A B S T R A C T
consumers increasingly demand of using natural preservatives as alternative to those chemical additives
that has been questioned in last years. So, the effect of some essential oils as thyme, clove and garlic as
antimicrobial agent against Staphylococcus aureus and their role in enhance shelf life of minced meat
were studied. The sensory analysis indicated significant advantages in using thyme, clove and garlic oils
in refrigerated minced beef. All used essential oils had considerable effectiveness in decreasing S. aureus
count. In addition, the results indicated that the bacterial counts decreased as the concentration of the oil
increased, accordingly, the concentration 1.5% of each oil gave the best effectiveness and the thyme oil
showed the highest action followed by clove and garlic oils.