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Effect of Mediterranean Oils and Spices against Food-Related Pathogenic Bacteria

Nuno Silva1, Tiago Santos, Catarina Marinho, Margarida Sousa, Joana Teixeira, Darinka Gonzalez, Elisete Correia, Gilberto Igrejas and Patrícia Poeta

Essential oils and spices recovered from plants are known for their ancient and empiric medicinal or therapeutic properties. The evolution of the science and the discovery of antimicrobial compounds in their own composition made them essential in food industry as adjuvant molecules against food-spoilage. The benefits associated with this type of natural products as antimicrobial agents may be a promising base to replace chemical additives in foods. This work aims to investigate the antimicrobial properties of essential oils (garlic, cinnamon, coriander, cumin, lemon, bay, ginger, marjoram, nutmeg, salsa seeds), other condiments used in food (olive oil, commercial lemon juice, rangpur lime, Sicilian lemon, vinegar) and also a commercial disinfectant. Pathogenic bacteria were selected to study the antimicrobial properties of these compounds: Listeria monocytogenes, Clostridium perfringens, Bacillus cereus, Staphylococcus aureus, Enterococcus faecium, Enterococcus faecalis, Staphylococcus epidermidis), Salmonella enterica, Escherichia coli and Pseudomonas aeruginosa. In this study, the extracts of spices and condiments were blotted into blank sterile paper disks by the disk diffusion method. Minimal inhibitory concentration was tested for each essential oil/spice. Results revealed that most essential oils and spices considered in this study showed a significant inhibitory effect. In the collection of essential oils, cinnamon stood out, with the highest antimicrobial activity. In conclusion, all essential oils and spices are highly effective and could be used to control food-borne bacterial pathogens. Poisoning and food spoilage caused by microorganisms are important issues that food industry and consumers still face every day. Currently, essential oils and spices with antimicrobial activity are ideal to overcome this problem.