What is D-value?

Answer 1

D-value is a way of describing the thermal destruction of bacteria in food. It is the amount of time it takes to reduce bacteria by ten fold (1 log). This term is important in food industry, as foods must reach a certain food safety standard before being sent out to consumers. That is, the amount of a certain microbe in a food must be a below a certain quantity. It is important to know that different microbes require different heat treatments. D value can be determined by measuring the amount of microbes at several time points, and graphing log(CFU) vs Time.

D-value: (T2-T1)/(log10CFU1-log10CFU2)

where T = time and CFU = amount of microbes (colony forming units) in food.