• Food Science and Preservation
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• v.18 no.4
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• pp.612-619
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• 2011

Cronobacter sakazakii has been isolated from a wide range of environmental sources and from several foods of animal and plant origin. The objective of this study was to determine the resistance of C. sakazakii (ATCC 12868, ATCC 29004, and ATCC 29544) in cold, cold-freeze thaw, cold-acid, and cold starvation-freeze thaw stress. The number of C. sakazakii decreased to 1 log CFU/mL at $5^{\circ}C$ (cold storage) for 10 days. When C. sakazakii was cultivated at a low temperature ($13^{\circ}C$), the population of C sakazakii ATCC 12868 and 29004 increased to $10^9$ CFU/mL, and the population of C. sakazakii ATCC 29544 increased to $10^8$ CFU/mL. For C. sakazakii ATCC 12868 and 29004, the cold-adapted cells ($5^{\circ}C$ 24 hr) decreased by 4 log CFU/mL, and the low-temperature-cultivated cells ($13^{\circ}C$) decreased by 0.5 log CFU/mL. In this study, low-temperature cultivation enhanced the freeze-thaw cross-resistance due to the metabolic changes in the cells. Cold stress ($5^{\circ}C$ 48 hr, $13^{\circ}C$ cultivation) enhanced the cold-acid cross-resistance. The cold-starved cells in the sterilized 0.1% peptone water enhanced the freeze-thaw cross-resistance with significant differences (p<0.05). Therefore, the increased tolerance of the cold-adapted or low-temperature-cultivated C. sakazakii cells to freeze-thaw, acid, or starvation suggests that such environments should be considered when processing minimally processed foods or foods with extended shelf life.