Lebensm.-Wiss. u.-Technol.

, 33, 285}289 (2000)

Post-harvest Treatment with Citric Acid or Hydrogen

Peroxide to Extend the Shelf Life of Fresh Sliced
Mushrooms
Martine Brennan, GaeK lle Le Port and Ronan Gormley

Teagasc, The National Food Centre, Dunsinea, Castleknock, Dublin 15 (Ireland)

(Received November 21, 1999; accepted February 24, 2000)

Whole fresh mushrooms were soaked for 10 min in solutions of citric acid or hydrogen peroxide, then sliced, packed and stored at 4 3C
for up to 19 d. Both treatments reduced the number of pseudomonad bacteria and improved the keeping quality of the sliced mushrooms
when compared to control (water soaked) slices. A specixcation of 75 Hunter L units was established to quantify sliced mushroom shelf
life and this showed that the treatments extended the shelf life by about 50%. Treatment ewectiveness varied with mushroom batch, with
xrst and third yush mushrooms from phase III compost responding better than mushrooms from phase II compost and second yush. The
citric acid treatment had no deleterious ewect on the sensory properties of sliced mushrooms.

 2000 Academic Press

Keywords: sliced mushrooms; Agaricus bisporus; shelf life; citric acid; hydrogen peroxide

Introduction for time in transit; subsequent extra days of shelf life

While many investigations on the quality of whole fresh
mushrooms have been reported (1}3), there is little in-
formation available on sliced mushrooms. However, the
market for sliced fresh mushrooms is increasing rapidly
due to consumer demand for prepared ready-to-use veg-
etables and convenience foods.
Whole mushrooms have a short shelf life compared to
most vegetables. They have no cuticle to protect them
from physical or microbial attack or water loss. They
have a very high respiration rate and high water content,
making them prone to microbial spoilage, and they ex-
hibit enzymatic browning. For sliced fresh mushrooms,
the shelf life is even shorter because of the e!ects of the
washing and cutting processes. Washing increases micro-
bial spoilage because it leads to a higher mushroom
water content which promotes bacterial growth. The
slicing process can spread bacteria over the cut surfaces
and it damages the hyphal cells, thereby enabling sub-
strates and enzymes to make contact and form brown
pigments (4). The gills and stipe are more visible on sliced
than on whole mushrooms and can show spoilage more
rapidly than the caps. In addition, dehydration of slices
may cause curvature.
Extending the shelf life of sliced fresh mushrooms is
desirable because a short shelf life restricts export poten-
tial. One or two extra days of shelf life would compensate
0023-6438/00/040285#05 $35.00/0
 2000 Academic Press
would give more #exibility to processors, retailers and
consumers.
Mushroom processors already use some techniques to
improve sliced mushroom shelf life. Maintainance of the
chill-chain is of great importance (5). Packaging is also
important as it reduces dehydration (6). Treatment of
mushrooms by adding sulphites to the wash water has
been widely used in the mushroom processing industry,
however, a wash in 1 g/L sodium metabisulphite has been
shown to be deleterious for mushroom shelf life (7). The
use of sulphite by Irish mushroom processors is being
reduced and in its place some processors are using stabil-
ized chlorine dioxide. This is antimicrobial by virtue of its
oxidizing power; however, its e!ectiveness in maintaining
mushroom whiteness is variable (8).
Approaches to extending mushroom shelf life by using
novel packaging (9), modi"ed atmosphere packaging
(10}12), controlled atmosphere storage (13) or insertion
of absorbent material into packs (6, 14) have been investi-
gated, with mixed outcomes. Although consumers might
prefer techniques involving packaging to those involving
chemical treatments, the latter would be simpler, and
probably cheaper, for processors to implement. Likewise,
it would be preferable for any new treatment solution to
be applied in the same way as for sulphites or stabilized
chlorine dioxide. Fortunately, the current practise of
washing or dipping whole mushrooms in treatment
doi:10.1006/fstl.2000.0657
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285
lwt/vol. 33 (2000) No. 4
solutions prior to slicing is more e!ective, in terms of
shelf life, than dipping, spraying or brushing solutions
onto sliced mushrooms (15).
The aim of the work reported here was to develop
methods to extend the shelf life of sliced fresh mush-
rooms. The e!ects of citric acid and hydrogen peroxide
treatments on the quality of sliced mushrooms during
storage are reported. Quality has been measured in terms
of colour, texture and bacterial growth. Speci"cations for
quantifying shelf life have been determined to summarize
the e!ectiveness of the treatments in extending shelf life.
Materials and Methods
