Potential of Nitrogen Gas (N₂) Flushing to Extend the Shelf Life of Cold Stored Pasteurised Milk

Abstract: For different reasons, the amount of food loss for developing and developed countries is approximately equivalent. Altogether, these losses represent approximately 1/3 of the global food production. Significant amounts of pasteurised milk are lost due to bad smell and unpleasant taste. Currently, even under the best cold chain conditions, psychrotolerant spore-forming bacteria, some of which also harbour virulent factors, limit the shelf life of pasteurised milk. N₂ gas-based flushing has recently been of interest for improving the quality of raw milk. Here, we evaluated the possibility of addressing bacterial growth in pasteurised milk during cold storage at 6 °C and 8 °C. Clearly, the treatments hindered bacterial growth, in a laboratory setting, when N₂-treated milk were compared to the corresponding controls, which suggests that N₂-flushing treatment constitutes a promising option to extend the shelf life of pasteurised milk.