Organic Food Preservative Compositions
The subject invention provides compositions and methods for preserving food products. Specifically, the subject compositions and methods can be used to prolong the consumable life of food products, as well as to reduce and/or prevent spoilage and/or contamination by microbial agents. Preferably, the compositions comprise a blend of one or more glycolipids and one or more lipopeptides. Even more preferably, the compositions comprise sophorolipids and surfactin, lichenysin or another lipopeptide biosurfactant.
1 . A food product comprising a cereal, fruit, vegetable, meat, seafood, eggs and/or dairy to which has been added a composition that comprises:
i) an inactive microorganism selected from Starmerella bombicola, Pseudozyma aphidis, Pichia guilliermondii and Pichia anomala ; and
ii) a glycolipid selected from a sophorolipid and a mannosylerythritol lipid;
wherein the total concentration of glycolipid in the food product is from 0.001% to 5.0%.
2 . The composition of claim 1 , further comprising about 1 ppm to about 5,000 ppm of a lipopeptide.
3 . The product of claim 1 , comprising a cereal.
4 . The product of claim 1 , comprising a fruit.
5 . The product of claim 1 , comprising a vegetable.
6 . The product of claim 1 , comprising a meat.
7 . The product of claim 1 , comprising a seafood.
8 . The product of claim 1 , comprising eggs.
9 . The product of claim 1 , comprising dairy.
10 . The product of claim 1 , comprising a Starmerella bombicola.
11 . The product of claim 1 , comprising a Pseudozyma aphidis.
12 . The product of claim 1 , comprising a sophorolipid.
13 . The product of claim 1 , comprising a mannosylerythritol lipid.