Effect of acidic electrolyzed water on the microbial counts in shredded vegetables (Part II) - Pretreatment effect of alkaline electrolyzed water

Electrolysis of dilute sodium chloride solution produces alkaline electroly zed water (AlEW) in the cathode side, simultaneously produces acidic electr olyzed water (AcEW) in the anode side. AlEW presents high pH (above 11) and extremely low ORP (below -800 mV). There has been no study attempting to u se AlEW for washing shredded vegetables. Thus we examined the availability of AlEW as wash water before disinfecting shredded vegetables (cabbages, le ttuces, and cucumbers) with AcEW. Washing shredded vegetables by AlEW for o ne minute before disinfecting with AcEW was more effective than only disinf ecting with AcEW for five minutes. Equally good results were ascertained am ong three different vegetables. Moreover, the activity of AcEW thigh ORP an d available chlorine concentration) was little declined when prewashing wit h any solutions (AlEW, 17 mM NaOH, and tap water) was applied before disinf ecting Although this effect was induced by not only AlEW but also tap water and 17 mM NaOH, in view of the disinfectant effect, it is suggested that w ashing with AlEW before disinfecting would be suitable for shredded vegetab les as an effective utilization of AlEW.