Sanitizer efficacy against murine norovirus, a surrogate for human norovirus, on stainless steel surfaces when using three application methods.

Human noroviruses are major etiologic agents of epidemic gastroenteritis. Outbreaks are often accompanied by contamination of environmental surfaces, but since these viruses cannot be routinely propagated in laboratory cultures, their response to surface disinfectants is predicted by using surrogates, such as murine norovirus 1 (MNV-1). This study compared the virucidal efficacies of various liquid treatments (three sanitizer liquids, 5% levulinic acid plus 2% SDS [LEV/SDS], 200 ppm chlorine, and an isopropanol-based quaternary ammonium compound [Alpet D2], and two control liquids, sterile tap water and sterile tap water plus 2% SDS) when delivered to MNV-1-inoculated stainless steel surfaces by conventional hydraulic or air-assisted, induction-charged (AAIC) electrostatic spraying or by wiping with impregnated towelettes. For the spray treatments, LEV/SDS proved effective when applied with hydraulic and AAIC electrostatic spraying, providing virus reductions of 2.71 and 1.66 log PFU/ml, respectively. Alpet D2 provided a 2.23-log PFU/ml reduction with hydraulic spraying, outperforming chlorine (1.16-log PFU/ml reduction). Chlorine and LEV/SDS were equally effective as wipes, reducing the viral load by 7.05 log PFU/ml. Controls reduced the viral load by <1 log with spraying applications and by >3 log PFU/ml with wiping. Results indicated that both sanitizer type and application methods should be carefully considered when choosing a surface disinfectant to best prevent and control environmental contamination by noroviruses.

Listeria monocytogenes survival in refrigerator dill pickles.

Listeria monocytogenes can survive and grow in refrigerated foods with pH values of approximately 4.0 to 5.0 and salt concentrations of 3 to 4%. Home-fermented refrigerator dill pickles fit this description. Contamination of this product with L. monocytogenes could cause serious problems because these items are not heated prior to consumption. L. monocytogenes survival and growth patterns were investigated in refrigerator dill pickles at 1.3, 3.8, and 7.6% salt concentrations. Pickling cucumbers were dipped into an inoculum of L. monocytogenes, brine mixtures were added, and cucumbers were held at room temperature for 1 week and then refrigerated for up to 3 months. The pH, NaCl percentage, titratable acidity percentage, and total populations of Listeria and aerobic, psychrotrophic, and lactic acid bacteria were measured at the addition of brine, after 2, 4, and 7 days of storage at room temperature, and then weekly during refrigerated storage. The initial Listeria population was 5.4 to 5.6 log CFU/cm2 on cucumber surfaces and 3.9 to 4.6 log CFU/g internally. There was an approximate 0.3- to 1-log increase during room temperature fermentation followed by a population decline during refrigerator storage, with a greater decrease in the brines with the highest NaCl concentration. Up to 49 days, the internal tissue of pickles with 1.3, 3.8, or 7.6% salt concentrations were presumptively positive for L. monocytogenes by the enrichment method, and at 91 days the surfaces of such pickles were still positive for L. monocytogenes. Populations of total aerobes and lactic acid bacteria increased during room temperature storage and decreased gradually during refrigerated storage.

Effects of preparation methods on the microbiological safety of home-dried meat jerky.

Historically, drying meats to produce jerky was conisidered to be a safe preservation process and the convenience and flavor of jerky has made it a popular food product for home food preservers. Recent outbreaks of foodborne illness related to both home-dried and commercially manufactured jerky have raised concerns about the safety of the product. Some traditional home recipes and drying processes were shown to be inadequate to destroy Escherichia coli O157, Salmonella, Staphylococcus aureus, and Listeria monocytogenes in both whole-muscle and ground-meat jerky. Several research studies have identified processes such as precooking meats before drying, usingacidic marinades, cooking meats after drying, or some combination of these treatments that can destroy pathogens of concern to produce microbiologically safe and palatable meat jerky at home.

Survey of food safety practices on small to medium-sized farms and in farmers markets.

