Monday, July 23, 2012

Nutrition- Mold Growth and Inhibition in Food


Mold Growth and Inhibition in Food

Mold Growth and Inhibition in Foods
Lucy Towbin

I would like to provide some general information about mold in foods  I
have researched the topic of mold growth in foods extensively because in this
business, I do not use artificial preservatives or mold inhibitors. So I needed
to know how to minimize the risk of mold growth without them.  I also work
in public health with dieticians and sanitarians who inspect restaurants and I
have learned a lot over the years about food storage and pathogen growth
from them as well as reading the literature that gets circulated
around.


Here is a web site that shows the optimum temperatures as well as the range of
temperatures for mold growth: healthandenergy.com/mold_prevention.htm .
As you can see, the optimum temperatures range from 73-104 F depending on which
type of mold it is.  This means that mold grows BEST at these temperatures.  The
RANGE of temperatures at which mold CAN grow, however, is 45-127 F. This means
that SOME molds can live and grow in temps as low as 45 and some can live and
grow in temps as high as 127.  But it isn't optimum.  So if you use high heats
(as when foods are processed in canning) or if you freeze foods, you are getting
them outside of that range and they can not live.  Unfortunately, the extreme
temperatures also destroy some of the nutrients in foods.  So refrigeration is
still within the RANGE/LIMITS of temps where molds CAN grow. But it is not
optimum. Refrigeration cuts down on mold growth but it does not destroy mold
growth.  It also does not destroy the nutrients like the high heats and freezing
do.


Ok, now let's talk about what makes mold grow.  Here is another web site from
the University of Central Florida if you want to read more than my summary:
www.fsec.ucf.edu/en/consumer/buildings/basics/moldgrowth.htm.  There have
to be four things for mold to grow:  mold spores, mold food, appropriate
temperature (which we've already covered) and sufficient moisture. Mold spores
are absolutely everywhere. They are on our skin, in the air we breathe, on our kitchen
counters, everywhere. They just don't grow unless they have the other conditions.
So we can not eliminate mold spores.  We just can control their ability to grow.
We can't eliminate them. In fact we wouldn't want to. As with bacteria and viruses,
there are good molds and bad molds.


So how do we prevent the bad types of mold from growing?  Let's discuss the last
two elements: mold food and moisture.  Mold can grow on just about any organic
(as in having carbon atoms, not organic as in organically grown) substance.  So
we can't eliminate that. And we are talking about foods that get moldy anyhow.
So that leaves the last element, moisture.  Mold cannot grow without a
considerable amount of moisture.  That is why a peach left in a plastic bag will
mold before a peach left out on the counter top. The plastic bag holds the
moisture in.  It is also why dehydrated foods can be kept so long at room
temperature and NOT mold. They don't have enough moisture.  Refrigeration
generally removes moisture from products. Have you ever put something in the
refrigerator and didn't wrap or cover it properly?  Didn't it dry out, at least
on top? This is because refrigeration (also air conditioning in the home)
removes moisture from the air.  So if you refrigerate something, you are
inhibiting the mold growth two ways.  You are lowering the temperature so that
it is below the optimum range, and you are reducing the moisture levels in the
surrounding air for the food.  It doesn't STOP the possibility of mold growth
altogether, but it does reduce it. 

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