Patent 9277763 was granted and assigned to Starbucks on March, 2016 by the United States Patent and Trademark Office.
Several embodiments of the present invention relate generally to the use of non-pathogenic microorganisms to prevent the growth and/or activity of pathogenic microorganisms in food products. More specifically, several embodiments relate to manipulation of the pH of low acid foods by non-pathogenic microorganisms to generate a local environment that is adverse to pathogenic microorganisms.