As produce consumption has increased, so have foodborne disease outbreaks associated with fresh produce. Little research has addressed food safety practices used on small to medium-sized farms selling locally or in farmers markets. This study evaluated current food safety practices used by farmers on small to medium-sized farms and managers of farmers markets in Georgia, Virginia, and South Carolina based on responses to surveys. Surveys were developed, pretested, and revised before implementation with target audiences and were implemented via mail and the Web to maximize participation, with reminders sent to nonrespondents. Data were collected from 226 farmers and 45 market managers. Frequencies and percentages were calculated for all response variables. Responses from farmers indicated that more than 56% of them use manures. Of those who use manures, 34% use raw or mixtures of raw and composted manure, and over 26% wait fewer than 90 days between application of raw manure and harvest. Over 27% use water sources that have not been tested for safety for irrigation, and 16% use such water sources for washing produce. Over 43% do not sanitize surfaces that touch produce at the farm. Only 33% of farmers always clean transport containers between uses. Responses from market managers indicated that over 42% have no food safety standards in place for the market. Only 2 to 11% ask farmers specific questions about conditions on the farm that could affect product safety. Less than 25% of managers sanitize market surfaces. Only 11% always clean market containers between uses. Over 75% of markets offer no sanitation training to workers or vendors. While farmers and market managers are using many good practices, the results indicate that some practices being used may put consumers at risk of foodborne illness. Consequently, there is a need for training for both farmers and market managers.

Safe Eats: an evaluation of the use of social media for food safety education.

Many undergraduate students are cooking for the first time, and they need to learn safe food practices to reduce their risk of foodborne illness. Social media tools are being utilized to disseminate public health messages, but limited research has been conducted to examine the effectiveness of these tools for food safety education. The purpose of this study was to develop and evaluate a social media-based intervention for young adults to improve food safety attitudes, practices, and knowledge. Preliminary surveys were conducted and online focus groups were convened to guide design of this social media intervention. College students (710) were included in treatment and control groups. Results from pretests and posttests indicate that participation in the "Safe Eats" Facebook intervention leads to improvements in food safety attitudes, practices, and knowledge. Although students reported that they learned more from the intervention than from a traditional lecture, the combination of lecture and Facebook resulted in higher knowledge scores than those resulting from the intervention alone. Participants who spent more time on the Facebook page had greater improvements in food safety attitudes and practices.

Fate of Escherichia coli O157:H7, Listeria monocytogenes , and Salmonella typhimurium during Preparation and Storage of Beef Jerky.

The fate of Escherichia coli O157:H7, Listeria monocytogenes , and Salmonella typhimurium during preparation and storage of beef jerky was determined. Control strips and one-half of the inoculated beef loin strips were marinated at 4°C overnight and dried at 60°C (140°F) for 10h. The remaining half of the inoculated samples were heated in marinade to 71.1°C (160°F). Strips were dried at 60°C (140°F) for 10 h. Microbial populations were determined at intervals during drying up to 10 h and also from samples stored at 25°C for 8 weeks at various moisture levels. In general, L. monocytogenes was more resistant to the treatments. After 3 h of drying, populations on the unheated, inoculated samples were reduced by 3.3, 1.8 and 3.1 log units, respectively, and all three were reduced by 5.5 to 6.0 log units after 10h. Reduction of the three populations on strips that were cooked prior to drying was 4.5 to 5.5 log units immediately after cooking. The populations decreased to undetectable levels after 10 h of drying. None of the three pathogens were detected on the controls. After 8 weeks of storage none of the pathogens were detected, indicating that they were unable to recover under the moisture conditions during storage.

Fate of Listeria monocytogenes and Salmonella Species in Ground Beef Jerky.

Home-style drying procedures used for jerky made from whole meat strips may be insufficient to eliminate bacterial pathogens from jerky made from ground meat due to the possible distribution of pathogens throughout the product. The fate of Listeria monocytogenes and Salmonella species during preparation of ground beef jerky was determined. Ground beef was inoculated with these pathogens to a level of approximately 106 CFU/g prior to drying. A drying method shown to reduce the population of these microorganisms by 5 log CFU/g on jerky made with beef loin strips in a home-style dehydrator maintained at 60°C (140°F) was used with unheated samples and samples heated to 71.1°C (160°F) prior to drying, with and without cure mix. Populations of each pathogen type were determined after 0, 2, 4, 6 and 8 h of drying. In unheated samples without cure mix, there was only a 2.5 to 4 log reduction in the pathogens after 8 h of drying. When cure mix was added, the populations were reduced by at least 4 logs. Population reductions in heated samples without cure were approximately 3.8 log CFU/g for Salmonella and Listeria . Addition of the cure mix resulted in a greater reduction in Salmonella populations in the heated samples.