Evaluation of Immersion and Spray Applications of Antimicrobial Treatments for Reduction of Campylobacter jejuni on Chicken Wings

Abstract

The decontamination efficacy of antimicrobial treatments against Campylobacter jejuni on chicken wings was evaluated. Chicken wings surface-inoculated with C. jejuni (3.9 log colony-forming units [CFU]/mL) were left untreated (control) or were treated by immersion (5 s) or in a spray cabinet (4 s) with water, a sulfuric acid and sodium sulfate blend (SSS; pH 1.2), formic acid (1.5%), peroxyacetic acid (PAA; 550 ppm), or PAA (550 ppm) that was pH-adjusted (acidified) with SSS (pH 1.2) or formic acid (1.5%). All evaluated immersion and spray chemical treatments effectively (p < 0.05) lowered C. jejuni populations on chicken wings. Spray application of chemical treatments resulted in immediate pathogen reductions ranging from 0.5 to 1.2 log CFU/mL, whereas their application by immersion lowered initial pathogen levels by 1.7 to 2.2 log CFU/mL. The PAA and acidified PAA treatments were equally (p ≥ 0.05) effective at reducing initial C. jejuni populations, however, following a 24 h refrigerated (4 °C) storage period, wings treated with acidified PAA had lower (p < 0.05) pathogen levels than samples that had been treated with PAA that was not acidified. Findings of this study should be useful to the poultry industry in its efforts to control Campylobacter contamination on chicken parts.

Comparison of peroxyacetic acid and acidified sodium chlorite at reducing natural microbial contamination on chicken meat pieces

“…Similar results have been shown for chicken wings inoculated with multiple Salmonella serotypes ( Scott et al, 2015 ). PAA has also been shown to significantly reduce artificially inoculated Campylobacter on chicken wings obtained postspin chill ( Zhang et al, 2018 ; Gonzalez et al, 2021 ).…”

“…Evaluation of sanitizer effectiveness at reducing microbial contamination on cut chicken pieces, however, is challenging due to the high degree of variation in sample type, bacterial load on equipment, and sanitization parameters. In efficacy studies, drumsticks and wings have been most commonly used ( Scott et al, 2015 ; Zhang et al, 2018 ; Kataria et al, 2020 ; Olson et al, 2020 ; Gonzalez et al, 2021 ) and are frequently obtained at different points during processing. Additionally, many sanitizer efficacy studies have experimentally inoculated chicken meat pieces with cultured bacterial strains ( Scott et al, 2015 ; Kataria et al, 2020 ; Gonzalez et al, 2021 ).…”

“…In efficacy studies, drumsticks and wings have been most commonly used ( Scott et al, 2015 ; Zhang et al, 2018 ; Kataria et al, 2020 ; Olson et al, 2020 ; Gonzalez et al, 2021 ) and are frequently obtained at different points during processing. Additionally, many sanitizer efficacy studies have experimentally inoculated chicken meat pieces with cultured bacterial strains ( Scott et al, 2015 ; Kataria et al, 2020 ; Gonzalez et al, 2021 ). The adherence and invasion (into skin epithelia and/or pores, follicles) of cultured bacteria, however, may be different than that for bacteria that naturally contaminate chicken meat.…”

Progress on Nutrient Composition, Meat Standardization, Grading, Processing, and Safety for Different Types of Meat Sources

“…Six articles are presented on food safety. One article evaluates four antimicrobials on refrigerated pork loins [ 9 ], another assesses the antimicrobial application mode (immersion vs. spray) to reduce Campylobacter jejuni in chicken wings [ 10 ], four deal with physical and/or chemical interventions, such as the use of UV-C solely or in conjunction with antimicrobials [ 11 , 12 ], refrigeration technologies (dry chilling vs. spray chilling) combined with hot water washing by bio-mapping of indicator organisms on beef striploins during storage [ 13 ], and in-plant validation of a novel aqueous ozone generation technology compared to lactic acid solutions for suppressing the growth of natural microbiota, i.e., E. coli O157:H7 and Salmonella surrogates, on beef carcasses and trimmings [ 14 ].…”

“…Gonzalez et al [ 10 ] inoculated surfaces of fresh, skin-on, chicken wings with 3.9 log colony-forming units [CFU]/mL) of a mixture of six Campylobacter jejuni strains of poultry origin. The inoculated wings were left untreated, to serve as controls, or they were treated by immersion or spray application of water, a blend of sulfuric acid and sodium sulfate (pH 1.2; SSS), formic acid (1.5%; FA), peroxyacetic acid (550 ppm; PAA), PAA (550 ppm) acidified with SSS (pH 1.2; SSS-aPAA), or PAA (550 ppm) acidified with formic acid (1.5%; FA-aPAA).…”