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ARS Home » Northeast Area » Beltsville, Maryland (BARC) » Beltsville Agricultural Research Center » Environmental Microbial & Food Safety Laboratory » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #313544
Title: Reducing Listeria spp. and Escherichia coli O157:H12 on cantaloupes at pre-harvest level by octenidine hydrochloride

Author
item KEELARA, SHIVA - University Of Maryland
item Patel, Jitu
item MACARISIN, DUMITRU - Us Food & Drug Administration (FDA)
item VENKITANARAYANAN, KUMAR - University Of Connecticut

Submitted to: International Association for Food Protection
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: 3/17/2015
Publication Date: 7/25/2015
Citation: Keelara, S., Patel, J.R., Macarisin, D., Venkitanarayanan, K. 2015. Reducing Listeria spp. and Escherichia coli O157:H12 on cantaloupes at pre-harvest level by octenidine hydrochloride. International Association for Food Protection. p.01-165.

Interpretive Summary: .

Technical Abstract: Introduction: Cantaloupes have been increasingly implicated in outbreaks of human illnesses in recent years. The cantaloupe industry has traditionally relied on various chemical wash treatments to reduce pathogens at post-harvest level. Effective interventions applied at the pre-harvest level could also decrease pathogens on the fruit, and reduce the risk of foodborne outbreaks. Purpose: To determine the efficacy of a potent and safe bispyridinamine compound, octenidine dihydrochloride (OH) was applied as a pre-harvest spray for reducing Listeria spp. and Escherichia coli O157:H12 on cantaloupes. Methods: Cantaloupe plants grown for 3 weeks in a growth chamber were transplanted in a high-tunnel. Mature fruits (n=60) were dip-inoculated for 10 sec in a fecal slurry containing L. innocua or E. coli O157:H12, allowed to air-dry for 15 min, and then sprayed with 15 ml of .1% ethanol (n=20), 0.1% OH (n=20) or 0.2% OH (n=20). Three cantaloupes from each group were harvested on days 0, 14, and 28; 2-cm dia cores (n=21) were sampled from each cantaloupe and sub-grouped into three samples of 7 cores each. These core samples were analyzed for surviving Listeria and E. coli O157:H12 by direct-plating on selective media and MPN. Results: Initial Listeria and E. coli O157:H12 populations on control cantaloupes were 6.4 and 4.6 log cfu/cm2, respectively. Spraying cantaloupes with 0.1% ethanol did not result in significant reductions in pathogen counts. All OH treatments reduced Listeria and E. coli on cantaloupes by 1 and 1.5 log CFU/cm2, respectively, on day 0. On day 28, Listeria was reduced by ~ 2 log CFU/cm2, whereas E. coli populations on cantaloupes were reduced to undetectable levels. Significance: The results of this study indicate that OH is effective in reducing E. coli and Listeria spp. and could potentially be used for decontaminating cantaloupes at the farm level.