Fresh produce antibacterial rinse from Kaffir Lime oil

Abstract

Kaffir lime oil, a volatile oil from fruit peel of Citrus hystrix L., was analyzed for its constituents, using GC-MS. The major constituents were l-limonene, a-terpineol, 2-b-pinene, terpinene-4-ol, g-terpinene, a-terpinene, and a–terpinolene. The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) against Bacillus subtilis ATCC 6633, Escherichia coli ATCC 25922, Staphylococcus aureus ATCC 25923, and Salmonella typhimurium ATCC 13311 were 0.1, 0.3, 0.4, and 0.6% v/v, respectively. The antibacterial rinse, formulated as an emulsion, consisted of 40% v/v Kaffir lime oil, 8% w/v gelatin, and 3% w/v lecithin. The emulsion was diluted with water into a soaking solution which contained 0.75% v/v of Kaffir lime oil. The soaking solution reduced the natural bacterial population on chinese cabbage, by means of aerobic plate count after the second water rinse, by 2.68, 3.30 and 4.27 log at 5, 10 and 15 min soaking time, respectively.