A Review of the Nutrition Claims Made by Proponents of Organic Food.

  Health-conscious consumers have an interest in knowing if the extra money they spend on organic food is justified. The organic food industry, therefore, has a large financial interest in convincing the public that the food they sell is healthier, tastier, and better for the environment. One area that the industry has concentrated on is the supposed nutritional superiority of their product.

Ammonium Bicarbonate Inhibition of Mycotoxigenic Fungi and Spoilage Yeasts.

Sodium bicarbonate inhibits growth and aflatoxin production by Aspergillus parasiticus . This survey determined that other mycotoxigenic fungi were also sensitive to bicarbonates. Sodium bicarbonate, potassium bicarbonate, ammonium bicarbonate, ammonium sulfate, and sodium chloride were added to buffered or unbuffered potato-dextrose agar to determine the bicarbonate effect on growth and morphology of six mycotoxigenic fungi.

Aspergillus parasiticus Accumulates Averufin and Versicolorin A in the Presence of Bicarbonate.

Sodium bicarbonate has previously been shown to inhibit aflatoxin production by Aspergillus parasiticus . The abnormal pigmentation of colonies grown in the presence of bicarbonate suggested that intermediates of the aflatoxin biosynthetic pathway were accumulating. Aspergillus parasiticus NRRL 2999 cultures grown in the presence of sodium bicarbonate were extracted with acetone and chloroform.