Ewects of citric acid and hydrogen peroxide on the keeping
quality of sliced mushrooms
Mushrooms. Unwashed, whole, white, closed cap mush-
rooms (Agaricus bisporus) with caps of about 5 cm d,
grown in bags (16), were obtained from a commercial
grower. Mushrooms from "rst, second and third #ush (a
crop develops in four #ushes in weekly cycles) and from
phase II and III composts were used to identify any
di!erences in their response to soaking treatments.
Mushroom production using phase II compost involves
inoculation with mushroom spawn and incubation by
the mushroom grower, while for phase III compost, these
stages are carried out in bulk by mushroom composters.
After harvesting, the mushrooms were chilled, trans-
ported and stored at 4 3C for up to 24 h. The method
below was followed for phase II and phase III mush-
rooms of #ush 1, then repeated for #ush 2, followed by
#ush 3, then duplicated.
¹reatments. The mushrooms were soaked for 10 min in
a chilled aqueous solution (4 3C) of 40 g/L citric acid, or
50 mL/L hydrogen peroxide (i.e. 167 mL of a 30% [w/w]
hydrogen peroxide solution, with 833 mL water), or dis-
tilled water (control), and then placed on absorbent pa-
per for 2 min to remove excess surface liquid. They were
sliced (3 mm wide) in a food processor (Braun model
4262), then spread on absorbent paper. The slices
(60 g/tray) were packed in polystyrene plastic food trays,
of internal dimensions 19.5;10.5;2.5 cm, and over-
wrapped with perforated polyvinylchloride "lm (XSC
MPF Filmco; transmission data for PVC "lm: 16000 and
90000 cc/m/24 h for oxygen and carbon dioxide, respec-
tively, and 340 g/m/24 h for water vapour), then stored
at 4 3C.
Quality assessment. The mushrooms were monitored for
aspects of quality after 0, 5, 9, 14 and 19 d storage at 4 3C.
The colour of 10 slices (from two packs) was measured
with a calibrated Minolta Chroma Meter (CR-331) using
CIE illuminant D65 as the light source and Hunter Lab
as the colour space. The shear values of 50 g portions of
sliced mushrooms were determined using a calibrated
Kramer design T-2000 Texture Test System with a stan-
dard shear compression cell (model CS-1). The mean
shear value for duplicate samples was calculated.
286
Pseudomonad bacteria were enumerated by the spread
plate technique using Pseudomonas Agar Base (Oxoid
CM559) incorporating Pseudomonas C-F-C Selective
Supplement (Oxoid SR103E). The plates were incubated
for 48 h at 25 3C and the number of colony forming units
per gram (cfu/g) of mushroom was determined. Due to
time constraints, the d 0 samples were tested for
pseudomonads on d 1.
Statistical design. The experimental design was three
solutions;three #ushes;two composts;"ve test d
;two replicates. The results were tested by ANOVA
with 179 degrees of freedom.
Quantixcation of mushroom shelf-life
Ten packs of sliced mushrooms of di!erent ages were
arranged in order of quality. The mushroom slices were
shown to 32 panellists who were asked which packs they
would buy (at standard price). The colour of mushrooms
in each pack was then measured (as above).
Ewect of citric acid treatment on sensory properties of
mushrooms
Fresh mushrooms were soaked for 10 min in water (con-
trol) or 40 g/L citric acid. The mushrooms were sliced (3
mm), then packed as above and stored overnight at 4 3C.
The slices were cooked in a microwave oven, half with
butter and half with a garlic-#avoured sun#ower oil
emulsion. Twenty-one taste panellists were presented
with two coded samples cooked in butter, i.e. control and
citric acid treated slices. They were asked which sample
they preferred and why. This was repeated with the
mushrooms cooked with garlic-#avoured oil. The experi-
ment was repeated on a di!erent day (with a di!erent
panel of 21 tasters) with slices cooked (microwaved) with-
out additional ingredients (i.e. no fat or water).
Results
Ewect of treatments on the keeping quality of sliced
mushrooms
The e!ects of storage time at 4 3C on the keeping quality
of sliced mushrooms treated with water (control), citric
acid or hydrogen peroxide are shown in Fig. 1a, b, c and
d. During storage, the mushroom slices became less
white, more yellow, tougher, then softer and the number
of pseudomonad bacteria on the slices increased. Com-
pared to the control mushrooms, those treated with citric
acid or hydrogen peroxide had higher mean Hunter
L (P(0.05) and lower mean Hunter b (P(0.001)
values (Fig. 1a, b) and were less soft (P(0.01) (Fig. 1c),
but most bene"t was obtained after 9 d of storage. The
citric acid and the hydrogen peroxide treatments both
reduced (P(0.001) mean log pseudomonad number
(Fig. 1d). The maximum reduction, of about 100-fold, was
on d 1 (Fig. 1d). The e!ect decreased during storage (Fig.
1d) but remained signi"cant (P(0.05) on each test day.
The citric acid treatment was slightly more (P(0.05)
antibacterial than the hydrogen peroxide treatment.

