title: Changes in quality, liking, and purchase intent of irradiated fresh-cut spinach during storage.
abstract: The use of ionizing radiation to enhance microbial safety of fresh spinach at a maximum dose of 4 kGy has been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). However, whether spinach can tolerate those high doses of radiation is unclear. Therefore, this study was conducted to investigate the effects of irradiation and storage on quality, liking, and purchase intent of fresh-cut spinach. The oxygen radical absorbance capacity values and total phenolic content were not consistently affected by irradiation. However, the ascorbic acid content of irradiated sample decreased rapidly during storage, resulting in these samples being lower in ascorbic acid content than controls after 7 and 14 d of storage at 4 °C. Sensory evaluation by a 50-member panel revealed that purchase intent and ratings for liking of appearance, aroma, texture, flavor, and overall were not affected by irradiation at doses up to 2 kGy. Therefore, irradiation at doses up to 2 kGy may be used to enhance microbial safety without affecting consumer acceptance or overall antioxidant values of irradiated spinach.
authors.affiliation: U.S. Dept. of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service, Eastern Regional Research Center, 600 E. Mermaid Lane, Wyndmoor, PA 19038, USA. xuetong.fan@ars.usda.gov
authors.forename: Xuetong
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Fan
authors.forename: Kimberly J B
authors.initials: KJ
authors.lastname: Sokorai
mesh_terms: D001205:Ascorbic Acid / Q000032:analysis; D055598:Chemical Phenomena; D057140:Fast Foods / Q000032:analysis / Q000191:economics / Q000528:radiation effects*; D005260:Female; D005514:Food Irradiation / Q000009:adverse effects*; D018857:Food Packaging; D005518:Food Preferences; D061353:Food Storage; D058870:Food, Organic / Q000032:analysis / Q000191:economics / Q000528:radiation effects; D016166:Free Radical Scavengers / Q000032:analysis; D005720:Gamma Rays; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D055595:Mechanical Phenomena; D010636:Phenols / Q000032:analysis; D015143:Philadelphia; D018515:Plant Leaves / Q000737:chemistry / Q000528:radiation effects*; D011786:Quality Control; D012034:Refrigeration; D012677:Sensation; D018724:Spinacia oleracea / Q000737:chemistry / Q000191:economics / Q000528:radiation effects*
chemical_list: D016166:Free Radical Scavengers; D010636:Phenols; D001205:Ascorbic Acid