Kombucha brewing under the Food and Drug Administration model Food Code: risk analysis and processing guidance.

Kombucha is a fermented beverage made from brewed tea and sugar. The taste is slightly sweet and acidic and it may have residual carbon dioxide. Kombucha is consumed in many countries as a health beverage and it is gaining in popularity in the U.S. Consequently, many retailers and food service operators are seeking to brew this beverage on site. As a fermented beverage, kombucha would be categorized in the Food and Drug Administration model Food Code as a specialized process and would require a variance with submission of a food safety plan. This special report was created to assist both operators and regulators in preparing or reviewing a kombucha food safety plan.

Survival of Salmonella serovars introduced as a post-aging contaminant during storage of low-salt Cheddar cheese at 4, 10, and 21 °C.

UNLABELLED: The microbiological stability of low-salt cheese has not been well documented. This study examined the survival of Salmonella in low-salt compared to regular salt Cheddar cheese with 2 pH levels. Cheddar cheeses were formulated at 0.7% and 1.8% NaCl (wt/wt) with both low and high-pH and aged for 12 wk resulting in four treatments: 0.7% NaCl and pH 5.1 (low-salt and low-pH); 0.7% NaCl and pH 5.5 (low-salt and high-pH); 1.8% NaCl and pH 5.7 (standard-salt and high-pH); and 1.8% NaCl and pH 5.3 (standard-salt and low-pH). Each treatment was comminuted and inoculated with a 5-serovar cocktail of Salmonella at a target level of 4 log CFU/g, then divided and incubated at 4, 10 and 21 °C for up to 90, 90, and 30 d, respectively. Salmonella counts decreased by 2.8 to 3.9 log CFU/g in all treatments. In the initial period of survival study, standard-salt treatments exhibited significantly lower Salmonella counts compared to low-salt treatments. The pH levels did not exhibit obvious significant effect in the Salmonella survival in low-salt treatments. Salmonella counts declined gradually regardless of a continuous increase in pH (end pH of 5.3 to 5.9) of low-salt treatments at all study temperatures. Salmonella counts were reduced faster at 21 °C storage. Although there were significant reductions in Salmonella counts, the treatments demonstrated survival of Salmonella for up to 90 d when stored at 4 or 10 °C and for up to 30 d at 21 °C, the need for good sanitation practices to prevent postmanufacturing cross contamination remains. PRACTICAL APPLICATION: Low-salt aged Cheddar cheese could not support the growth of inoculated Salmonella and in fact gradual reduction in Salmonella count occurred during storage. Besides being nutritionally better, low or reduced salt Cheddar are safe as their full salt counterparts and that salt may only be a minor food safety hurdle regarding the post-aging contamination and growth of Salmonella. However, the treatments could not demonstrate complete destruction of Salmonella for up to 90 d when stored at 4 or 10 °C and for up to 30 d at 21 °C, the need for good sanitation practices to prevent postmanufacturing cross-contamination remains.

Surveying the food safety training needs of environmental health specialists in the U.S.

As part of a U.S. Department of Agriculture Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service grant, six focus group sessions on the topic of food safety education and training were held June 24, 2008, at NEHA's Annual Educational Conference & Exhibition in Tucson, Arizona. A total of 30 participants attended one of the six 50-minute sessions. Participants were NEHA conference attendees and nearly all stated they had a food safety training and education role in their job. A series of questions related to food safety at retail and food service levels was asked. This report summarizes some of the opinions provided by focus group participants.

Process optimization and consumer acceptability of salted ground beef patties cooked and held hot in flavored marinade.

UNLABELLED: Food safety is paramount for cooking hamburger. The center must reach 71 °C (or 68 °C for 15 s) to assure destruction of E. coli O157:H7 and other food pathogens. This is difficult to achieve during grilling or frying of thick burgers without overcooking the surface. Thus, the feasibility of partially or completely cooking frozen patties in liquid (93 °C water) together with hot holding in liquid was investigated. Initial studies demonstrated that compared to frying, liquid cooking decreased (P < 0.05) patty diameter (98 compared with 93 mm) and increased (P < 0.05) thickness (18.1 compared with 15.6 mm). Liquid cooked patties had greater weight loss (P < 0.05) immediately after cooking (29 compared with 21%), but reabsorbed moisture and were not different from fried patties after 1 h hot water holding (61 °C). Protein and fat content were not affected by cooking method. However, liquid cooked patties were rated lower (P < 0.05) than fried patties for appearance (5.7 compared with 7.5) and flavor (5.9 compared with 7.5). An 8-member focus group then evaluated methods to improve both appearance and flavor. Salted, grill-marked patties were preferred, and caramel coloring was needed in the marinade to obtain acceptable flavor and color during liquid cooking or hot holding. Patties with 0.75% salt that were grill-marked and then finish-cooked in hot marinade (0.75% salt, 0.3% caramel color) were rated acceptable (P < 0.05) by consumers for up to 4 h hot holding in marinade, with mean hedonic panel ratings > 7.0 (like moderately) for appearance, juiciness, flavor, and texture. PRACTICAL APPLICATION: Grill-marked and marinade-cooked ground beef patties reached a safe internal cooking temperature without overcooking the surface. Burgers cooked using this method maintained high consumer acceptability right after cooking and for up to 4 h of hot holding. Consumers and foodservice operations could use this method without specialized equipment, and instead use inexpensive and common equipment such as a soup pot or a restaurant steam table. Use of marinades (salt/caramel color or others) in this cooking and holding method provides a nearly endless culinary flavoring opportunity.

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.