Evaluation of the ionizing radiation effects in microbiology, physical and chemical and sensory aspects of ice cream

The ice cream is defined as an emulsion of fats and proteins or a mixture of water and sugar, other ingredients may be added provided since they do not affect the product. It is considered a food of high nutritional value, providing lipids, carbohydrates, protein, calcium, phosphorus, and other minerals and vitamins (A, B1, B2, B6, C, D, E and K), and it is considered one of the most important products and higher interest to the dairy industry due to great demand by the consumers. The diseases related to food consumption are considered one of the most significant problems. Several outbreaks related to microbiological contamination of ice cream have been reported in recent decades in Asia, Europe and America. It is believed that the ice cream, as a frozen food, presents no risk to the population health. However, it is considered an excellent environment for the growth of microorganisms due to its composition, pH close to neutrality and long storage period. The aim of this study was to evaluate the microbiological, sensory and physicochemical aspects of ice cream. The ice cream samples were irradiated with gamma rays (60Co) with the doses of LOkGy, 2.0kGy, 3.0kGy and 4.0kGy. The samples intended for the inoculation of Staphylococcus aureus (ATCC 6538), Escherichia coli (ATCC 11229) and Salmonella abaetetuba (ATCC 35640) have been irradiated with doses of 1.0, 2.0 and 3.0kGy. It can be concluded that the dose of 3.0kGy was adequate to reduce most of the studied microorganisms to undetected levels. The use of gamma radiation affected the texture and the parameters of the colorimetric analyses of the ice cream. The results of the sensorial analyses showed that the better accepted dose was 3.0kGy. (author)