title: Alternative Antimicrobial Commercial Egg Washing Procedures.
abstract: Commercial table eggs are washed prior to packaging. Standard wash procedures use an alkaline pH and warm water. If a cool water method could be developed that would still provide a microbiologically safe egg, the industry may save energy costs associated with water heating. Four wash procedures were evaluated for Salmonella reduction: pH 11 at 48.9°C (industry standard), pH 11 at ambient temperature (∼20°C), pH 6 at 48.9°C, and pH 6 at ambient temperature. Alkaline washes contained potassium hydroxide-based detergent, while pH 6 washes contained approximately 200 ppm of chlorine and a proprietary chlorine stabilizer (T-128). When eggs were inoculated by immersion in a cell suspension of Salmonella Enteritidis and Salmonella Typhimurium, all treatments resulted in a slight and similar reduction of Salmonella numbers (approximately 0.77 log CFU/ml of shell emulsion reduction). When eggs were inoculated by droplet on the shell surface, Salmonella counts were reduced by approximately 5 log CFU when washed with chlorine plus the chlorine stabilizer at both temperatures and with the alkaline wash at the high temperature. The reductions in Salmonella by these treatments were not significantly (P > 0.05) different from each other but were significantly (P < 0.05) more than the reduction observed for the 20°C alkaline treatment and 20°C control water treatments. Ambient temperature acidic washes reduced Salmonella contamination to the same degree as the standard pH 11 warm water wash and may be a viable option to reduce cost, increase shelf life, and slow pathogen growth in and on shell eggs.
authors.affiliation: Department of Food Science and Technology, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia 30602, USA.
authors.forename: Lauren K
authors.initials: LK
authors.lastname: Hudson
authors.affiliation: Department of Food Science and Technology, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia 30602, USA. mahfst@uga.edu.
authors.forename: Mark A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Harrison
authors.affiliation: Bacterial Epidemiology and Antimicrobial Resistance Research Unit, Agricultural Research Service, 950 College Station Road, Athens, Georgia 30605, USA.
authors.forename: Mark E
authors.initials: ME
authors.lastname: Berrang
authors.affiliation: Egg Safety and Quality Research Unit, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service, 950 College Station Road, Athens, Georgia 30605, USA.
authors.forename: Deana R
authors.initials: DR
authors.lastname: Jones
mesh_terms: D000890:Anti-Infective Agents; D002713:Chlorine; D015169:Colony Count, Microbial; D004531:Eggs / Q000382:microbiology*; D005516:Food Microbiology; D012477:Salmonella enteritidis; D012486:Salmonella typhimurium; D013696:Temperature
chemical_list: D000890:Anti-Infective Agents; D002713:Chlorine