An approach to extend the shelf life of ribbonfish fillet using lactic acid bacteria cell-free culture supernatant

Trichiurus lepturus is a marine ribbonfish found in both tropical and temperate coastal areas. High consumer demand has prompted the food industry to increase the production of ribbonfish. Apart from production on a large scale, extending the shelf life and preserving the freshness have become increasingly important concerns. The present study investigated the possibility of enhancing the shelf life of ribbonfish using lactic acid bacteria (LAB) cell-free culture. Two LAB isolates, Lactobacillus plantarum SKD4 and Pediococcus stilesii SKD11, were selected to study the effect of LAB cell-free culture treatment on shelf life extension of ribbonfish. Ribbonfish fillet samples were stored in a refrigerator (4 °C) or at room temperature (25 °C), and the physicochemical (pH, color, texture, and trimethylamine), sensory, and microbiological analyses were conducted over the storage periods. The treatment of ribbonfish fillets with LAB cell-free culture resulted in the improvement of food qualities related to physicochemical parameters, extension of the shelf life, and retardation of microbial growth. Furthermore, the endogenous content of trimethylamine in ribbonfish was also found to be significantly reduced after treatment with LAB cell-free culture supernatant at a storage temperature of 25 °C for 72 h. Thus, treating raw fish fillets with LAB cell-free culture would be a promising approach for extending their shelf life and maintaining their storage quality during storage under refrigeration or at room temperature.