Investigation of effect of the Rosemary essential oil on growth of Staphylococcus aureus in commercial instant soup

Increasing tendency to reduce the use of synthetic preservatives has led to research and use of naturally derived antimicrobials. The essential oil of rosemary is used as flavoring agent in food and because of great antimicrobial and antioxidative characteristics, it is known as a pharmaceutical plant. The aim of this survey was to investigate the effect of different concentrations of rosemary essential oil (0, 50 and 100 ppm) at two temperatures (8 and 25 ºC) during fourteen days storage on growth of Staphylococcus aureus in a commercial soup. Surface plate count was used after serial dilution preparation of samples for determination the number of bacteria after 24 hours. Results were statistically significant (p