Fig. 1 E!ect of soaking whole mushrooms for 10 min in
(*䊏*) water, (*䉭*) 40 g/L citric acid or (*䊊*) 50 mL/L
hydrogen peroxide on (a) whiteness, (b) yellowness, (c) shear
value and (d) pseudomonad concentration, of sliced mush-
rooms stored at 4 3C for up to 19 d. Data points are the mean
of 12 batches of mushrooms from #ushes one, two and three
from phase II and III compost. Least signi"cant di!erences
(P(0.05) are (a) 3.2, (b) 0.6, (c) 46 and (d) 0.7
287
lwt/vol. 33 (2000) No. 4
Inyuence of compost phase on the ewectiveness
of treatments
Citric acid or hydrogen peroxide treated sliced mush-
rooms from phase II compost were not signi"cantly
whiter than the control phase II slices (Fig. 2). However,
the treatments were e!ective (P(0.05) in maintaining
whiteness of phase III grown mushroom slices (Fig. 2).
Hydrogen peroxide treated mushroom slices from both
compost phases were signi"cantly (P(0.05) less yellow
than the corresponding control slices on d 14 and 19, but
for citric acid treated slices only d 14 phase III slices were
signi"cantly (P(0.05) less yellow than the correspond-
ing control slices. Compost phase had little e!ect on the
antisoftening or antibacterial activity of the treatments
(data not shown).
Inyuence of mushroom yush on the ewectiveness of
treatments
The citric acid and hydrogen peroxide treatments did not
signi"cantly improve the mean whiteness of second #ush
mushrooms. First #ush mushrooms were signi"cantly
(P(0.05) improved by the citric acid treatment, how-
ever, while third #ush mushrooms were signi"cantly
(P(0.05) improved by the hydrogen peroxide treatment
(Fig. 3). The hydrogen peroxide treatment signi"cantly
(P(0.05) reduced the yellowness of mushroom slices of
second and third #ush, but not "rst #ush. Only third
#ush citric acid and hydrogen peroxide treated slices
were signi"cantly (P(0.05) less soft than the corre-
sponding control slices. However, the number of
pseudomonad bacteria was signi"cantly (P(0.05) re-
duced by the citric acid and hydrogen peroxide treat-
ments for slices from all three #ushes.
Quantixcation of sliced mushroom shelf life
None of the panel members would buy sliced mushrooms
of 67 Hunter L units or less, but all would buy slices
Fig. 2 E!ectiveness of treatment with (*䉭*, *䉱*) 40 g/L
citric acid and (*䊊*, *䊉*) 50 mL/L hydrogen peroxide
on maintaining whiteness of sliced mushrooms from
(*䉭*, *䊊*) phase II or (*䉱*, *䊉*) phase III compost.
? Hunter L value for citric acid or hydrogen peroxide treated
sliced mushrooms minus Hunter L value for corresponding
control sliced mushrooms. Data were from six batches of mush-
rooms from #ushes one, two and three. The least signi"cant
di!erence (P(0.05) is 4.5
lwt/vol. 33 (2000) No. 4
Fig. 3 E!ectiveness of treatment with (*䉭*, *䉱*, 2 2)
40 g/L citric acid and (*䊊*, *䊉*, 2 2) 50 mL/L hydro-
gen peroxide on maintaining whiteness of (*䉭*, *䊊*) #ush
one, (*䉱*, *䊉*) #ush two and ( 2 2, 2 2) #ush three
sliced mushrooms.
? Hunter L value for citric acid or hydrogen peroxide treated
sliced mushrooms minus Hunter L value for corresponding
control sliced mushrooms. Data were from four batches of
mushrooms from phase II and III compost. The least signi"cant
di!erence (P(0.05) is 5.4
Fig. 4 Percentage of panellists prepared to purchase sliced
mushrooms of di!erent degrees of whiteness
whiter than 82 L units (Fig. 4). As a shelf life speci"cation,
it was decided to use the Hunter L value which corre-
sponded to the colour of sliced mushrooms that 75%
of the panel would buy, i.e. 75 Hunter L units (Fig. 4).
Table 1 shows the e!ect of the citric acid and hydrogen
peroxide treatments on sliced mushroom shelf life deter-
mined using this L value speci"cation. The data were
from the above experiment on the keeping quality of
sliced mushrooms. The maximum extension in shelf life
was 82% (from 11 to 20 d); this was obtained by treating
"rst #ush mushrooms, from phase III compost, with
citric acid.
Ewect of citric acid treatment on sensory properties
of mushrooms
For a signi"cant preference (at the 5% level) at least 15
out of 21 tasters must prefer the same sample. Eleven of
the 21 panellists (i.e. insigni"cant) preferred the control to
the citric acid treated mushrooms when cooked with
either butter, or with garlic-#avoured oil. Of these 11
tasters, only six preferred control mushrooms in both
288
Table 1 E!ect of treatments on shelf life? of mushroom
slices
Shelf life (d)
Treatment Mean Range
Water (control) 11 7}17
Citric acid 15 11}20
Hydrogen peroxide 14 9}21
? Days from treatment until Hunter L value"75
tests, i.e. with butter, and with garlic-#avoured oil. For
mushrooms cooked without fat, 10 panellists out of 21
(i.e. insigni"cant) preferred the control slices. None of the
panellists reported an acidic #avour or a yellow coloured
edge for the treated mushrooms.
Discussion
This study demonstrated that citric acid or hydrogen
peroxide can be used to extend the shelf life of sliced
mushrooms. The main improvements in the quality of
the sliced mushrooms compared to control slices occur-
red after 9 d of chilled storage. Therefore, citric acid or
hydrogen peroxide treatments would not be of bene"t for
mushrooms which are sold and consumed within 1 wk,
but the extension in shelf life could allow the slices to be
exported further and could o!er greater #exibility to
retailers and consumers.
The response of the mushrooms to the treatments sug-
gests that the bene"ts were mainly due to antibacterial
activity, rather than inhibition of enzymatic browning (2).
This is supported by the "nding that reduced bacterial
populations resulted in better retention of whiteness dur-
ing storage of whole mushrooms (1). Overall, it is con-
cluded that the citric acid treatment was slightly more
e!ective than the hydrogen peroxide treatment, however,
the latter was better at reducing yellowness and so was
particularly e!ective with the most yellow mushroom
slices, i.e. those from the third #ush from phase II com-
post. This di!erence between the treatments might be due
to a bleaching e!ect from the hydrogen peroxide and/or
because citric acid can induce a slight yellowness to
mushrooms (2). A preliminary, unpublished experiment
showed no bene"t from treating the mushrooms with
a mixture of hydrogen peroxide and citric acid, although
Sapers et al. (2) found that a predip in hydrogen peroxide
solution, followed by dipping in a solution of browning
inhibitor, was bene"cial for extending storage life of
whole mushrooms.
E!ectiveness of the treatments varied from batch to
batch of mushrooms, but was found to be related to
compost phase and #ush; overall, phase III, #ush three
mushroom slices responded the best. These mushrooms,
on d 0, were the softest (17). It is hypothesized that
di!erences in structure and/or water content in#uenced
solution uptake and/or its movement through the mush-
room, or the response might be related to di!ering levels

