Potassium lactate and Clostridium perfringens growth in cooled turkey
What it found
In lab tests on ground turkey, potassium lactate slowed the growth of Clostridium perfringens bacteria during cooling.
The 2% level worked better than the 1% level.
What they found
Animal and lab studies
Bacterial growth in control
In control samples, populations of C. perfringens increased 3.8 to 4.7 log CFU/g during the two chilling protocols.
Effect of 1% potassium lactate
The 1% potassium lactate treatment supported only a 2.5- to 2.7-log increase.
Effect of 2% potassium lactate
The 2% potassium lactate treatment limited growth to a 0.56- to 0.70-log increase.
Comparison to control
When compared with the control, 2% potassium lactate retarded growth by 2.65 and 4.21 log CFU/g for the 10- and 12-h cooling protocols, respectively.
What the authors conclude
“These results confirm that the addition of 2% potassium lactate inhibits growth of C. perfringens and that potassium lactate can be used as an alternative to sodium nitrite for safe extended cooling of uncured meats.”
Also in their conclusions
- They confirm that the addition of 2% potassium lactate inhibits growth of C. perfringens.
- They state that potassium lactate can be used as an alternative to sodium nitrite for safe extended cooling of uncured meats.
How it was done
The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Food Safety and Inspection Service guideline known as Appendix B sets chilling time and temperature limits for cured and uncured meat products to inhibit growth of spore-forming bacteria, particularly Clostridium perfringens. Sodium lactate and potassium lactate inhibit toxigenic growth of Clostridium botulinum, and inhibition of C. perfringens has been reported.
A cocktail of spores of three C. perfringens strains (ATCC 13124, ATCC 12915, and ATCC 12916) were inoculated into 100-g samples of ground skinless, boneless turkey breast formulated to represent deli-style turkey breast. Three treatment groups were supplemented with 0 (control), 1, or 2% potassium lactate (pure basis), cooked to 71 °C, and assayed for C. perfringens growth during 10 or 12 h of linear cooling to 4 °C.
What it can’t tell you
- We summarised it from the abstract only.
- These are lab tests on ground turkey, not people. They can't show what happens in other meats or in real kitchens.
Who paid
- Authors work at
- University of Wisconsin-Madison, USA; University of California- Davis, USA
The paper
- Title
- Inhibition of Clostridium perfringens growth by potassium lactate during an extended cooling of cooked uncured ground turkey breasts
- Type
- Study
- Evidence
- Animals and lab studies
- Summarised from
- Abstract only
- Cite
- Kennedy KM, Milkowski AL, Glass KA (2013). Inhibition of Clostridium perfringens growth by potassium lactate during an extended cooling of cooked uncured ground turkey breasts. Journal of food protection. doi:10.4315/0362-028X.JFP-13-106PubMed 24215704DOI
Summary written 26 Sep 2026. Check it against the paper before it changes what you eat. How we summarise papers · Report an error