Antimicrobial composition for pre-harvest and post-harvest treatment of plants and animals

Abstract

An antimicrobial, anti-bacterial processing aid, food additive and food ingredient is provided to inhibit cellular growth of known pathogenic, indicator and spoilage organisms, such as salmonella, stahphylococcus, listeria, e coli, and the like. The antimicrobial agent of the present invention is useful as a treatment for animal feed, a treatment for pre-harvest and post-harvest processing of foodstuffs, a treatment for cooked food subject to airborne contaminants and many other conditions in need of disinfectants and sanitizers. One of the primary benefits of the antimicrobial agent is that it inhibits the growth of bacteria that have become antibiotic resistant.

1 . A product useful in pre-harvest and post-harvest treatment of foodstuffs to inhibit cellular growth of known pathogenic, indicator and spoilage bacteria, made by the process of: 
 (a) combining sulfuric acid of approximately 94% purity to approximately 99.9% purity in a 1 to 2 volume ratio with distilled water and ammonium sulfate in a ratio of 2.77 pounds of ammonium sulfate per gallon of distilled water to provide mixture ( I );    (b) combining the mixture (I) in a pressurized vessel at a pressure that is above atmospheric pressure and heating the mixture at a temperature in a range between approximately 200 degrees Fahrenheit and approximately 1200 degrees Fahrenheit, for at least 30 minutes;    (c) cooling the mixture;    (d) adding a stabilizer which is a portion of mixture (I) and comprises 10 weight percent of the total weight of mixture (I), thereby forming mixture (II); and    (e) adding a compound containing metallic ions to mixture (II) to from mixture (III).    
     
     
         2 . The product made by the process of  claim 1 , wherein the metallic ions are selected from the group consisting of copper ions, silver ions, zinc ions, magnesium ions and mixtures thereof.  
     
     
         3 . The product made by the process of  claim 1 , wherein the compound containing metallic ions is selected from at least one of: copper sulfate, copper sulfate pentahydrate, copper glutamate, zinc oxide, zinc glutamate, magnesium glutamate, magnesium sulfate, silver oxide and silver sulfate.  
     
     
         4 . The product made by the process of  claim 1 , further comprising the step of applying direct current (DC) voltage to mixture I during the addition of ammonium sulfate.  
     
     
         5 . The product made by the process of  claim 4 , wherein the DC voltage is in a range from approximately one amp to approximately 100 amps.  
     
     
         6 . The product made by the process of  claim 5 , wherein the DC voltage is in a range from approximately one amp to approximately 5 amps.  
     
     
         7 . The product made by the process of  claim 3 , wherein the compound containing metallic ions is mixed with distilled water to form a solution.  
     
     
         8 . The product made by the process of  claim 4 , wherein the ratio of the distilled 20 water solution of the compound containing metallic ions to the total weight of mixture (III) is in a range between approximately 2% to approximately 75% by weight.  
     
     
         9 . The product made by the process of  claim 1 , that is used to inhibit cellular growth of pathogenic bacteria selected from the group consisting of:  Salmonella typhimurium, Listeria monocytogenes, Staphylococcus aureus.    
     
     
         10 . The product made by the process of  claim 1 , that inhibits the growth of indicator bacterium  Escherichia coli.    
     
     
         11 . The product made by the process of  claim 1 , that inhibits the growth of spoilage bacteria selected from at least one of: 
   Pseudomonas fluorescens  and  Shewannela putrefaciens.      
     
     
         12 . The product made by the process of  claim 1  that is used as an additive in scalder tank water for dipping poultry in a processing production line.  
     
     
         13 . The product made by the process of  claim 1  that is used as an additive in a water treatment process handling raw meats, the water treatment process is selected from one of: scalding, spray bath, final rinse and chill water.  
     
     
         14 . The product made by the process of  claim 1  that is used as an additive for treatment of wastewater.  
     
     
         15 . The product made by the process of  claim 1  that is used as a washing solution for at least one of: eggs, fruits and vegetables.  
     
     
         16 . The product made by the process of  claim 1  that is used as an additive for animal feed.  
     
     
         17 . The product made by the process of  claim 1  that is used as an additive for poultry feed.  
     
     
         18 . The product made by the process of  claim 1  that is used an additive for ice products.  
     
     
         19 . The product made by the process of  claim 1  that is used as an antimicrobial aid to reduce microbial contamination of comestibles selected from at least one of: poultry, red meat, pork, venison, seafood, eggs, milk and dairy products.  
     
     
         20 . The product made by the process of  claim 1  that is used to wash and disinfect the feet of dairy cattle.  
     
     
         21 . A method of making an antimicrobial mixture for pre-harvest and post-harvest treatment of foodstuffs and non-foodstuffs, comprising the steps of: 
 (a) adding sulfuric acid of approximately 94 percent purity to a first container;    (b) heating distilled water in a ratio of twice the volume of the sulfuric acid in a separate container to at least 140° F.;    (c) mixing ammonium sulfate in the heated water in a ratio of 2.77 pounds per gallon of water to form mixture (I);    (d) simultaneously combining the mixture of sulfuric acid, heated distilled water, and ammonium sulfate (mixture I) into a separate pressurized vessel by injection;    (e) heating the pressurized mixture to a temperature in a range between approximately 200° F. and approximately 1200° F. for approximately 30 minutes to form mixture (II);    (f) cooling mixture (II) and adding a stabilizer portion of mixture (I) to the cooled mixture, wherein the stabilizer comprises approximately 10 weight percent of the total weight of mixture (II);    (g) adding a compound containing metallic ions to form a stable suspension (mixture III);    (h) diluting the stable suspension of metallic ions to form an effective antimicrobial composition; and    (i) applying the antimicrobial composition to foodstuffs and non-foodstuffs.    
     
     
         22 . The method of  claim 21 , wherein the metallic ions are selected from the group consisting of copper ions, silver ions, zinc ions, magnesium ions and mixtures thereof.  
     
     
         23 . The method of  claim 21 , wherein the compound containing metallic ions is selected from at least one of: copper sulfate, copper sulfate pentahydrate, copper glutamate, zinc oxide, zinc glutamate, magnesium glutamate, magnesium sulfate, silver oxide and silver sulfate.  
     
     
         24 . A stable antimicrobial mixture comprising metallic salts, sulfuric acid, ammonium sulfate and distilled water wherein the metallic ions remain in suspension at pH ranges between approximately 0 pH to approximately 9 pH and at temperatures between approximately 32° F. and approximately 212° F.  
     
     
         25 . The antimicrobial mixture of  claim 24 , wherein the metallic salts are selected from at least one of the following compounds: copper sulfate, copper sulfate pentahydrate, copper glutamate, zinc oxide, zinc glutamate, magnesium glutamate, magnesium sulfate, silver oxide, silver sulfate and mixtures thereof.  
     
     
         26 . The antimicrobial mixture of  claim 25 , wherein the metallic salts comprise ions selected from the group consisting of copper ions, silver ions, zinc ions, magnesium ions and mixtures thereof.