Decontamination of Fluid Milk Containing Bacillus Spores Using Commercial Household Products

Authors: Black, D.G.¹; Taylor, T.M.²; Kerr, H.J.¹; Padhi, S.³; Montville, T.J.³; Davidson, P.M.¹

Source: Journal of Food Protection®, Volume 71, Number 3, March 2008 , pp. 473-478(6)

Publisher: International Association for Food Protection

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Abstract:

Although commercial sanitizers can inactivate bacterial spores in food processing environments, relatively little data exist as to the decontamination of products and surfaces by consumers using commercial household products. Should a large scale bioterrorism incident occur in which consumer food products were contaminated with a pathogenic sporeformer such as Bacillus anthracis, there may be a need to decontaminate these products before disposal as liquid or solid waste. Studies were conducted to test the efficacy of commercial household products for inactivating spores of Bacillus cereus (used as a surrogate for B. anthracis) in vitro and in fluid milk. Validation of the resistance of the B. cereus spores was confirmed with B. anthracis spores. Fifteen commercial products, designed as either disinfectants or sanitizers or as potential sanitizers, were purchased from retail markets. Products selected had one of the following active compounds: NaOCl, HCl, H₂O₂, acetic acid, quaternary ammonium compounds, ammonium hydroxide, citric acid, isopropanol, NaOH, or pine oil. Compounds were diluted in water (in vitro) or in 2% fat fluid milk, and spores were exposed for up to 6 h. Products containing hypochlorite were most effective against B. cereus spores. Products containing HCl or H₂O₂ also reduced significant numbers of spores but at a slower rate. The resistance of spores of surrogate B. cereus strains to chlorine-containing compounds was similar to that of B. anthracis spores. Therefore, several household products on the market may be used to decontaminate fluid milk or similar food products contaminated by spores of B. anthracis.

Document Type: Research article

Affiliations: 1: Department of Food Science & Technology, University of Tennessee, 2605 River Drive, Knoxville, Tennessee 37996, USA 2: Department of Food Science & Technology, University of Tennessee, 2605 River Drive, Knoxville, Tennessee 37996, USA; Department of Animal Science, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX 77843, USA 3: Department of Food Science, Cook College, New Jersey Agricultural Experiment Station, Rutgers, State University of New Jersey, New Brunswick, New Jersey 08901, USA

Publication date: 2008-03-01

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First published in 1937, the Journal of Food Protection^®, is a refereed monthly publication. Each issue contains scientific research and authoritative review articles reporting on a variety of topics in food science pertaining to food safety and quality. The Journal is internationally recognized as the leading publication in the field of food microbiology with a readership exceeding 11,000 scientists from 70 countries. The Journal of Food Protection^® is indexed in Index Medicus, Current Contents, BIOSIS, PubMed, Medline, and many others.

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Decontamination of Fluid Milk Containing Bacillus Spores Using Commercial Household Products

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