VATIS UPDATE Article

Tom Phillips, an entomologist at Kansas State University (KSU), the United States, has helped develop new methods to keep mites away from dry-cured hams while also meeting international requirements to protect the ozone layer. Phillips, was part of a research team led by food scientists at Mississippi State University, the United States, that was successful in using the food-safe compound propylene glycol to protect from ham mites. Their work has been published in the Journal of Meat Science.

For many years, ham mites were controlled with methyl bromide, a fumigant that is safe to food. But in 1989, it was one of several substances listed in the Montreal Protocol, an international treaty to phase-out the use and production of substances responsible for ozone depletion. “Methyl bromide has been important as a fumigant for controlling pests of different kinds. Seventy to 80 percent of all bromide use was for sterilizing soil in very high-value places like California and Florida, where they grow strawberries and fresh vegetables,” said Phillips.

Phillips and colleagues developed food-grade coatings with propylene glycol, a common food preservative, which they applied to hams before the aging process begins. Whole dry-cured hams, also known as country hams, are considered a specialty product and often take three months to two years to fully cure. They differ from wet-cured hams, which are the refrigerated products consumers most often buy at grocery stores.