Microbial resistance to sanitizers in the food industry: review

Abstract

Hygiene programs which comprise the cleaning and sanitization steps are part of the Good Hygiene Practices (GHP) and are considered essential to ensure food safety and quality. Inadequate hygiene practices may contribute to the occurrence of foodborne diseases, development of microbial resistance to sanitizers, and economic losses. In general, the sanitizer resistance is classified as intrinsic or acquired. The former is an inherent characteristic, naturally present in some microorganisms, whereas the latter is linked to genetic modifications that can occur at random or after continuous exposure to a nonnormal condition. The resistance mechanisms can involve changes in membrane permeability or in the efflux pump, and enzymatic activity. The efflux pump mechanism is the most elucidated in relation to the resistance caused by the use of different types of sanitizers. In addition, microbial resistance to sanitizers can also be favored in the presence of biofilms due to the protection given by the glycocalyx matrix and genetic changes. Therefore, this review aimed to show the main microbial resistance mechanisms to sanitizers, including genetic modifications, biofilm formation, and permeability barrier.

Keywords:

• Biofilm
• disinfection
• food hygiene
• food safety
• resistance

Correction Statement

This article has been corrected with minor changes. These changes do not impact the academic content of the article.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES, Brazil) - Finance Code 001.