Abstract:Separation and identification of spoilage bacteria from herbal tea showed that the main spoilage organisms in the herbal tea were Gram-positive Bacillus bacteria (Paenibacillus polymyxa,Bacillus pumilus and Bacillus megaterium). The better preservative for inhibition of the spoilage bacteria in herbal tea were found as Nisin, Nipagin ester and Chitosan. The formulation of a compound preservative with the three preservatives for enhanced efficacy was optimized by response surface methodology. A quadratic polynomial regression model was built using Box-Behnken design, The best composite bacteriostatic agent formula and the antibacterial effects of preservatives combination were validated.