of enzyme activity in the di!erent mushroom batches
(18). Sapers et al. (2) also found that the response of
mushrooms to browning inhibitors depended on the
initial condition of the mushroom. This variability could
cause concern to mushroom processors, however, as the
citric acid or hydrogen peroxide treatments are most
e!ective for poorer quality sliced mushrooms and least
e!ective for better quality sliced mushrooms, it follows
that the treatments will balance out natural variation in
shelf life, thus giving more consistency. Furthermore, the
treatments were always antibacterial and so compliance
with microbiological speci"cations should be attainable.
When consumers select prepacked sliced mushrooms,
they have to choose by appearance alone, i.e. mainly
colour. This is one reason why whiteness value is a suit-
able indicator for quantifying shelf life. Also, mushroom
colour is a!ected by both enzymatic and microbial
browning, and is linked to textural changes because they
are related to ageing and microbial growth.
This study only concerned sliced mushrooms; citric acid
would not be suitable for whole mushrooms because it
causes yellowing of the mushroom surface. When sliced,
this was not a problem; the taste panellists indicated that
the citric acid treatment had no detrimental e!ect on the
organoleptic properties of cooked mushroom slices. The
e!ect of the hydrogen peroxide treatment on sensory
properties of sliced mushrooms was not assessed here as
it has not been approved as a food additive in the Euro-
pean Communities. Studies in the U.S.A., where hydro-
gen peroxide has GRAS (Generally Regarded As Safe)
status, showed that it, also, had no e!ect on mushroom
#avour (2).
Acknowledgement
This study was part-funded by grant aid under the Food
Sub-programme of the Operational Programme for In-
dustrial Development. This programme was adminis-
tered by the Irish Department of Agriculture and Food
and supported by national and European Union funds.
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