Food safety featured in Fresh from the Field

The future of food processing disinfectants

With support from NIFA's Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI), a research team from University of California, Davis is developing new disinfection methods to reduce cross-contamination during food processing. While many traditional methods for disinfection exist; they do not completely remove or deactivate bacteria in protected structures called “biofilms."

Antibacterial membranes are a new approach to reduce the formation of bacterial biofilms that cause outbreaks. These membranes can inactivate pathogens like Listeria moncytogenes and pathogenic E.coli on contact, and prevent outbreaks in the food processing industry. The researchers found that these membranes afford continuous sanitation and disinfection of surfaces and can be used as a lining material for many devices, including conveyor belts. These membranes may also affect the biomedical sciences and could be used in hospitals to prevent bacterial biofilm from forming.

Learn more at  Applied and Environmental Microbiology. Image provided by iStock.

Education as a way to reduce STEC contamination

Shigatoxin-producing E.coli, also known as STEC, causes more than 260,000 illnesses, 3,000 hospitalizations, and 30 deaths each year, according to the Center for Disease Control (CDC).

Scientists from Kansas State University developed a series of free training modules, Translation of STEC: Mitigation to Field Implementation, to teach meat processors, producers, distributors and restaurant workers how to safely control STEC-related contamination. This curriculum is offered in both English and Spanish, and consists of 11 modules targeting pre- and post-harvest STEC prevention in veal and beef. Some of the topics include pre-harvest operations of the feedlot, veal housing, and post-harvest operations.

NIFA supports the research through the Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI).

Learn more at Animal Care Training. Image provided by iStock.

Ground zero for Salmonella 

Cows suffer from Salmonella-related illnesses just as much as people. Infected cows that carry Salmonella Cerro can produce contaminated milk, and this can pose a risk for consumers and farm workers handling sick animals. Martin Wiedmann, a Cornell University microbiologist, is working to solve the mystery and trace the origin of Salmonella Cerro. He employed a tool known as comparative genomics, which allows scientists to align and analyze DNA sequences from hundreds of genomes to identify common traits as well as those acquired from other microbes.

Comparative genomics allowed Wiedmann's team to identify point mutations – deviations from the DNA sequence that led them to the common ancestor and a geographic origin of the Salmonella Cerro outbreak strain. 

NIFA supports the research through the Hatch Act funds.

Read more at Science Direct. Image provided by Martin Wiedmann.

Food safety toolbox

Annually, over 800,000 Americans suffer from campylobacteriosis, an infectious diarrheal disease. Scientists from Iowa State University developed an on-line toolbox that helps consumers, producers and processors to manage and reduce the incidence of human illness caused by Campylobacter jejuni.

The resource provides tips to reduce campylobacteriosis in humans; on-farm risk assessment to identify production vulnerabilities; and reduce carcass contamination in commercial and back-yard flocks. 

NIFA supports the research through the Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI).

Learn more at Campypoultry.org. Image provided by iStock.

When celebrities fail, scientific approach prevails 

Julia Child was quoted, “Always remember, if you are alone in the kitchen and you drop the lamb, you can always just pick it up. Who is going to know?”  

Millions of TV viewers who tune in to see their favorite celebrity chefs “kick it up a notch,” also pick up on their food safety habits. In a recent study, a group of scientists led by Dr. Sandria Godwin at Tennessee State University watched 100 episodes of cooking shows and graded TV chefs on their food safety habits. It turns out that TV celebrities are poor food safety role models. Some of their kitchen manners were downright dangerous: 79 percent of them added food with their hands, only twelve percent of them were seen washing their hands after handling uncooked meats, 75 percent of celebrity chefs did not use thermometers to check doneness of meat dishes, and 25 percent of them used the same cutting boards for prepping raw meats and ready-to-eat items. To help home cooks, Godwin's team developed an online cookbook, which incorporates clear food safety messages to improve food safety in the kitchen.

NIFA supports the research through the Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI).

Watch the Eureka Alert video. Image provided by Dr. Sandria Godwin- Tennessee State University.