Refrigerated storage of food is generally practiced both at home or industry level. In chilling, the temperature of a food is reduced generally to between -1°C and 7°C and thus subsequent storage at refrigerated temperature extends the shelf life of both the fresh and processed foods. It just increases shelf life and has limited application in preserving foods. It is not the sole method for preserving food therefore it is used as an adjunct process to extend the storage life of mildly processed (e.g. pasteurized, fermented and irradiated) and low-acid foods.
Chilling and refrigerated storage retards the growth of bacteria, particularly the thermophiles and mesophiles. Psychrophillic spoilage bacteria however can spoil food during low temperatures storage, but some psychrophillic pathogens, such as Listeria monocytogenes,Yersinia enterocolitica etc. found in refrigerated food need attention. Temperatures of 5 to 6°C or less retard the growth of most food poisoning microorganisms except Clostridium botulinum type E.
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