The Microbiological Safety of Low Water Activity Foods and Spices Food Microbiology and Food Safety
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Food Microbiology and Food Safety Practical Approaches Joshua B. Gurtler Michael P. Doyle Je rey L. Kornacki Editors The Microbiological Safety of Low Water Activity Foods and Spices Food Microbiology and Food Safety Series Editor: Michael P. Doyle Food Microbiology and Food Safety Series The Food Microbiology and Food Safety series is published in conjunction with the International Association for Food Protection, a non-profi t association for food safety professionals. Dedicated to the life-long educational needs of its Members, IAFP provides an information network through its two scientifi c journals (Food Protection Trends and Journal of Food Protection), its educational Annual Meeting, international meetings and symposia, and interaction between food safety professionals. Series Editor Michael P. Doyle, Regents Professor and Director of the Center for Food Safety, University of Georgia, Griffi th, GA, USA Editorial Board Francis F. Busta, Director, National Center for Food Protection and Defense, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA Patricia Desmarchelier, Food Safety Consultant, Brisbane, Australia Jeffrey Farber, Bureau of Microbial Hazards, Ottawa, ON, Canada David Golden, Professor of Microbiology, Department of Food Science and Technology, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN, USA Vijay Juneja, Supervisory Lead Scientist, USDA-ARS, Philadelphia, PA, USA More information about this series at http://www.springer.com/series/7131 Joshua B. Gurtler • Michael P. Doyle Jeffrey L. Kornacki Editors The Microbiological Safety of Low Water Activity Foods and Spices Editors Joshua B. Gurtler Michael P. Doyle U.S. Department of Agriculture ARS, University of Georgia Center of Food Safety Eastern Regional Research Center Griffi n , GA , USA Food Safety Intervention Technologies Wyndmoor , PA , USA Jeffrey L. Kornacki Kornacki Microbiology Solutions, Inc. Madison , WI , USA ISBN 978-1-4939-2061-7 ISBN 978-1-4939-2062-4 (eBook) DOI 10.1007/978-1-4939-2062-4 Springer New York Heidelberg Dordrecht London Library of Congress Control Number: 2014956012 © Springer Science+Business Media New York 2014 This work is subject to copyright. All rights are reserved by the Publisher, whether the whole or part of the material is concerned, specifi cally the rights of translation, reprinting, reuse of illustrations, recitation, broadcasting, reproduction on microfi lms or in any other physical way, and transmission or information storage and retrieval, electronic adaptation, computer software, or by similar or dissimilar methodology now known or hereafter developed. Exempted from this legal reservation are brief excerpts in connection with reviews or scholarly analysis or material supplied specifi cally for the purpose of being entered and executed on a computer system, for exclusive use by the purchaser of the work. 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The publisher makes no warranty, express or implied, with respect to the material contained herein. Printed on acid-free paper Springer is part of Springer Science+Business Media (www.springer.com) Contents Part I Introduction and Overview The Microbiological Safety of Spices and Low- Water Activity Foods: Correcting Historic Misassumptions .................................. 3 Joshua B. Gurtler , Michael P. Doyle , and Jeffrey L. Kornacki Challenges in the Control of Foodborne Pathogens in Low-Water Activity Foods and Spices ...................................................... 15 S o fi a M. Santillana Farakos and Joseph F. Frank Part II Pathogen Persistence and Control in Low aw Foods and Processing Plants Adaptation of Pathogenic Microorganisms to Dry Conditions .................. 37 Pieter Breeuwer Transcriptomic Responses of Salmonella Species to Desiccation and Low-Moisture Environments: Extending Our Knowledge of How Bacteria Cope with Low-Moisture Stress ........................................ 49 Sarah Finn , Peter McClure , Alejandro Amézquita , and Séamus Fanning Processing Plant Investigations: Practical Approaches to Determining Sources of Persistent Bacterial Strains in the Industrial Food Processing Environment ........................................... 67 Jeffrey L. Kornacki Dry Cleaning, Wet Cleaning, and Alternatives to Processing Plant Hygiene and Sanitation ........................................................................ 85 Scott L. Burnett and Robert Hagberg v vi Contents Part III Low aw Food Commodities of Interest Spices ................................................................................................................ 99 Joan M. Pinkas and Susanne E. Keller Dried Dairy-Based Products .......................................................................... 115 Jeffrey L. Kornacki and Greg Desautels Low-Water Activity Meat Products .............................................................. 127 Peter J. Taormina and John N. Sofos Dried Ready-to-Eat Cereal Products ............................................................ 165 Scott K. Hood Powdered Infant Formula .............................................................................. 177 Stephen Forsythe Nuts and Nut Pastes ........................................................................................ 213 John C. Frelka and Linda J. Harris Flour and Meal ................................................................................................ 245 Deann Akins-Lewenthal Chocolate and Confectionary ......................................................................... 269 David C. Bean and Laurie S. Post Salty Snack Foods ........................................................................................... 295 Jeff Kuehm and Diana Casas Pet Foods .......................................................................................................... 315 Bradley A. Stawick and Jeffrey L. Kornacki Dried Teas and Herbs ..................................................................................... 329 Li Maria Ma , Shefali Dobhal , and Chris Timmons Part IV Product Testing Regulatory Testing Guidelines and Recommendations ............................... 347 Warren E. Stone Methodological and Sampling Challenges to Testing Spices and Low-Water Activity Food for the Presence of Foodborne Pathogens ................................................................................. 367 Jean-Louis Cordier Contents vii Part V Low aw Food Decontamination Irradiation, Microwave, and Alternative Energy-Based Treatments for Low-Water Activity Foods ................................................... 389 Brendan A. Niemira Heat and Steam Treatments ........................................................................... 403 Elizabeth M. Grasso , Christina N. Stam , Nathan M. Anderson , and Kathiravan Krishnamurthy Part VI Research Needs Research Gaps and Needs Pertaining to Microbial Pathogens in Spices and Low-aw Foods ........................................................................... 427 Margaret Hardin Index ................................................................................................................. 441 Part I Introduction and Overview The Microbiological Safety of Spices and Low- Water Activity Foods: Correcting Historic Misassumptions Joshua B. Gurtler , Michael P. Doyle , and Jeffrey L. Kornacki Abstract Low-water activity (low-a w ) foods (those with aw < 0.70), which were once thought to be microbiologically safe, have, in recent years, been shown to be contami- nated with foodborne pathogens, most notably and frequently Salmonella spp., leading to numerous food product recalls and foodborne illness outbreaks. Low- aw food products can no longer be considered inherently safe, simply because Salmonella will not grow in such products. Therefore, diligence must be applied to ensure that safe food practices are employed for low- aw foods. Areas of concern include the sourcing of major and minor ingredients, unsanitary drying or storage conditions, contaminated processing equipment or improper maintenance, faulty sanitary design of manufacturing or processing equip- ment, sick or infected employees, cross-contamination of ready-to-eat foods, improper sanitation procedures, improper testing methods, inappropriate sampling plans, failure to act on foodborne pathogen-positive samples, and failure to validate and verify antimicro- bial intervention treatments. Other areas in need of attention include failure to implement approved Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP) plans in manufacturing facilities, improper supplier or importer standards or failure to monitor or audit suppliers for hygiene and pathogen control, a faulty assumption that a given low-a w food