Thermophiles are destroyedinthe prosseing of sugar by combination of
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This invention relates to a method of freeing certain food products such as vegetables, spices, legumes, cereal grains and meats of sporogenic bacteria which are characterized by their ability to produce spores. Representative of the specific foods which are markedly improved by this invention are vegetables such as sugar beets, red beets, carrots, potatoes, peanuts, cabbage, sweet potatoes, yams and asparagus, cereals such as soy beans, pea beans, peas, wheat, barley, rye and corn, spices such as allspice, bay leaves, pepper, dill, celery, cloves and caraway, and as stated, meats such as beef and lamb and including fish, shrimp and other sea foods of that same type.
Sporogenic bacteria are especially detrimental in flours such as wheat and soy and others including sugar and spices which are used for food purposes because of the particular characteristics of these bacteria. Such bacteria are unique among bacteria in being very resistant to heat treatment. They will normally withstand, without harm, being treated for six hours at boiling temperature (212* F.). Some less common spo-' rogenic bacteria are known to withstand boiling temperature for eighteen hours.
Another characteristic or property of some types of these bacteria, namely, thermophilic are that they are heat lovers. They will best grow at a temperature of 1310 F. This property of thermophilic bacteria causes the canner much trouble because it requires immediate cooling of processed canned products. The normal time allowed in practice to process food products does not destroy all. thermophilic bacteria. The canner hopes by this process of heat treatment under pressure to kill only the greater population of thermophilic bacteria. To accomplish total destruction of these bacteria by known procedures would normally require so much time as to be injurious to the quality of the food product.
There are three distinct types of thermophilic bacteria-two of these types produce gas in their process of decomposing food products while the third variety produces no gas but destroys the food product and produces acid only. The gas producing types are: Thermophilic bacteria producing hydrogen sulphide. These are the most common and are very troublesome and disagreeable when present.
Example is Clostrfdium nigriflcans.
Thermophilic bacteria not producing hydrogen sulphide. These are the next most common group. Example is Clostridium thermosaccharolyticum.