Key Findings
Sprouted chia and flax seed powders are new ready-to-eat raw food product that are made by partially sprouting raw seeds at room temperature for 18 to 24 h. The sprouts are dried under low heat (57 to 60 C) to a moisture content of less than 5% and ground into a powder by using a frictionless, non-heat-producing mill. This paper describes the moisture content, water activity, pH, and fatty acid and bacteriological profiles of 10 sprouted chia and flax seed powder samples naturally contaminated with Salmonella and nine samples of uncontaminated powders that were purchased from various Canadian retail locations. This study highlights the microbiological risks associated with sprouting seeds for human consumption. In the absence of a pathogen reduction step, the sprouting process has the potential to allow the growth of extremely low numbers of Salmonella to concentrations sufficient to cause a foodborne outbreak. Additional research on non thermal decontamination measures suitable for dry production environments is required.
Abstract
Despite the increasing popularity of sprouted chia and flax seed powders, no data have been reported on their intrinsic physicochemical properties and background microflora. Here, we report the moisture content, water activity, pH, and fatty acid methyl ester and bacteriological profiles of 19 sprouted chia and flax seed samples, 10 of which were associated with an outbreak of salmonellosis in Canada and the United States. The physicochemical parameters of the Salmonella-positive samples did not differ significantly from those of the negative samples. However, the higher Enterobacteriaceae and coliform levels on the contaminated powders were associated with the presence of Salmonella. Enumeration of Salmonella by the most probable number method revealed concentrations ranging from 1 MPN per 3g of powder to 1 MPN per 556 g of powder. The results of this study demonstrate that low numbers of Salmonella may be linked to foodborne outbreaks.
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