GG and Biochemical Agents Enrich the Shelf Life of Fresh-Cut Bell Pepper ( L. var. grossum (L.) Sendt).

This work analyzed the individual and combined effects of biochemical additives and probiotic strain GG on red and yellow fresh-cut bell pepper (R- and Y-FCBP, respectively) stored at two different temperatures (4 °C and 15 °C) for 15 days. The results revealed that the combined application of biochemical additives and GG inhibited the colonization of total bacterial counts (25.10%), total counts (38.32%), total counts (23.75%), and total fungal counts (61.90%) in FCBP. Total bacterial colonization was found to be higher in R-FCBP (1188.09 ± 9.25 CFU g) than Y-FCBP (863.96 ± 7.21 CFU g). The storage at 4 °C was prevented 35.38% of microbial colonization in FCBP. Importantly, the GG count remained for up to 12 days. Moreover, the combined inoculation of the biochemical additives and GG treatments (T3) maintained the quality of R- and Y-FCBP for up to 12 days at 4 °C without any loss of antioxidant properties. This work reports the successful utilization of GG as a preservative agent for maintaining the quality of FCBP by preventing microbial colonization.