used in the study which exceeded
limit of 7 log cfu g-1 on 10th days in control samples
indicating the shelf life of ~8-9 days. In chitosan
treated samples, total plate counts were observed to
be 6.81 log cfu g-1on 15th day and the limit of 7 log cfu
g-1was exceeded only on 20th day indicating a shelf
life of ~16-17 days. This clearly indicates the antimicrobial
effect of chitosan. Further, significantly (p<0.01)
lower counts for Pseudomonas spp., H2S forming
bacteria and enterobacteriaceae were observed for
chitosan treated samples. The study reveals that
chitosan can be used effectively to enhance the microbial
quality as well as shelf life of the fishery products.