Impact of slightly acidic electrolyzed water in combination with ultrasound and mild heat on safety and quality of fresh cut cauliflower

Slightly acidic electrolyzed water (SAEW) has recently gained a lot of interest as a chlorine sanitizer which provides higher decontamination effect with minimum available chlorine. Nevertheless, microbial reductions via only SAEW treatment are not sufficient to assure safety. Hence, it is required to enhance the disinfection efficacy by combining with other compatible techniques. In the present study, SAEW with a pH of 5.5–5.6, available chlorine content (AAC) of 20–22 mg/L, oxidation-reduction potential of 900–950 mV was applied on fresh-cut cauliflower to determine the microbicidal activity. SAEW was also applied in combination with ultrasound treatment (US) and moderate heat (45 °C) to enhance the decontamination efficacy of SAEW. The impacts of individual (SAEW) and combined treatments like (SAEW + US), (SAEW + US + mild heat 45 °C) on microbial population, physicochemical, and antioxidant properties of cauliflower were evaluated. The combined treatment of SAEW, US and mild heat showed better effectiveness on microbial decontamination compared to SAEW treatment alone, and SAEW with US (SAEW + US) treatment but significantly reduced the antioxidant and phytochemical properties of fresh cauliflower. However, SAEW with US treatment (SAEW + US) preserved the bioactive compounds and antioxidant activity with significant reduction of microbial load. The present study revealed that combination of SAEW with US treatment can be a promising decontamination technique to improve postharvest quality and safety of fresh produce.