Effect of Vacuum Steam Treatment of Hard Red Spring Wheat on Flour Quality and Reduction of Escherichia coli O121 and Salmonella Enteritidis PT 30.

ABSTRACT: Recent outbreaks traced to contaminated flour have created a need in the milling industry for a process that reduces pathogens in wheat while maintaining its functional properties. Vacuum steam treatment is a promising technology for treatment of low-moisture foods. Traditional thermal treatment methods can compromise wheat functionality due to high temperatures; thus, maintaining the functional quality of the wheat protein was critical for this research. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of vacuum steam treatment of hard red spring (HRS) wheat kernels on final flour quality and the overall efficacy of vacuum stream treatment for reducing pathogens on HRS wheat kernels. HRS wheat samples were treated with steam under vacuum at 65, 70, 75, and 85°C for 4 and 8 min. Significant changes in dough and baked product functionality were observed for treatments at ≥70°C. Treatment time had no significant effect on the qualities evaluated. After determining that vacuum steam treatment at 65°C best preserved product quality, HRS wheat was inoculated with Escherichia coli O121 and Salmonella Enteritidis PT 30 and processed at 65°C for 0, 2, 4, 6, or 8 min. The treatments achieved a maximum average reduction of 3.57 ± 0.33 log CFU/g for E. coli O121 and 3.21 ± 0.27 log CFU/g for Salmonella. Vacuum steam treatment could be an effective pathogen inactivation method for the flour milling industry.

Laboratory bioassays of entomopathogenic fungi for control of Delia radicum (L.) larvae.

Laboratory soil bioassays were performed at economic field rates for in-furrow (3.85 x 10(6)spores/g dry soil) and broadcast (3.85 x 10(5)spores/g dry soil) applications with three isolates of Metarhizium anisopliae (F52, ATCC62176, and ARSEF5520) and one isolate of Beauveria bassiana (GHA). All isolates tested were infective to second instar Delia radicum (L.). The conditionally registered M. anisopliae isolate (F52) performed best killing an average of 85 and 72% of D. radicum larvae at the high and low concentration, respectively. The mean LC50 and LC95 of F52 against second instar D. radicum was 2.7 x 10(6) and 1.8 x 10(8)spores/g dry soil, respectively. The use of F52 in an integrated management program is discussed.