Author
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Flores, Rolando |
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Submitted to: Meeting Abstract
Publication Type: Abstract Only Publication Acceptance Date: 5/15/2004 Publication Date: 8/22/2004 Citation: Flores, R.A. 2004. Modeling the behavior and fate of microbial pathogen in particle reduction food processing operations. Meeting Abstract. AGFD0156 Interpretive Summary: Technical Abstract: Particle size reduction equipment, such as grinders and cutters, has wide application in food processes. Several studies have associated the particle reduction operation with product contamination by pathogenic organisms when processing meat. Models that describe the contamination and distribution of ground beef contaminated with pathogenic organisms, such as Escherichia coli O157:H7, have been developed for small and medium scale grinders as well as for a bowl-cutter. The contamination models describe the amount of ground beef contaminated as a function of the E. coli O157:H7 inoculated in the beef trims using linear and exponential models. The distribution models describe the contamination pattern as a function of the batch fraction processed in meat grinders and as a probability distribution function in a bowl-cutter. The concentration of pathogenic organisms was identified as localized in selected components of the particle reduction equipment, thus deserving special attention from food processors when conducting sanitation operations. |
