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IN THE NEWS

Edited by: Marissa Bunning, Ph.D., Mary Schroeder, M.S., R.D, Pat Kendall, Ph.D., R.D., Colorado State - Spring 2008

TOP SAFEFOOD NEWS ARTICLES ACCESSED IN 2007

From acrylamide to zoonotic diseases, SafeFood News has been providing information on current food safety topics for food safety education professionals since the fall of 1996. A unique feature of SafeFood News is that articles from all 34 newsletters are archived and remain available online. These articles serve as valuable references in the area of food safety. For example, the article Oil Infusions and the Risk of Botulism from the Summer 1998 issue is listed as a reference for the topic Botulism on Wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Botulism).

Here are some of the articles accessed most often in 2007 (our "oldies but goodies"):

• Safety of Amish Friendship Bread and Similar Sourdough Products (Winter 1996)
• Study Highlights Effectiveness of Alcohol Gel Sanitizers (Summer 2005)
• Hand Hygiene Revisited: Another Look at Hand Sanitizers and Antibacterial Soap (Spring 2004)
• Are Plastic Baby Bottles Unsafe? (Summer 1999)
• Oil Infusions & the Risk of Botulism (Summer 1998)
• Sushi: Minimizing the Food Safety Risk (Spring 2006)
• Raw Milk: Why Pasteurize? (Winter 2006)

CUT TOMATOES ADDED TO POTENTIALLY HAZARDOUS FOODS (PHF) LIST

By Hana'a Thigeel, CSU Animal Sciences Student

Based on input from the 2006 Conference for Food Protection, cut tomatoes have been added to the list of foods in the 2007 Supplement to the FDA Food Code that need "Time and Temperature Control for Safety" (TCS). Such foods were formerly referred to as "Potentially Hazardous Foods" or PHF. Why tomatoes? In a word, Salmonella.

Salmonellahas been related to several outbreaks caused by the consumption of raw fruits and vegetables that may have been contaminated prior to harvest. Tomatoes, in particular, are considered a potential vehicle of salmonellosis and have been identified as the cause of multistate outbreaks. Different types of tomatoes, including beefsteak, Roma and grape tomatoes, have been associated with foodborne illness. Research studies have shown that tomato stems and flowers contaminated with the pathogen can produce fruits that are contaminated with Salmonellaas well.

The most common Salmonellaserotype associated with tomatoes is S. Javiana, which caused outbreaks in Illinois, Michigan, Minnesota, and Wisconsin in 1990. However, other serotypes have also caused outbreaks of salmonellosis associated with tomatoes. For example, S. Newport was implicated in an outbreak in 2002, which involved 510 cases in 26 states and was associated with tomatoes grown and packed on the eastern shore of Virginia. SalmonellaMontevideo and SalmonellaBraenderup have also been implicated in multi-state outbreaks of salmonellosis associated with tomatoes. Multiple sources, from farm level all the way through processing, may contribute to or facilitate contamination of tomatoes. These sources can include domestic and wild animals, irrigation water, runoff water from livestock farms close to fields, wash water, farm and retail workers, and contact with contaminated surfaces. Salmonellacan be still viable for 45 days in a moist soil, and according to Greene and others (2008), surface waters are more likely to be contaminated compared to protected wells.

To prevent contamination, it is important for growers, harvesters, retailers, and food service employees to follow safe handling recommendations. Food handlers and consumers should be aware of the need to refrigerate after slicing, because cut tomatoes provide an excellent environment for bacterial growth.

Sources:

1. CDC. 2005. Outbreaks of SalmonellaInfections Associated with Eating Roma Tomatoes ---United States and Canada. MMWR. 54:325-329. Available at: http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm5413a1.htm
2. Hardy, A. 2004. Salmonella: A continuing problem. Postgraduate Medical Journal, 80: 541-545.
3. Guo, X., Chen J., Brackett, R., & Beuchat, L. 2002. Survival of Salmonellaon tomatoes stored at high relative humidity, in soil, and on tomatoes in contact with soil. J. Food Prot. 65: 274-279.
4. Greene, S., Daly, E., Talbot, E., Demma, L., Holzbauer, S., Patel, N. 2008. Recurrent Multistate outbreak of SalmonellaNewport associated with tomatoes from contaminated Fields, 2005. Epidemiology and Infection, 136:157-165.
5. Srikantiah, P., et al. 2005. Web-based investigation of multi-state salmonellosis outbreak. Emerging Infectious Diseases, 11: 610-612.
6. Guo, X, et al. 2001. Survival of salmonellae on and in tomato plants from the time of inoculation at flowering and early stages of fruit development through fruit ripening. Applied and Environ Micro, 67, 4760-4764.
7. Food and Drug Administration. 1998. Guidance for industry: Guide to minimize microbial food safety hazards for fresh fruits and vegetables. Available at: http://www.cfsan.fda.gov/~dms/prodguid.html.
8. U.S. Food and Drug Administration. October 5, 2007. Supplement to the 2005 FDA Food Code. Available at: http://www.cfsan.fda.gov/~dms/fc05-sup.html.

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