• Korean Journal of Food Science and Technology
• /
• v.34 no.3
• /
• pp.380-384
• /
• 2002

For the screening of gamma-irradiated grains, domestic rice, glutinous rice, barley, and wheat were irradiated with 0.1, 0.3, 0.5, 0.7, and 1.0 kGy and screened using the DEFT/APC (Direct Epifluorescent Filter Technique/Aerobic Plate Count) method. The log DEFT/APT units increased with the dose increment in all samples, whereas the log APC unit decreased gradually. For rice, barley, and wheat, unirradiated and irradiated samples with below 0.3 kGy had 2.0 or lower logarithmic units, whereas those with 0.5 kGy or higher had 2.0 or higher logarithmic units. For glutinous rice, the sample irradiated with 0.5 kGy showed 1.92 logarithmic unit and those with 0.7 kGy or higher had 2.0 or higher logarithmic units. These results suggest that if the grains show 2.0 or higher logarithmic units, they could be assumed to have been irradiated at a dose level of at least 0.5 kGy. In conclusion, grains could be easily screened through the DEFT/APC method.

• Korean Journal of Food Science and Technology
• /
• v.41 no.5
• /
• pp.515-521
• /
• 2009

The DEFT (direct epifluorescent filter technique)/APC (aerobic plate count) test was utilized to screen powdered Ramen soup samples (RS-1, RS-2) whether or not they have been microbial-decontaminated. The initial microbial loads of commercially-packaged samples were log DEFT 6.46 (RS-1) and 7.05 (RS-2), but the viable bacterial counts were log APC 2.74 (RS-1) and 1.95 (RS-2), respectively; this finding showed that they have been already decontaminated by methods other than irradiation. The same samples were then subjected to gamma irradiation at 0, 5 and 10 kGy in order to evaluate the microbial and physicochemical changes during post-irradiation storage for 6 months under room conditions ($10{\pm}3^{\circ}C$). The DEFT count was constant in irradiated samples even at different doses, but APC decreased with dose increases; this implies that the log DEFT/APC increased in a linear fashion with dose. No coliforms, yeasts and molds were detected in any of the samples, whereas the initially detected aerobic bacteria ($5.49{\times}10^2CFU/g$) were inactivated by 5 kGy or more and no growth was observed during the subsequent storage period. The pH of RS-1 was reduced by irradiation (p<0.01), but increased (p<0.01) with increasing storage time. Irradiation induced a reduction in volatile basic nitrogen (VBN), whereas an increase in thiobarbituric acid (TBA) values was observed. The storage time proved more influential than irradiation up to 10 kGy in terms of changes in the VBN and Hunter’s color values of powdered Ramen soups.