How Can Individuals Prevent the Growth of Molds in Food Items?
What is mold?
Molds are multicellular fungi that grow naturally on items both inside and outside a household. Other types of fungi are the yeast, and they occur in single cells. They thrive well in humid, damp, and warm areas and spread by use of spores, which are quite resistant to numerous aspects that may hinder their development. The main feature of molds is that they are that they can grow in the form of multicellular filaments called hyphae. Molds comprises of many cells that are in most cases visible to the natural eye. Molds can grow on any material but may sometimes cause a lot of harm when they are found in food. The reason behind this conclusion is because some of these types of fungi are poisonous or may make individuals ill once they are consumed or even inhaled (Twaroch et al. 2015). Additionally, the fact that such small elements can cause huge impacts on humans makes them an interesting topic of study. Therefore, different generic and natural methods of preventing the growth of molds on food products have been devised, through the years, to ensure that people do not come to harm as a result of their effects.
Mold growing on spoiled tomato (orangemold.net/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/can-mold-on-food-make-u-sick.jpg)
How can one mold be detected?
PCR protocol is employed in the detection of molds. This process is used to detect aflatoxin molds in food products. The PCR protocol is used to test various strains of the fungi thereby enabling individuals to avoid foods containing them (Luque et al.). The process is important since the aflatoxins cause health problems to both humans and animals when consumed. Therefore, the PCR protocol enables people to distinguish between food products that are safe from those that have different strains of mold.
How can mold growth on food be prevented?
To prevent a growth of mold, the moisture content and another requirement for mold growth in the food material has to be eliminated. To prevent a growth of mold is essentially cheaper than having to eliminate already established molds. The essentials for a growth of mold include are moisture, mold food, ambiance temperature, and spore. The following are some of the means of preventing mold growth.
Use of Bioactive Elements
This process is majorly utilized to control molds’ growth in watery surfaces of other organic matter (Bellotti et al., 2013). In research that used four biocides and two ambient molds, the findings indicated that the formerly produced coatings which hindered the development of the latter (Bellotti et al., 2013).These compounds were subjected to some physical and biological tests. Consequently, this method can be used to prevent the development of molds on foods in damp or wet areas.
Use of Acetic, Propionic, and Lactic Acids
These solutions are used to inhibit the growth of molds on bakery products thereby increasing their shelf life (Dagnas, Stéphane, and Jeanne-Marie Membré, 2012) Furthermore; they control the rate of spoilage of the food and in effect, the development of molds is prevented. Mainly, these acids slow down the growth rate of the molds . Thus the provisions do not go bad quickly (Dagnas, Stéphane, and Jeanne-Marie Membré, 2012). Therefore, they can have a longer shelf life as opposed to those that do not use the solutions.
Why does mold occur in Orange County?
The growth of this type of fungi is common in Orange County since it is a beach community. As a matter of fact, areas near beaches experience high humidity and inadequate air flow, especially within the houses. Therefore, the environment is suitable for molds to thrive. Consequently, Orange County is more susceptible to have mold growths and spoilage as compared to other interior areas. Ultimately, the methods of preventing food spoilage by molds raise the question of how to curb destruction of other items by the same factor. Notably, Orange County experiences negative effects of this type of fungi from various fronts. Items such as clothing, furniture, and even buildings are spoilt by the molds. Therefore, more research should be carried out to find out.
References
Bellotti, N., Salvatore, L., Deyá, C., Del Panno, M. T., del Amo, B., & Romagnoli, R. (2013). The application of bioactive compounds from the food industry to control mold growth in indoor waterborne coatings. Colloids and Surfaces B: Biointerfaces, 104, 140-144.
Dagnas, S., Gauvry, E., Onno, B., & Membré, J. M. (2015). Quantifying Effect of Lactic, Acetic, and Propionic Acids on Growth of Molds Isolated from Spoiled Bakery Products. Journal of Food Protection®, 78(9), 1689-1698.
Dagnas, S., & Membré, J. M. (2013). Predicting and preventing mold spoilage of food products. Journal of Food Protection®, 76(3), 538-551.
Luque, M. I., Rodríguez, A., Andrade, M. J., Martín, A., & Córdoba, J. J. (2012). Development of a PCR protocol to detect aflatoxigenic molds in food products. Journal of Food Protection®, 75(1), 85-94.
Twaroch, T. E., Curin, M., Valenta, R., & Swoboda, I. (2015). Mold allergens in respiratory allergy: from structure to therapy. Allergy, asthma & immunology research, 7(3), 205-220.