Novel Approaches to Improve the Intrinsic Microbiological Safety of Powdered Infant Milk Formula †
1
Teagasc Food Research Centre, Moorepark, Fermoy, Cork EIRE, Ireland
2
Department of Microbiology, University College Cork, Cork EIRE, Ireland
3
Alimentary Pharmabiotic Centre, Cork EIRE, Ireland
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
†
c
Nutrients 2015, 7(2), 1217-1244; https://doi.org/10.3390/nu7021217
Received: 17 November 2014
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Accepted: 29 January 2015
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Published: 12 February 2015
Human milk is recognised as the best form of nutrition for infants. However; in instances where breast-feeding is not possible, unsuitable or inadequate, infant milk formulae are used as breast milk substitutes. These formulae are designed to provide infants with optimum nutrition for normal growth and development and are available in either powdered or liquid forms. Powdered infant formula is widely used for convenience and economic reasons. However; current manufacturing processes are not capable of producing a sterile powdered infant formula. Due to their immature immune systems and permeable gastro-intestinal tracts, infants can be more susceptible to infection via foodborne pathogenic bacteria than other age-groups. Consumption of powdered infant formula contaminated by pathogenic microbes can be a cause of serious illness. In this review paper, we discuss the current manufacturing practices present in the infant formula industry, the pathogens of greatest concern, Cronobacter and Salmonella and methods of improving the intrinsic safety of powdered infant formula via the addition of antimicrobials such as: bioactive peptides; organic acids; probiotics and prebiotics.
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Keywords:
infant milk formula; pathogens; Cronobacter; manufacturing strategies
This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited
MDPI and ACS Style
Kent, R.M.; Fitzgerald, G.F.; Hill, C.; Stanton, C.; Ross, R.P. Novel Approaches to Improve the Intrinsic Microbiological Safety of Powdered Infant Milk Formula. Nutrients 2015, 7, 1217-1244. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu7021217
AMA Style
Kent RM, Fitzgerald GF, Hill C, Stanton C, Ross RP. Novel Approaches to Improve the Intrinsic Microbiological Safety of Powdered Infant Milk Formula. Nutrients. 2015; 7(2):1217-1244. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu7021217
Chicago/Turabian StyleKent, Robert M., Gerald F. Fitzgerald, Colin Hill, Catherine Stanton, and R. P. Ross. 2015. "Novel Approaches to Improve the Intrinsic Microbiological Safety of Powdered Infant Milk Formula" Nutrients 7, no. 2: 1217-1244. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu7021217
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