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ARS Home » Northeast Area » Wyndmoor, Pennsylvania » Eastern Regional Research Center » Food Safety and Intervention Technologies Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #270898
Title: Irradiation of ready-to-eat meats for pathogen control

Author
item Sommers, Christopher
item MACKAY, WILLIAM - Edinboro University Of Pennsylvania

Submitted to: Book Chapter
Publication Type: Book / Chapter
Publication Acceptance Date: 8/14/2011
Publication Date: N/A
Citation: N/A

Interpretive Summary:

Technical Abstract: Ionizing (gamma) radiation is a safe and effective technology that can be used to inactivate foodborne pathogens in a variety of food types, including ready-to-eat (RTE) meats. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is currently evaluating a petition to allow irradiation of RTE meats in the U.S. In this study the ability of ionizing radiation to inactivate Salmonella spp., Staphylococcus aureus, Listeria monocytogenes, Escherichia coli O157:H7, and Yersinia enterocolitica on a variety of RTE meats including deli turkey, ham, pastrami, beef bologna, bacon bits, and pepperoni. A radiation dose of 3.75 kGy inactivated all of the foodborne pathogens by a minimum of five log (99.999%), on all of the RTE meat types, which is sufficient to be labeled as pasteurized according to current regulatory requirements.