The incidence of foodborne outbreaks involving fresh produce is of worldwide concern. Lytic bacteriophage cocktails and a levulinic acid produce wash were investigated for their effectiveness against the foodborne pathogens Escherichia coli O157:H7, Shigella spp., and Salmonella on broccoli, cantaloupe, and strawberries. Inoculated samples were treated with bacteriophage cocktails (BC) before storage at 10°C for 24 h, a levulinic acid produce wash (PW) after storage at 10°C for 24 h, or a combination of the washes (BCPW) before and after storage. All three treatments were compared against a 200-ppm free available chlorine wash. Wash solutions were prepared using potable water and water with an increased organic content of 2.5 g/liter total dissolved solids and total organic carbon. BCPW was the most effective treatment, producing the highest log reductions in the pathogens. Produce treated with BCPW in potable water with a PW exposure time of 5 min resulted in the highest reduction of each pathogen for all samples tested. The type of produce and wash solution had significant effects on the efficacy of the individual treatments. The chlorine wash in water with higher organic content was the least effective treatment tested. An additive effect of BCPW was seen in water with higher organic content, resulting in greater than 4.0-log reductions in pathogens. Our findings indicate that the combination of antimicrobial BC with a commercial produce wash is a very effective method for treating produce contaminated with E. coli O157:H7, Shigella spp., and Salmonella even in the presence of high loads of organic matter.

Foods contaminated with Escherichia coli O157:H7 cause more than 63,000 foodborne illnesses in the United States every year, resulting in a significant economic impact on medical costs and product liabilities. Efforts to reduce contamination with E. coli O157:H7 have largely focused on washing, application of various antibacterial chemicals, and gamma-irradiation, each of which has practical and environmental drawbacks. A relatively recent, environmentally-friendly approach proposed for eliminating or significantly reducing E. coli O157:H7 contamination of foods is the use of lytic bacteriophages as biocontrol agents. We found that EcoShield™, a commercially available preparation composed of three lytic bacteriophages specific for E. coli O157:H7, significantly (p < 0.05) reduced the levels of the bacterium in experimentally contaminated beef by ≥ 94% and in lettuce by 87% after a five minute contact time. The reduced levels of bacteria were maintained for at least one week at refrigerated temperatures. However, the one-time application of EcoShield™ did not protect the foods from recontamination with E. coli O157:H7. Our results demonstrate that EcoShield™ is effective in significantly reducing contamination of beef and lettuce with E. coli O157:H7, but does not protect against potential later contamination due to, for example, unsanitary handling of the foods post processing.

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Developments in rapid detection technologies have made countless improvements over the years. However, because of the limited sample that these technologies can process in a single run, the chance of capturing and identifying a small amount of pathogens is difficult. The problem is further magnified by the natural random distribution of pathogens in foods. Methods to simplify pathogenic detection through the identification of bacteria specific VOC were studied. E. coli O157:H7 and Salmonella typhimurium were grown on selected agar medium to model protein, and carbohydrate based foods. Pathogenic and common spoilage bacteria (Pseudomonas and Morexella) were screened for unique VOC production. Bacteria were grown on agar slants in closed vials. Headspace sampling was performed at intervals up to 24 hours using Solid Phase MicroExtraction (SPME) techniques followed by GC/MS analysis. Development of unique volatiles was followed to establish sensitivity of detection. E. coli produced VOC that were not found in either Trypticase Soy Yeast agar (TSYA) blanks or spoilage organism samples were -indole, 1-decanol, and 2-nonanone. Salmonella specific VOC from TSYA were 3-methyl-1-butanol, dimethyl sulfide, 2-undecanol, 2-pentadecanol and 1-octanol. Trials on potato dextrose agar (PDA) slants indicated VOC specific for E. coli and Salmonella when compared to PDA blanks and Pseudomonas samples. However, these VOC peaks were similar for both pathogens. Morexella did not grow on PDA slants.