ARS | Publication request: Comparison of Hot Water Surface Pasteurization and Chlorine Wash Treatments for Reducing Populations of Salmonella Poona on Inoculated Whole Cantaloupe Melons

Submitted to: Meeting Abstract
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: March 31, 2008
Publication Date: May 5, 2008
Citation: Annous, B. 2008. Comparison of Hot Water Surface Pasteurization and Cholorine Wash Treatments for Reducing Populations of Salmonella Poona on Inoculated Whole Cantaloupe melons [abstract].United Fresh Produce Assn. and S-294 Annual Meeting. Las Vegas,NV. p.1.

Technical Abstract: Numerous outbreaks of salmonellosis have been associated with the consumption of cantaloupes. Commercial chlorine wash treatments for cantaloupes are limited in their ability to inactivate and/or remove the human pathogen, Salmonella Poona. Our objective was to compare efficacy of hot water surface pasteurization treatment to those of sodium hypochlorite (200 ppm chlorine) and acidic electrolyzed water (50 ppm chlorine) wash treatments in inactivating S. Poona on artificially inoculated cantaloupes. Whole cantaloupes, surface inoculated with S. Poona to a final cell concentration of 5 - 6 log CFU/cm2 were stored at 4C or room temperature for up to 48 h prior to processing. Washing treatments with tap water at 76C for 3 min, 24 and 48 h post inoculation, resulted in excess of 5 and 3 log CFU/cm2 reductions in S. Poona, and naturally occurring yeast and mold populations on the melon rind, respectively. Sodium hypochlorite and acidic electrolyzed water wash treatments at RT for 20 min resulted in less than 2 log reductions in S. Poona, and yeast and mold populations. These results demonstrate the utility of hot water for the inactivation of Salmonella on cantaloupes and provide a framework to producers of fresh-cut melon for the potential use of hot water as an intervention treatment for enhancing the microbiological safety of this commodity.