Inhibiting Effect of Acetic Acid upon Microorganisms in the Presence of Sodium Chloride and Sucrose.

Vinegar has long been added to foods in the home and in the commercial packing plant as a flavoring element; in addition, it has adefinite preservative action against spoilage microorganisms. Any toxic effect of vinegar is undoubtedly due to its acetic acid content. Levine and Fellers (1940) showed that the toxicity of acetic acid is not due to pH alone although an increase in the hydrogen ions resulted in a decrease in heat resistance of the bacteria studied. As vinegar is usually associated with sugar or salt or both in a food, it seemed advisable to study the toxic effect of acetic acid in the presence of these substances.