LAUSR

Abstract Paneer is a fresh, soft, unripened cheese, falls under the category of ready to eat product. From 2010 to 2015, because of consumption of soft cheese, several multistate outbreaks of Listeria monocytogenes happened in the USA. In the meantime, recalls of soft cheese happened in Australia and Canada due to association of soft cheese with L. monocytogenes. Therefore, this research was undertaken to study the growth potential of L. monocytogenes in this product by challenge testing with three different contamination modes and evaluate the effectiveness of different preservation techniques in inhibiting the growth of L. monocytogenes in this product. Results showed that paneer cheese supports the growth of L. monocytogenes to more than 2 logs (100 cfu/g) during the shelf life. It was found that the none of the preservation techniques evaluated inhibited the growth of L. monocytogenes to less than 1 log cycle during the shelf life. This study provides the scientific basis of assessing the growth potential of L. monocytogenes by challenge testing and mandates the implementation of regulatory guidelines while manufacturing, distribution, storage and importation of this product with the recommendation of use of hurdle technologies to inhibit the growth of L. monocytogenes in this product.