In the Pursuit of Poultry: β-Phenylethylamine and Ethyl Acetoacetate as Antimicrobials on Chicken

Abstract

This research examines the effect of β-phenylethylamine (PEA), a natural trace amine commonly found in food, and ethyl acetoacetate (EAA), an FDA approved flavoring agent and food additive, as novel antimicrobials on store-bought chicken thighs in a 5-minute immersion. In the first part of this experiment, 5%, 7.5%, and 10% treatments of β-phenylethylamine and ethyl acetoacetate were compared to control H2O treatments utilized on chicken thighs. 10% treatments of PEA and EAA had significant reductions in counts of total aerobic bacteria and Pseudomonas spp. grown at 20°C by >1 log10 CFU/g of chicken meat. In the next experiments regarded 10% EAA as an antimicrobial on potential pathogens on chicken meat. The treatments of 10% EAA only succeeded in partial efficacy in the reduction of inoculated Salmonella spp. and Campylobacter spp. on chicken thighs.