Abstract: Foodborne pathogens and specific spoilage bacteria exist on the food surface and in food industrial environment in the form of biofilms, representing an important cause of food quality and safety problems. The foodborne microbial quorum sensing (QS) system is thought to play an important role in the development of biofilm formation. In this context, herein the regulatory role of the QS system in foodborne biofilm formation is scrutinized, and the current status of studies on quorum quenching (QQ) in the control of microbial biofilm formation and the mechanism of QQ is elaborated in detail. Moreover, an outlook on key future research directions on the control of foodborne microbial biofilms is given finally. This review aims to enrich the basic theory in the field of food quality and safety, and provide support for improving food quality and ensuring food safety.

Key words: biofilm formation; quorum sensing; quorum quenching; biofilm control; extracellular polymeric substances