ABSTRACT
Food safety is the prime factor for any food processing industry to have potential impact on public health, food security, and trade competitiveness. The food processing industry is under continuous pressure to produce fresh, minimally processed, natural, healthy, and safe foods. Non-thermal processing of food material is a potential objective to meet the requirements. The organic components are the constituents of the food products such as proteins, minerals, and antioxidants which are suspected to be involved in affecting the antimicrobial activity of ozone. The sensitivity of microorganisms to ozone is dependent on their structural characteristics. Fruits are easily deteriorated with bacterial and fungal contamination and ozone has been used as surface disinfectant in many fruits either in gaseous or in aqueous form. Fruits are rich source of nutrients such as minerals, dietary fibers, vitamins, and antioxidants. Application of ozone on whole or fresh-cut fruit pieces has been reported to affect the nutrients adversely.
